COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN
Resumed twenty-sixth session 
Geneva, 6–17 December 1976 
Item 9 

ADOPTION OF THE REPORT OF THE COMMISSION 
ON ITS RESUMED TWENTY-SIXTH SESSION 

DRAFT REPORT 

Rapporteur: Homa ROUHI (Iran) 

Chapter ........ INTERNATIONAL INSTRUMENTS 
		RELATING TO THE STATUS OF WOMEN 

(a) Draft convention on the elimination of discrimination against women

Article 21 

1. Article 21 dealing with the implementation of the convention was discussed by the Commission at its 661st, 662nd, 665th ............. meetings. The Commission had before it the original text of article 21, and two alternative texts to that article (E/CN.6/591, Annex III) as well as articles 21 and 22 of the draft Convention presented by Belgium (E/CN.6/591/Add.1). 

2. The original text of article 21 provided that, every four years, the States Parties to the convention would submit reports on the measures adopted in implementing the convention, and that the Commission on the Status of Women would consider the status of the implementation of the convention every four years, and report to the Economic and Social Council. 

3. The two alternative texts and the Belgian draft were based on articles ........... and .............. of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination. The first alternative provided for the establishment of a Committee consisting of "experts of high moral standing and acknowledged impartiality elected by States Parties from among their nationals, preferably members of the Commission on the Status of Women, who shall serve in their personal capacity, consideration being given to equitable geographical distribution and to the representation [of] the different forms of civilization as well as of the principal legal systems." States Parties would be responsible for the expenses of the members of the Committee while they were in performance of Committee duties. 

4. Under the second alternative text States Parties would submit reports on measures adopted to give effect to the Convention within one year of its entry into force and thereafter every two years and whenever the Committee so requested. The Committee would report annually, through the Secretary-General, to the General Assembly on its activities and might make suggestions and general recommendations based on the examination of the reports and information received from States Parties. Such suggestions and general recommendations should be reported to the General Assembly, together with comments, if any from States Parties. 

5. Belgium submitted an amendment to the first alternative text under which the Committee would be composed "of 12 experts of high moral standing and acknowledge impartiality, of recognized competence in the field of the status of women and possessing legal experience, who shall be elected by States Parties from among their national and who shall serve in their personal capacity, consideration being given to equitable geographical distribution and to representation of the different forms of civilization and of the principal legal systems." 

6. Opinion was sharply divided on the question of what constituted the most suitable machinery for the implementation of the Convention. Some representatives supported the idea of the creation of a Committee, such as the one created for the implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. In support of the Committee it was pointed out that the Commission on the Status of Women had already a full agenda and in all probability would not be able to give adequate and regular consideration to reports. It was also stated that the implementation of the Convention should be supervised by independent experts rather than representatives of governments who served on the Commission on the Status of Women. 

7. Other representatives, however, objected to the creation of a committee, believing that the establishment of such a committee would be a duplication of, and perhaps a violation of the terms of reference of the Commission on the Status of Women, and might reduce the importance of the Commission itself. There was some concern also that such a procedure would be too costly and might unnecessarily burden the machinery of the United Nations, and that finally, since the expenses of the members of such a committee would be paid by the States Parties, it might be difficult for the members of the Committee to maintain impartiality. 

8. Some representatives felt that the question was too complicated to be decided immediately and that further consideration and deliberations were necessary in order to reach a compromise solution. 

9. At the 662nd meeting the United Kingdom proposed an amendment to the first alternative text of article 21 (E/CN.6/591, article 21 paragraph 6) providing that the expenses of the members of the Committee "shall be equally apportioned between them" (States Parties). She also proposed with respect to the original text (E/CN.6/591 Annex III) that the Commission on the Status of Women should report to the Economic and Social Council with respect to the implementation of the Convention every two years. 

10. Colombia proposed as an amendment to the original text of article 21, the addition in paragraph 2 after the words "the Commission on the Status of Women" the words "Meeting in a special session for this purpose". 

11. At the 666th meeting, a number of non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council presented a statement (E/CN.6/NGO/272), which was circulated in accordance with paragraphs 29 and 30 of the Economic and Social Council resolution 1296 (XLIV) and in which they drew attention to the desirability of making a provision in the Convention for the handling of information from non-governmental sources. They suggested (E/CN.6/NGO/272/Add.1) an additional paragraph to article 21 of the draft Convention, which would provide for the submission to the Commission on the Status of Women of information and recommendations by non-governmental organizations, together with comments if any, of the States Parties directly involved relating to the observance of the provisions of the present Convention. 

12. At the 666th meeting India proposed as an amendment to paragraph 1 of article 21 of the original text, the addition of the following phrase: "In preparing these reports States Parties are urged to make the fullest use of national commissions on the Status of Women and women's voluntary organizations, who would be best qualified to report on what is actually happening in a country as against merely stating the formal legal position" (E/CN.6/L.705). 

13. In a second amendment to paragraph 2 of the article (E/CN.6/L.707) India proposed: (a) that reports should be submitted every two rather than four years; and (b) that the following sentence be added at the end of the paragraph: 
"In order to assist them with this work, the Commission on the Status of Women may elect a working group of between ten to fifteen members based on the principle of equitable geographical distribution and giving preference to the States Parties to the present Convention, which would meet not more than two weeks before the regular session of the Commission on the Status of Women." 

14. Iran proposed that the original text of article 21 should be amended to provide for the establishment of a sub-committee of the Commission on the Status of Women to meet every two years, two weeks before the regular session of the Commission on the Status of Women, to consider the question of the status of the implementation of the Convention. 

15. At the request of some members of the Commission representatives of the Division of Human Rights of the Secretariat were invited to explain the various procedures and machinery of implementation provided under conventions in the field of human rights concluded under the auspices of the United Nations and, in particular, with respect to the two International Covenants on Human Rights and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and the Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid. They explained the different systems of procedures and bodies which were provided under these different instruments. They also answered a number of questions relating to implementation procedures including the respective competence of the Human Rights Committee and of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. 

16. At the 669th meeting Iran, Egypt, and Denmark proposed amended versions of article 21. 

17. The text proposed by Iran (E/CN.6/L.706) based on Article IX of the Convention on the Impression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid read as follows: 
	1. States Parties undertake to submit every four years to the Secretary-General reports on legislative, administrative and practical measures which they have adopted in implementing the provisions of the present Convention. 
	2. Every two years following this Convention's entry into force, the Commission on the Status of Women shall consider the question of the status of the implementation of the Convention by the States Parties, and submit the report to the Economic and Social Council. 
	3. Every two years the Commission on the Status of Women shall appoint a group of ten members of the Commission with due consideration to the principle of equitable geographical distribution. 
	4. If, among the members of the Commission on the Status of Women there are less than ten such representatives, the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall, after consulting the States Parties to the Convention, designate enough representatives of the States Parties which are not members of the Commission to participate in the work of the group established in accordance with paragraph 1 of this article, until such time as representatives of the States Parties to the Convention are elected to the Commission on the Status of Women. 
	5. The group will meet for a period of not more than two weeks before the opening of the regular session of the Commission on the Status of Women, to consider the reports submitted in accordance with article ____ and submit its report to the Commission on the Status of Women for its consideration. 

18. The text proposed by Egypt, reads as follows (E/CN.6/L.708): 
	1. Each State party undertakes to promote the establishment at the national level of procedures aimed at achieving progressively the full realization of the rights recognized in the present convention. 
	2. Every two years following this Convention's entry into force, each State party undertakes to submit to the group established under paragraph 3 of the present article, reports on the legislative, judicial, administrative or other measures that it has adopted in implementing the provisions of the present Convention. 
	3. The Commission on the Status of Women shall appoint every four years on the basis of equitable geographical distribution a group of ten members of the Commission who are also representatives of States parties to the present Convention who will work in their personal capacity, to consider reports submitted by States parties and to transmit suggestions and general recommendations based on their examination of the reports to the Commission on the Status of Women. 
	4. If among the members of the Commission on the Status of Women there are less than ten such representatives the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall, after consulting the States parties to the Convention, designate enough representatives of the States parties which are not members of the Commission on the Status of Women to participate in the work of the group established in accordance with paragraph 1 of this article until such time as representatives of the States Parties to the Convention are elected to the Commission on the Status of Women. 
	5. The group will meet for a period of not more than two weeks before the opening of the regular session of the Status of Women to consider the reports submitted. 

19. The text proposed by Denmark (E/CN.6/D.71[0]) reads as follows: 
With a view to ensuring the observance of the provisions of this Convention: 
	1. States Parties shall undertake to promote measures at the national level aimed at achieving progressively the full realization of the rights recognized in the present Convention. 
	2. States Parties shall undertake to submit reports on the legislative, judicial, administrative and other measures  which they have adopted and which give effect to the provisions of the present Convention. Reports may indicate factors and difficulties affecting the degree of fulfilment of obligations under the present Convention. All reports shall be submitted through the Secretary-General of the United Nations for consideration by the Special Committee established by this article. 
	3. A Special Committee (hereafter referred to as the Committee) shall be established by the Commission on the Status of Women consisting of 15 members elected by the Commission on the Status of Women consisting of 15 members elected by the Commission from a list of persons nominated by the States Parties from among their nationals, consideration being given to equitable geographical distribution and to the representation of different forms of civilization as well as of the principal legal systems. The members of the Committee, who shall serve in their personal capacity, shall be elected in accordance with rules to be established by the Commission. 
	4. States Parties to the present Convention shall furnish their reports in stages, in accordance with a programme to be established by the Committee within on e year of the entry into force of the present Convention after consultation with the States Parties and the specialized agencies concerned. 
	5. In preparing these reports States Parties are urged to make the fullest use of national machinery established to promote the advancement of women. 
	6. Specialized agencies shall be entitled to be represented at the consideration of the implementation of such provision of this Convention as fall within the scope of their activities. They shall be entitled to submit reports on the implementation of relevant instruments adopted by them or under their auspices. 
	7. The Committee shall report to the Commission on the Status of Women on its activities and may make general recommendations based on the examination of the reports from the States Parties. The Commission shall undertake to transmit the Committee's report together with its own comments to the ECOSOC. 

20. At the 672nd meeting the sponsors of all amendments submitted to article 21 presented a suggested new version of the article (E/CN.6/L.715), which read as follows: 
	"1. States Parties undertake to adopt measures at the national level including the establishment of machinery and procedures aimed at achieving the full realization of the rights recognized in the present Convention. 
	2. (a) Every two years following the entry into force of the Convention, States Parties undertake to submit to the Secretary-General reports on the legislative, judicial, administrative or other measures which they have adopted and on the progress made in implementing the provisions of the present Convention. Reports may indicate factors and difficulties affecting the degree of fulfilment of obligations under the present Convention. 
	(b) In preparing their reports States Parties shall make use of national machinery established to promote the advancement of women and of national non-governmental organizations, including women's organizations. 
	(c) States Parties shall furnish their reports in stages, in accordance with a programme to be established after consultation with the States Parties and the specialized agencies concerned. 

3. For the purpose of considering the progress made in the implementation of the Convention by the States Parties the Commission on the Status of Women shall establish an ad hoc Group consisting of 10 to 15 persons. The Group shall be elected by the Commission from among its own members who are States Parties, to the Convention and from an additional list of persons nominated by States Parties who are not members of the Commission, consideration being given to the principle of equitable geographical distribution and representation of differing legal systems. The members of the Group shall serve in their personal capacity and shall be elected every two years. 

4. The ad hoc Group shall normally meet for a period of not more than two weeks before the opening of the regular session of the Commission on the Status of Women, to consider the reports submitted in accordance with para. 2 above and submit its report to the Commission on the Status of Women for its consideration. 

5. The ad hoc Group shall report to the Commission on the Status of Women on its activities and may make general recommendations based on the examination of the reports from the States Parties. The Commission shall transmit the report of the Group together with its own comments, to the Economic and Social Council. 

6. Specialized agencies shall be entitled to be represented at the consideration of the implementation of such provision of this Convention as fall within the scope of their activities. They shall be entitled to submit reports on the implementation of relevant instruments adopted by them or under their auspices. 

7. The Economic and Social Council may submit from time to time to the General Assembly reports with recommendations of a general nature and a summary of the information received from the States Parties to the present Convention and the specialized agencies on the measures taken and the progress made in achieving general observance of the rights recognized in the present Convention. 

8. The Economic and Social Council may bring to the attention of other organs of the United Nations, their subsidiary organs and specialized agencies concerned with furnishing technical assistance any matters arising out of the reports referred to in this part of the present Convention which may assist such bodies in deciding, each within its field of competence, on the advisability of international measures likely to contribute to the effective progressive implementation of the present Convention. 

21. The representative of Belgium expressed reservations with respect to the above version. 

22. Paragraphs 1 and 2 (a) of that text were adopted without a vote at the 673rd meeting. 

23. Oral amendments to paragraph 2 (b) were presented by Canada, Mexico and Sweden and the paragraph thus amended was adopted without a vote. It read as follows: 
	"(b) In preparing their reports States Parties shall make use of national machinery established to promote the advancement of women and of appropriate national non-governmental organizations. 

24. Paragraph 2 (c) incorporating an oral suggestion by Denmark was also adopted without a vote and read: 
	"(c) States Parties shall furnish their reports in stages, in accordance with a programme to be established by the ad hoc Group, set up under this Article after consultation with the States Parties and the specialized agencies concerned." 

25. Amendments to paragraph 3 were submitted by Canada, USSR and United States of America. Canada proposed that the last sentence be amended to read: "Those elected to the Group .........". The USSR proposed the deletion of the phrase: "shall serve in their personal capacity and ......." but subsequently withdrew that amendment. The United States of America proposed to amend the second and third sentences of paragraph 3 to read: 
	"The Group shall be elected by the Commission from among States Parties to the Convention and with consideration being given to the principle of equitable geographical distribution and representation of differing legal systems. Those nominated shall have been involved in the advancement of equality of rights of men and women. The members of the Group, no less than half of whom shall be women, shall serve in their personal capacity and shall be elected every two years". 

26. The above amendment was rejected by 13 votes to 8. Paragraph 3 as amended was adopted by 16 votes to none, with 5 abstentions, and read as follows:
	"For the purpose of considering the progress made in the implementation of the Convention by the States Parties the Commission on the Status of Women shall establish an ad hoc Group consisting of 10 to 15 persons. The Group shall be elected by the Commission from among its own members who are States Parties to the Convention and from an additional list of persons nominated by States Parties to the Convention who are not members of the Commission, consideration being given to the principle of equitable geographical distribution and representation of differing legal systems. Those elected to the Group shall serve in their personal capacity and shall be elected for a two year term." 

27. Paragraph 4 was adopted without a vote with the deletion of the phrase "and submit its report to the Commission on the Status of Women for its consideration" suggested by Denmark. 

28. Paragraph 5 was adopted without a vote. 

29. Paragraph 6 incorporating the words "at the different stages of" before the words: "consideration of the implementation ...." suggested by the ILO was also adopted without a vote. 

30. Paragraph 7 including oral amendments by France, Hungary and Sweden was adopted without a vote, reading as follows: 
	"The Economic and Social Council shall submit periodically to the General Assembly reports with recommendations of a general nature and a summary of the information received from the States Parties to the present Convention and the specialized agencies on the measures taken and the progress made in achieving full observance of the rights recognized in the present Convention." 

31. Paragraph 8, was adopted without a vote. 

32. Article 21 as a whole, as amended, was adopted without a vote. 

33. The representatives of Denmark, and the United States of America expressed reservations with respect to the articles as adopted. 

Additional Article 21 bls 

34. At the 673rd meeting, Belgium presented an additional article 21 bls (E/CN.6/L.718) which read as follows: 
	"As soon as this Convention enters into force, the States Parties undertake to examine, in the Commission on the Status of Women, the possibility of establishing procedures for the implementation of this Convention with a view to enabling States Parties and their nationals to address themselves to the ad hoc Group." 

35. Opinions with respect to the draft article, presented by Belgium, were divided. Though some representatives supported it, believing that it strengthened the system of implementation established in article 21, many opposed it, feeling that from the legal point of view, the article was controversial, since after the entry into force of the present Convention, the States Parties would be able only to modify the Convention in accordance with the respective provisions embodied in it, and that finally the measures of implementation had already been adopted in article 21 which they considered adequate. One opinion expressed was that the inclusion of that article in the text of the Convention might be an obstacle to many States to ratify the Convention or to accede to it. Concern was expressed that the proposed additional article might jeopardize article 21, already adopted by the Commission. 

36. The draft article presented by Belgium was rejected by 11 votes to 8, with 3 abstentions. 

An additional article on reservation 

37. At the 663rd meeting the question of including an article on reservations was raised by Denmark. The opinion was expressed that reservations which were not incompatible with the object and purpose of the Convention should be permitted in accordance with accepted international practice. Reference was made to article 19 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties with respect to reservations a number of representatives though they agreed that the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties made provision for that, did not see the need to include a provision on reservations in the text of the Convention. Other representatives referred to the respective provision of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and suggested that the precedent of that convention be followed. 

38. At the ........ meeting Denmark proposed an additional article on reservations (E/CN.6/L.701) which was adopted without a vote as orally amended by the sponsor at the 673rd meeting. It read as follows: 
	"1. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall receive and circulate to all States which are or may become Parties to this Convention reservations made by States at the time of ratification or accession. Any State which objects to the reservation shall, within a period of ninety days from the date of the said communication, notify the Secretary-General that it does not accept it. 
	2. A reservation incompatible with the object and purpose of this Convention shall not be permitted, nor shall a reservation the effect of which would inhibit the operation of the ad hoc Group established by this Convention be allowed. A reservation shall be considered incompatible or inhibitive if at least two-thirds of the States Parties to this Convention object to it. 
	3. Reservations may be withdrawn at any time by notification to this effect addressed to the Secretary-General. Such notification shall take effect on the date on which it is received. 

COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN 
Resumed twenty-sixth session 
Geneva, 6–17 December 1976 
Agenda item 9 

ADOPTION OF THE REPORT OF THE COMMISSION 
ON ITS RESUMED TWENTY-SIXTH SESSION 

DRAFT REPORT 

Rapporteur: Homa ROUHI (Iran) 

Chapter .......... INFLUENCE OF THE MASS COMMUNICATION MEDIA 
		ON ATTITUDES TOWARDS THE ROLES OF WOMEN 
		AND MEN IN PRESENT-DAY SOCIETY 

1. Item 4 of the agenda on the influence of mass communication media on attitudes towards the roles of women and men in present-day society was discussed at the 675th, 676th and 678th meetings. 

2. Under this item the Commission had before it the Reports of the Secretary-General on this subject prepared for the twenty-fifth and twenty-sixth sessions of the Commission (E/CN.6/581 and E/CN.6/601). 

3. The representative of the Secretary-General in introducing the report drew the attention of the Commission to its main purpose which was to suggest measures to check the dissemination and perpetuation by the mass communication media of the deeply rooted discriminatory attitudes, values and beliefs which considered women inferior to men. These attitudes hampered the efforts of the United Nations to promote equality between men and women in law as well as in fact and integrate women in development. 

4. The report was concerned, she stated, with finding ways in which the media could be a positive influence in the formation of more dynamic attitudes towards the roles women should play in contemporary society. Based on the findings and recommendations of the World Conference of International Women's Year, the World Plan of Action, the two Regional Plans of Action for Asia and the Pacific and Africa, a number of inter-regional and regional seminars organized by the United Nations and the UNESCO Media Workshop held at Mexico City, the report suggested a number of concrete measures for the consideration of the Commission which could be taken, by the media, by Governments, and by international organizations. 
 
5. The Commission had before it a draft resolution on the Influence of the Mass Communication Media on Attitudes towards the Roles of Women and Men in Present-Day Society submitted by the representatives of Denmark, Iran, Togo and USA (E/CN.6/L.690). 

6. In view of the limited time which the Commission had in which to finish the remaining items on the agenda it was decided to combine the general discussion with the discussion on the draft resolution. 

7. A number of representatives noted that report of the Secretary-General contained valuable information, and analyzed clearly the issues involved and the conclusions of the various meetings mentioned. 

8. One representative drew the attention of the Commission in particular to the educational role of the mass media s contained in the report, and the possibility of reaching the masses faster than any other means by telescoping time. She also underlined the great potential of the mass media for social action. 

9. It was suggested that in view of its tremendous importance this item should be considered by the preparatory committee for inclusion in the agenda of the 1980 World Conference as well as the regional meetings which would be organized in preparation for the Conference, and in this way background material would be developed on the regional variations that existed in the portrayal of women by the mass communication media. 

10. Another representative stressed the need for organizing seminars on this subject. She considered it of the utmost importance that there should be exchange of views and experience, which was possible in a seminar. It was considered unfortunate that an inter-regional seminar on the mass media and women which had been scheduled for International Women's Year had to be cancelled. She expressed the hope that another seminar would be forthcoming which would provide substantive input into this subject. 

11. The attention of the Commission was drawn to the guidelines or minimum standards of fairness and accuracy for treatment of women in the media that had been prepared in one country by one of the committees organized for International Women's Year. 

12. Another representative spoke of the ridicule with which the mass media in her country had treated women's aspirations and expectations which were raised by International Women's Year. In countries where illiteracy rates were high, the unsympathetic portrayals by the mass communication media of women were especially harmful. The media had to be watched very carefully, especially, films and cinema, in their effects on children. 

13. AT the 675th meeting, the representatives of the United States on behalf o Denmark and Iran introduced draft resolution E/CN.6/L.690 entitled "influence f the mass communication media on attitudes towards the roles of women and men in present-day society". The text of the draft resolution read as follows: 
	The Commission on the Status of Women recommends to the Economic and Social Council adoption of the following resolution: 
	The Economic and Social Council, 
	Recalling Section IV of the World Plan of Action which provides guidelines for national action related to the mass communications media that encompass radio, television, cinema, press, advertising, public meetings and similar forums, as well as traditional types of entertainment which are essential for reaching the rural areas of many countries. 
	Convinced that the mass communications media has great potential (1) as a vehicle for social change, (2) for the dissemination of information in the fields of education and training, (3) for removing prejudices and stereotypes, and (4) for accelerating acceptance of the expanding roles of women, as well as (5) the promotion of their integration in development as equal partners with men; and that it is important for the achievement of equality, development, and peace, 
	Recalling that the report of the Secretary-General to the twenty-sixth session of the Commission on the Status of Women states that there is little information available font he images of women projected by the more traditional types of communication media and their influence on the perpetuation of sex-role stereotypes, and there is need for research in this area; that the press, radio, film and television are playing a paramount role in shaping attitudes and destinies of humankind, 
	1. Encourages Member States to formulate policies and guidelines for treatment of women in the media to include: 
	(a) review their recruitment, training, and promotion policies and practices to ensure that there is no discrimination against women, and that they have equal opportunities to advance at all levels of professional, technical, and decision-making positions in the mass communications media; 
	(b) more news coverage, in all languages, of the country, of women's activities, particularly as it relates progress in changing the legal, social and political status of women; 
	(c) portrayal of the roles of achievements of women from all walks of life, including women in the rural areas; 
	2. Recommends that Member States encourage the presentation of programmes and the publication of materials which ensure the elimination of sex-role stereotyping in educational and informational activities and the projection of a positive image of men and women; 
	3. Requests that Member States take whatever action is necessary to establish and strengthen co-operative systems for schools and libraries in the production and dissemination of education and information materials for use by television, radio, press, mobile units, community centres and other public facilities in urban and rural areas; 
	4. Recommends that Member States encourage educational institutions and organizations to make greater use of the mass communications media for formal and informal education, literacy programmes, vocational training, as well as the formation of new attitudes about the role of men and women in society; 
	5. Suggests that Member States create committees or councils, comprised of men and women in both the governmental and private sectors, to advise and meet with policy and decision-making staff of the mass communications media for discussions and evaluations of progress toward changing the image and status of women in the media; 
	6. Encourage government and non-governmental organizations to organize workshops aimed at creating a greater understanding and public awareness of the potential and actual role of women in their respective societies, and how to utilize the mass media to project positive and more accurate images of women; 
	7. Decides to request the appointment of a special rapporteur to prepare a study on the impact of the mass communications media on the changing roles of men and women, including action taken by the public and private sectors of national, regional and international levels, to remove prejudices and sex-role stereotyping, to accelerate the acceptance of women's new and expanded roles in society, and to promote their integration into development process as equal partners with men; 
	8. Requests that the Secretary-General submit the findings of the report to the twenty-seventh session of the Commission on the Status of Women; 
	9. Requests further that the General Assembly include the subject of the influence of the mass communications media on attitudes towards the roles of women and men in present-day society as an agenda item for the 1980 World Conference. 

14. In introducing the draft resolution, the representative of the United States noted that paragraph 1 (b) would be substituted by the amendment submitted by Belgium in E/CN.6/L.714 which read as follows: 
	"dissemination of more news about women (particularly about progress made in the legal, social and political fields) in all languages of the country, giving this news the place it deserves in the light of its subject-matter and not placing it all in sections reserved for women;" 

15. The sponsors orally revised paragraph 7 to read at the beginning as follows: "Decides to appoint a special rapporteur ...". Similarly paragraph 8 was orally amended to read as follows: "Requests that the Secretary-General submit a progress report to the twenty-seventh session of the Commission on the Status of Women and findings to the twenty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women." Another oral revision was made by the sponsors to paragraph 9. The words "requests further that the General Assembly include" were replaced by Recommends further that the General Assembly include" were replaced by "Recommends further that the ad hoc committee include". Similarly the words "a possible agenda" replaced "an amends". 

16. The Secretary of the Commission pointed out that the financial implications for a special rapporteur as contained in paragraph 7 entitled a total cost of $7,065. She noted that these figures were computed on a world aggregate basis for two trips to New York, by first class air travel, each for the duration of one week with subsistence allowance, and none trip to Paris by first class air travel for the duration of one week with subsistence allowance. 

17. A number of representatives expressed support for the draft resolution. Togo subsequently joined as a co-sponsor of the draft resolution. 

18. The representative of Mexico submitted an amendment which read: Operative paragraph 7: After the words "special rapporteur", insert the following phrase: "taking into account the close relationship between the economic and social aspects of development and the necessity of the full integration of women in the development process". (E/CN.6/L.719). 

19. The representative of Sweden submitted the following amendments in E/CN.6/L.720: 
	(i) In operative paragraph 1, introductory sentence: After the words "Encourages Member States to", to add the following phrase "make representatives of mass media aware of the importance of formulating". The sentence as thus amended would read: "Encourages Member States to make representatives of mass media aware of the importance of formulating policies and guidelines for treatment of women in the media to include:". 
	(ii) To delete operative paragraphs 3 and 5. 
	The representative of Sweden explained that her amendments would make the text more acceptable to her Government as the original text could be interpreted as limiting the freedom of the press, radio and television, and would therefore not be acceptable. 

20. The USSR submitted the following amendments in E/CN.6/L.721: 
	(i) To add to paragraph 2 the words "and that they should condemn the use of mass communication media, literature and art with a view to exploiting, discriminating against, and demeaning women". 
	(ii) To insert the words "political, civic and cultural" after the word "vocational" in the third line of paragraph 4. 
	(iii) To add a paragraph on UNESCO and other specialized agencies concerned with training and cultural matters. 

21. India submitted the following amendment to E/CN.6/L.722: 
	(i) In operative paragraph 1 (c): After the words "all walks of life," add the following: "especially in the fields of development and social welfare". Operative paragraph (c) as amended would read: "portrayal of the roles and achievements of women from all walks of life, especially in the fields of development and social welfare, including women in the rural areas". 
	(ii) Add the following new paragraph before present paragraph 5: "Requests UNESCO, with a view to helping developing countries, to prepare educational films for primary schools and functional literacy which are concerned with the improvement of the image of women and doing away with stereotyped sex roles;" 
	(iii) In operative paragraph 5 of the original text: Third line of the English text, after the words "staff of the mass communications media", add the phrase "including particularly the field of advertising". 

22. Egypt submitted the following amendments in document E/CN.6/L.723: 
	(i) In paragraph 4 of the preamble, after the words "film and television are", insert the words "said to be". 
	(ii) at the end of operative paragraph 7, add the following sentence: "This information is to be drawn inter alia from research studies on this subject to be undertaken by relevant research institutes, in seminars to be organized for this purpose, as well as other studies which may be under way." 

23. Pakistan and Thailand submitted an amendment in E/CN.6/7.724 which read as follows: 
In operative paragraph 6 
	(i) After the words "government and non-governmental organizations" insert the words "especially in co-operation with those organizations dealing with the mass media and consumer associations". 
	(ii) After the words "to organize workshops" add the words "and seminars". The first part of operative paragraph 6, as thus amended, would read as follows: "Encourage governmental and non-governmental organizations, especially in co-operation with those organizations dealing with the mass media and consumer associations, to organize workshops and seminars aimed at creating a greater understanding ...". 

24. The Commission was of the opinion that in the interests of clarity a revised version incorporating the amendments which were accepted by the sponsors should be made available. The revised draft resolution E/CN.6/L.690/Rev.1 read as follows: 
	The Commission on the Status of Women recommends to the Economic and Social Council adoption of the following resolution: 
The Economic and Social Council, 
	Recalling Section IV of the World Plan of Action which provides guidelines for national action related to the mass communications media that encompass radio television, cinema, press, advertising, public meetings and similar forums, as well as traditional types of entertainment which are essential for reaching the rural areas of many countries, 
	Convinced that the mass communications media, in many instances has a detrimental effect on the attitudes on values regarding women's roles in society; that it often presents obstacles to desirable changes in behavioural patterns, and that it can perpetuate stereotypes and myths pertaining to women, 
	Convinced, also, that the mess communications media has great potential (1) as a vehicle for social change, (2) for the dissemination of information in the fields of education and training, (3)  for removing prejudices and stereotypes, and (4) for accelerating acceptance of the expanding roles of women, as well as (5) the promotion of their integration in development as equal partners with men; and that it is important for the achievement of equality, development, and peace, 
	Recalling that the report of the Secretary-General to the twenty-sixth session of the Commission on the Status of Women states that there is little information available on the images of women projected by the more traditional types of communication media and their influence on the perpetuation of sex-role stereotypes, and that there is need for research in this area, 
	1. Encourages Member States to make representatives of mass media aware of the importance of formulating policies and guidelines for treatment of women in the media to include:
	(a) review their recruitment training, and promotion policies and practices to ensure that there is no discrimination against women, and that they have equal opportunities to advance at all levels of professional, technical, and decision-making positions in the mass communications media:
	(b) discrimination of more news about women (particularly about progress made in the legal, social and political fields) in all languages of the country, giving this news the place it deserves in the light of its subject-matter and not placing it all in sections reserved for women;
	(c) portrayal of the roles and achievements of women from all walks of life, especially in the fields of development and social welfare, including women in the rural areas; 
	2. Recommends that Member States encourage the presentation of programmes and the publication of materials which ensure the elimination of sex-role stereotyping in educational and informational activities and the projection of a positive image of men and women; 
	3. Requests that Member States take whatever action is necessary to establish and strengthen co-operative systems for schools and libraries in the production and dissemination of education and information materials for use by television, radio, press, mobile units, community centres and other public facilities in urban and rural areas; 
	4. Recommends that Member States encourage educational institutions and organizations to make greater use of the mass communications media for formal and informal education, literacy programmes, vocational training, civic, cultural and political education, as well as the formation of new attitudes about the role of men and women in society; 
	5. Requests the United Nations Educational, Scientific  and Cultural Organization with a view to helping developing countries, to prepare educational films for primary schools and functional literacy which are concerned with the improvement of the image of women and doing away with stereotyped sex roles; 
	6. Suggests that Member States create committees or council, comprised of men and women in private, governmental and intergovernmental sectors, to advise and meet with policy and decision-making staff of the mass communications media, including particularly the field of advertising, for discussions and evaluations of progress toward changing the image and status of women in the media; 
	7. Encourage governmental and non-governmental organizations, especially in co-operation with those dealing with the mass media, to organize workshops and seminars aimed at creating a greater understanding and public awareness of the potential and actual role of women in their respective societies, and how to utilize the mass media to project positive and more accurate images of women; 
	8. Decides to appoint a special rapporteur, taking into account the close relationship between the economic and social aspects of development and the necessity of the full integration of women in the development process, to prepare a study on the impact of the mass communications media on the changing roles of men and women, including action taken by the public and private sectors at national, regional and international levels, to remove prejudices and sex-role stereotyping, to associate the acceptance of women's new and expanded roles in society, and to promote their integration into the development process as equal partners with men. "This information is to be drawn inter alia from research studies on this subject to be undertaken by relevant research institutes, in seminars to be organized for this purpose, as well as other studies which may be under way." 
	9. Requests that the Secretary-General submit a progress report together with its findings to the Commission on the Status of Women at its twenty-eighth session; 
	10. Recommends further that the Ad hoc Committee include the subject of the influence of the mass communications media on attitudes towards the roles of women and men in present-day society as an agenda item for the 1980 World Conference. 

COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN 
Resumed twenty-sixth session 
Geneva, 6–17 December 1976 
Item 9 

ADOPTION OF THE REPORT OF THE COMMISSION ON ITS RESUMED TWENTY-SIXTH SESSION 

DRAFT REPORT 

Rapporteur: Homa ROUHI (Iran) 

Chapter ____. THE UNITED NATIONS DECADE FOR WOMEN: EQUALITY, 
		DEVELOPMENT AND PEACE, 1976–1985 

Consideration of draft resolutions and voting 

1. At the 668th meeting, the representative of Iran, on behalf of Colombia, Mexico, the United States of America and Venezuela, introduced draft resolution E/CN.6/L.697 entitled "Evaluation of activities undertaken during the International Women's Year". Pakistan, India and Thailand expressed their support for the draft resolution. The draft resolution read as follows: 
	"The Commission on the Status of Women recommends that the Economic and Social Council should adopt the following draft resolution: 
	The Economic and Social Council, 
 	Recalling General Assembly resolutions 3490 (XXX) and 3520 (XXX), in which the Secretary-General is requested to prepare, on the basis of the information received from Governments and competent organizations within the United Nations system, a preliminary progress report, for consideration by the General Assembly at tis thirty-first session, on the measures undertaken in implementation of the World Plan of Action, 
	Recalling that the request to Governments to communicate information concerning the achievements and the implementation of the World Plan of Action was made only in May 1976, 
	Bearing in mind that documents E/CN.6/598 and Add.1 and 2 do not reflect the situations in all Member countries, since it was prepared only on the basis of relies from 25 countries:
	1. Requests the Secretary-General to urge Governments that have not yet done so to transmit their reports on the activities undertaken in their countries in implementation of the World Plan of Action; 
	2. Requests the Secretary-General to prepare, as a matter of urgency, a supplementary report on the basis of the information that was received but could not be incorporated in document E/CN.6/598 and its addenda, and of the information received subsequently, for consideration by the General Assembly at its thirty-first session." 

2. At its 668th meeting, on 10 December 1976, the Commission adopted without a vote the draft resolution, with some corrections and as orally revised. (For the text, see Chapter ____, resolution _____ and Chapter _____, draft resolution ______.) 

3. At the 668th meeting, the representative of Iran, on behalf of Colombia, Egypt, Guinea, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Senegal and Venezuela, introduced draft resolution E/CN.6/L.695, entitled "Review and appraisal of progress made under the International Development Strategy for the Second United Nations Development Decade and in the implementation of the World Plan of Action". The draft resolution read as follows: 
	"The Commission on the Status of Women recommends tot he Economic and Social Council the adoption of the following draft resolution: 
	The Economic and Social Council,
	Recalling General Assembly resolutions 3490 (XXX) and 3520 (XXX) of 12 and 15 December 1975, in which the General Assembly affirmed that a system-wide review and appraisal of the World Plan of Action of the World Conference of the International Women's Year should be undertaken biennially as an input to the process of review and appraisal of progress made under the International Development Strategy, taking into account the Programme of Action on the Establishment of a New International Economic Order and the decisions resulting from the sixth and seventh special sessions of the General Assembly. 
	Recalling also that the General Assembly in paragraph 4 of resolution 3490 (XXX) requested the Commission on the Status of Women to report its findings and conclusions on major trends and policies with regard in the status of women, particularly the integration of women in development to the Economic and Social Council through the Committee for Development Planning and the Committee on Review and Appraisal, 
	Noting that at its twenty-sixth session the Commission considered reports submitted by governments in implementation of the above-mentioned General Assembly resolutions, as well as of Council resolution 1855 (LVI) of 16 May 1974 (E/CN.6/598 and Add.1 and 2). 
	Recognizing that, within the time limit given, few Governments were able to report on measures taken at the national level specifically to implement the World Plan of Action, and that it is therefore difficult at this stage to adopt findings and conclusions on major global trends and policies with regard to the status of women, 
	Believing that the review undertaken by the Commission at its twenty-sixth session should be considered as a first preliminary review and appraisal of the implementation of the World Plan of Action, and that a more comprehensive review should be undertaken at the twenty-seventh session in 1978. 
	Noting the decision of the General Assembly in resolution 3520 (XXX), paragraph 20, to convene in 1980 a World Conference of All States to review and evaluate progress made in implementing the objectives of the International Women's Year, 
	1. Notes with interest the following developments reported during the period under review in a number of countries: 
	(a) The recognition of, and commitment to the principle of equality of men and women and the integration of women in development, both for reasons of social progress and for economic development; 
	(b) The adoption, or plans for adoption of constitutional and/or legislative provisions ensuring the principle of non-discrimination on grounds of sex;
	(c) The establishment of provisions for equal access at every level of education, compulsory education and the measures necessary to prevent school dropouts; 
	(d) The adoption of comprehensive measures for health education, health services, sanitation, nutrition, family education, family planning and other welfare services; 
	2. Considers that, on the basis of the material submitted action is urgently needed to improve the situation of women in the following areas in order to meet the minimum targets set forth in paragraph 46 of the World Plan of Action for the five-year period 1975–1980: 
	(a) The enactment of legislation guaranteeing the principle of equality and non-discrimination on grounds of sex; 
	(b) Appropriate measures to inform and advise women of their rights utilizing the mass communication media, wherever appropriate, and to provide them with assistance for exercising their rights; 
	(c) The establishment of goals, strategies and time-tables to increase the participation of women in decision making at local- national and international levels; 
	(d) The establishment of specific target dates for the elimination of illiteracy especially among young persons and the provision of the measures necessary for its maintenance; 
	(e) The provision of life-long and continuing education, training and retraining facilities to meet the needs and aspiration of women; 
	(f) The development of modern rural technology, cottage industry, pre-school daycare centres, time and energy saving devices so as to help reduce the heavy workload and increase the resources of women, particularly those living in rural sectors and of the urban poor; 
	(g) The creation of new employment and income producing opportunities for women and the expansion of existing employment opportunities, and elimination of discrimination in the terms and conditions of employment on grounds of sex; 
	(h) The establishment or strengthening of an inter-disciplinary and multi-sectoral machinery within the government for accelerating the achievement of equal opportunities for women and their full integration into national life; 
	(i) Establishment and enforcement of measures to facilitate the combination of family and work responsibilities; 
	(j) Provision and extension of comprehensive and continuous health and other social services to underprivileged urban and rural communities, including maternity and child care services; 
	3. Requests the Secretary-General to bring the present resolution to the attention of the Committee on Development Planning at its thirteenth session in April 1977 and to the Committee on Review and Appraisal at its fourth session in May 1977, together with the relevant reports submitted to the Commission at its twenty-sixth session (E/CN.6/598 and Add.1 and 2) and any information submitted subsequent to the preparation of these reports; 

4. Urges the Committee on Development Planning and the Committee on Review and Appraisal, in accordance with General Assembly resolution 3490 (XXX), paragraph 5, to pay special attention to the question of the status of women and to take into account the above recommendations in its review and appraisal of the International Development Strategy in 1977; 

5. Requests the Secretary-General, in connexion with the next review and appraisal of the implementation of the World Plan of Action; 
	(a) to prepare, in consultation with the regional commissions, a questionnaire on the implementation of the World Plan of Action to be forwarded to Governments early in 1977; 
	(b) to prepare a report on the basis of the replies received to the questionnaire for the consideration of the Commission on the Status of Women at its twenty-seventh session in January 1978; 

6. Further requests the Secretary-General:
	(a) to ensure as far as possible that in 1979 the questionnaire relating to the implementation of the World Plan of Action be forwarded to Governments, together with the request for information relating to the review and appraisal of the International Development Strategy, and 
	(b) to prepare a comprehensive report based on the replies to these questionnaires for consideration at the twenty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women and at the World Conference in 1980; 

7. Decides further in connexion with the next review and appraisal of the implementation of the WPA and the preparatory work required for the World Conference of the Decade in 1980 to establish on the basis of equitable geographical distribution an ad hoc committee composed of 16 representatives of the Governments members of the Commission on the Status of Women to submit to the Commission at its twenty-sixth session in 1978 proposals concerning the substantive and administrative arrangements for the Conference, taking into account all the relevant reports relating to the review and appraisal of the implementation of the WPA.

8. Requests the Secretary-General to prepare for the consideration of this Commission and the World Conferences in 1980 a report outlining a programme of concrete action for the second half of the Decade for Women; Equality, Development and Peace." 

4. At the request of Sweden and the United Kingdom, supported by Belgium and France, the sponsors of the draft resolution agreed to discuss the draft resolution without operative paragraphs 7 and 8 which would be discussed in connexion with the item on the preparatory work for the World Conference in 1980 (Item 4 (d)). 

5. The sponsors accepted the Belgian proposal to add the words "and guidance" after the word "education" in paragraph 1 (c) and the words "to promote co-education and" after the word "necessary". 

6. Thailand proposed that the following words be added in paragraph 2 (h). After the word "rights" the words "and responsibilities" were added. At the request of the sponsors, the representative of Thailand accepted that the words "and responsibilities" would be added only at the end of the sub-paragraph. 

7. At the request of the representative of Sweden, it was agreed that the word "by" would replace "within" in paragraph 2 (h). 

8. The sponsors of the draft resolution revised orally (j) paragraph 2 by adding at the and "as well as family life education". 

9. The representative of France amended paragraph 2 (d) by adding the following at the end "within as short a target date as possible by each State". The sponsors accepted the amendment. 

10. At its 668th meeting on 10 December 1976 the Commission adopted without a vote the draft resolution, (without paragraphs 7 and 8), as orally revised. (For the text see Chapter _______, resolution ___________, and Chapter ______________ draft resolution ___________.)

11. At its 671st meeting, the representative of India, on behalf of Thailand introduced draft resolution E/CN.6/L.712 entitled "Draft Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women: Review and Appraisal of progress made under the International Development Strategy for the Second United Nations Development Decade and the implementation of the World Plan of Action". The draft resolution read as follows:
	"The Commission on the Status of Women recommends to the Economic and Social Council the adoption of the following draft resolution: 
	The Economic and Social Council, 
	Bearing in mind that there are more than 500 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council and various specialized agencies. 
	Considering that these NGOs have been working at the grass-root level and have vast experience which has been of great help to the work of the United Nations and its specialized agencies, 
	1. Requests that the machinery which will follow-up the implementation of the "Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women" and the "international Women's Year World Plan of Action" consider the reports from NGOs together with the reports submitted by States Parties; 
	2. Requests that all kinds of training and re-training organized by the United Nations and its specialized agencies involve NGO representatives in those activities for the sake of closer co-operation." 

12. The sponsors of the draft resolution revised the text as contained in E/CN.6/L.712/Rev.1. The revised draft resolution read as follows:
	"The Commission on the Status of Women recommends to the Economic and Social Council the adoption of the following draft resolution: 
	The Economic and Social Council, 
	Bearing in mind that there are more than 500 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council and various specialized agencies, 
	Considering that these NGOs have been working at the grass-root level and have vast experience which has been of great assistance to the work of the United Nations and its specialized agencies, particularly in implementing the Declaration on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, 
	Recalling especially that the General Assembly in Resolution 3520 (XXX), paragraph 8, urged NGOs at the national and international levels to take all possible measures to assist in the implementation of the World Plan of Action, 
	1. Requests all governments to encourage NGOs to play their full part in the implementation of the World Plan of Action; 
	2. Requests that all kinds of training and retraining programmes organized by the United Nations and its specialized agencies under the World Plan of Action should take note of the needs of the NGOs with a view to developing and using their specialized knowledge and experience to the greatest extent possible; 
	3. Requests further that the Commission on the Status of Women in following up the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women take note of the statements from NGOs together with reports submitted by States Parties." 

13. Following the introduction of the revised draft resolution, the representative of Togo joined as co-sponsor. Several representatives expressed their support for the draft resolution. 

14. Paragraph 1 of the revised text was orally amended by the sponsors by adding the words "and inter-regional organizations" after the word "governments". 

15. Paragraph 2 of the revised text was orally amended by the sponsors by adding "intergovernmental organizations and all other organizations concerned in the implementation of" after the words "specialized agencies". The word "under" was deleted. 

16. At the 677th meeting, on 16 December 1976, the Commission approved without a vote the revised draft resolution as orally amended. (For the text, see Chapter ____, resolution __________ and Chapter ______, draft resolution __________). 

17. At the 669th meeting, the representative of Sweden on behalf of Canada, Denmark, Egypt, France and Greece, introduced draft resolution E/CN.6/696 entitled "The United Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development and Peace, 1976–1985". 

18. At the 671st meeting, the representative of France explained the revised draft resolution E/CN.6/696/Rev.1. Subsequently India and the United States expressed their wish to be cosponsors of the draft resolution. The revised draft resolution read as follows: 
	"The Commission on the Status of Women recommends to the Economic and Social Council adoption of the following resolution: 
	The Economic and Social Council, 
	Recalling General Assembly resolution 3490 (XXX) and the provisions of Article 216 of the World Plan of Action adopted by the World Conference of International Women's Year in Mexico City, which provide for the submission to the Economic and Social Council and its relevant functional commissions and advisory bodies (inter alia the Commission on the Status of Women and the Statistical Commission) at their forthcoming sessions the decisions of the relevant United Nations bodies, specialized agencies, regional commissions etc., 
	Recalling also,, the provisions of Articles 167, 168, 169 and 170 of the World Plan of Action on the collection and analysis of relevant data, 
	Convinced of the need to build up a scientific and reliable data base and socio-economic indicators, in order to measure more accurately the implementation of the World Plan of Action, 
	1. Requests the Statistical Commission at tis 1978 session, as a vital contribution to the success of the Decade for Women: Equality, Development and Peace, 1976–1985, to initiate action in co-operation with national statistical offices and units of the United Nations and the specialized agencies, especially ILO, UNESCO, WHO and FAO with a view to developing: 
	(a) improved methods for the collection and tabulation of statistical data to obtain breakdowns by sex for indicators such as urban/rural residence, age, marital status, literacy, education, income, level of skills, participation in modern and traditional economic activities etc. and relevant information on household and family composition, 
	(b) guidelines and methods to assess the participation of women at all levels and in all sectors of planning and decision-making in society, 
	(c) guidelines and methods for the measurement of women's actual economic and social contributions which are not a part of regular national data collection systems; 
	2. Requests the Untied Nations Research Institute for Social Development (UNRISD) to co-operate with other relevant bodies within the United Nations system in preparing an inventory of social and economic indicators relevant to the analysis of the status f women, on the basis of tis work on the Research Data Bank of Development Indicators and its project on Monitoring Changes in the Conditions of Women for planning and programming purposes." 

19. In response to oral amendments to paragraph 1 made by the representative of the United States of America the sponsors agreed to add the words "regional commissions and inter-governmental organizations" after the words "statistical offices". 

20. The sponsors also agreed to France's suggestion to add to paragraph 1 (a) the words "particularly at the national and regional levels" after the words "statistical data". 

21. AT its 671st meeting, on 13 December 1976, the Commission approved without a vote the draft resolution, as revised in E/CN.6/L.696/Rev.1. (For the text, see chapter       , resolution          and chapter        , draft resolution           ). 

22. At the 668th meeting, the representative of the United States of America, on behalf of Denmark, Iran and Thailand, introduced draft resolution E/CN.6/L.684, entitled "Training for the Preparation and Implementation of Project Proposals", Egypt, Greece, India, Pakistan, France, Colombia, Sweden and Indonesia supported the draft resolution. The text of the draft resolution read as follows: 
	"The Commission on the Status of Women recommends to the Economic and Social Council the adoption of the following draft resolution: 
	The Economic and Social Council, 
	Considering that women should have equal access to participation in the formulation and implementation of development planning at the local, national, regional and international levels, 
	Considering further that women for the most part have not been utilized in the systems governing funding allocations and have not had an active role in national development planning, 
	Considering that it is essential for women to acquire the necessary skills in the preparation of development project proposals, project management and the evaluation procedures, 
	Concerned that women will continue to be denied participation on an equal basis with men unless they have the necessary skills, 
1. Requests that the Secretary-General direct the United Nations Development Programme, specialized agencies financial institutions in co-operation with the appropriate international training and research institutes to intensify work with regional commissions and national governments to develop or include in existing projects basic training for women and women's organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in the preparation of development project proposals, project management, and evaluation procedures; 
2. Requests that such training incorporates the following: 
	(a) How to look for needs of the community and formulate a project plan; 
	(b) How to identify good project suggestions; 
	(c) How to determine priorities as they relate to national development; 
	(d) How to write a proposal, including budget estimates of time, personnel, equipment and technical support; 
	(e) How to locate sources of local funding, how to generate funds and seek new sources of financial and human resource support from private and government sources; 
	(f) How to negotiate and obtain support for proposals from potential sources of funds including in-kind contributions; 
	(g) How to locate and develop management skills among women to manage the implementation and evaluation of the project; 
	(h) How to ensure timely and appropriate implementation; 
	(i) How to evaluate progress of implementation, how to solve problems and how to determine when special assistance is needed to complete the project; 
3. Recommends that Member States generate such training and/or requests for same from United Nations system or other potential donor groups, with the view that developing the skills of women in such techniques will prove beneficial in all aspects of project design, execution, and evaluation pertaining to social and economic development; 
4. Requests that this kind of training be explored as a possible programme of the International Training and Research Institute for the Advancement of Women; 
5. Recommends that the Secretary-General direct all international agencies to prepare reports which include the following information: 
	(1) The frequency of such courses; where and by whom they were organized; 
	(2) The extent to which women are integrated in such courses; 
	(3) How much stress the international agency places on the inclusion of women in the preparation of project proposals in their work with national governments; 
	(4) How much effort has been placed on the dissemination of information to individual women leaders, women's organizations, etc., about these courses, as well as other kinds of training and education on formal and informal bases; 
	(5) Whether participation increases in accordance with the efforts made to encourage women to take advantage of these courses. 
	This information should be available for consideration by the Commission at its twenty-seventh session in January 1978, and for submission to the world conference in 1980. 
	Reports should also be updated for study and analysis at the world conference which may take place at the end of the Decade for Women, 1985." 

23. At the request of the representative of Egypt, the words "so far participated" replaced "been utilized" in the second preambular paragraph. 

24. The representative of the Secretary-General suggested that in paragraph 1 the words "invites the Administrator" should replace the words: "Request that the Secretary-General distract the UNDP. The representative of the International Labour Organisation proposed that the paragraph be amended to read as follows: 
	"1. Invites the Administrator of the United Nations Development Programme and the executive heads of the specialized agencies, wherever possible, in collaboration with the appropriate international training and research institute, with regional commissions and for national governments to organize training programmes for women and women's organizations in the preparation of project proposals and in the management and evaluation of these projects." 

25. The representative of the United States of America suggested the addition of the words "governmental and non-governmental" after the words "women's organizations". The sponsors of the draft resolution endorsed these suggestions. 

26. The first line of paragraph 2 was orally revised by the United States of America, Egypt and India to read as follows: "Suggests that such training incorporates among other things some or all of the following:" 

27. The representative of Pakistan suggested that the words "at all levels" be added after the word "training" in paragraph 3. The sponsors of the draft resolution accepted her suggestion. 

28. As the suggestion of the representative of Colombia, the word "planned" was added before the word "international" in paragraph 4. 

29. Similarly it was agreed that the numerical numeration in paragraph 5 should be replaced by alphabetic numeration. It was also agreed that sub-paragraph (a) would read as follows: 
	"The frequency of management and training courses, their content; where and by whom they were organized". 

30. The representative of the Secretary-General proposed the deletion of the last three lines in paragraph 5 and a new paragraph 6 which might read as follows: 
	"Requests the Secretary-General to submit a progress report to the Commission on the Status of Women at its twenty-seventh session in 1978 on the steps taken to implement this resolution and a further report on action taken for the twenty-eighth session of the Commission and for the World Conference in 1980." 
The sponsors of the draft resolution accepted that suggestion. 

31. At its 671st meeting on 13 December 1976, the Commission approved without a vote the draft resolution as revised in E/CN.6/L.684/Rev.1. (For the text, see Chapter        , resolution            and chapter            draft resolution          ). 

32. At the 671st meeting the representative of India on behalf of Canada, introduced draft resolution E/CN.6/L.711, entitled "National mechanisms to oversee the implementation of the Programme for the Decade and the future Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women". The draft resolution read as follows:
	"The Commission on the Status of Women recommends to the Economic and Social Council adoption of the following draft resolution: 
	The Economic and Social Council, 
	Recalling that the General Assembly in its resolution 3520 (XXX) of 15 December 1975 proclaimed the period 1975–1985 United Nations Decade for Women: Equality, Development and Peace, 
	Recalling further that at the request of the General Assembly, the Commission on the Status of Women has prepared [a] Draft Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, 
	Bearing in mind the continued attention the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women has given to the importance of machinery at the national level to ensure the effective implementation of all the measures recommended by the Commission to promote equality between men and women, 
	Aware of the impetus given by International Women's Year to the creation of national machinery for promoting the advancement of women, 
	Noting paragraph 34 of the World Plan of Action which recommends the establishment of interdisciplinary and multisectoral machinery within Governments, 
1. Urges Governments to establish such permanent machinery in order to ensure the effectiveness of the decade for women and the proper implementation of the Convention on the Elimination against Women when it comes into force; 
2. Recommends that such machinery, in order to be effective be formed by representatives of Government, non-governmental organizations and other agencies which are in a position to promote equality between men and women and to bring about changes in traditional attitudes toward women; 
3. Invites Governments to consider, as part of their long-term programme for the Decade for Women, the desirability of appointing national correspondents to assist them in the implementation of the World Plan of Action; 
4. Requests Member States to inform the Secretary-General about action taken concerning the appointment of such national correspondents." 

33.Preambular paragraph 3 was orally amended with the addition of the words "such as national commissions or secretariats on the status of women, etc." after the words "national level". 

34. The representative of Sweden orally amended paragraph 2 but later withdrew the amendment in favour of the following amendment made by the representative of Canada: 
	"Recommends that in the establishment of  such machinery, States make provisions of the participation of representatives from governments, non-governmental organizations and other appropriate bodies as appropriate which are in a position to promote equality between men and women and to bring about changes in traditional attitudes towards women and men". 

35. The representative of Canada subsequently withdrew the last two paragraphs. 

36. At its 671st meeting, on 13 December 1976, the Commission approved without a vote the draft resolution, as orally revised. (For the text, see chapter           draft resolution         ). 

COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN 
Resumed twenty-sixth session 
Geneva, 6–17 December 1976 
Item 9 

ADOPTION OF THE REPORT OF THE COMMISSION 
ON ITS RESUMED TWENTY-SIXTH SESSION 

DRAFT REPORT 

Chapter _____. THE UNITED NATIONS DECADE FOR WOMEN: 
EQUALITY, DEVELOPMENT AND PEACE, 1976–1985 

(d) Preparatory work for the 1980 conference 

1. Sub-item (d) was discussed at the 670th – 672nd and 674th meetings of the Commission. Under sub-item (d), the Commission had before it a note entitled "Preparatory work for the 1980 Conference" (E/CN.6/600) prepared by the Secretary-General in accordance with the General Assembly resolution 3520 (XXX) and the Economic and Social Council resolution 1999 (LX). 

2. In introducing the document, the representative of the Secretary-General reminded the Commission that the purpose of the 1980 conference as stated by General Assembly resolution 3520 (XXX), (paragraph 20) was "to review and evaluate progress made in implementing the objectives of the International Women's Year ... and where necessary, to readjust assisting programmes in the light of new data and research available". The Conference, therefore, would review and evaluate progress achieved at the mid-point of the Decade. She drew the Commissions' attention to the consideration of a number of matters relating to the substantive preparation of the conference such as the agenda, documentation, committee structure, preparatory meetings, the role of non-governmental organizations and other organizational matters. 

Substantive Preparation of the Conference Topics to be discussed 

3. Members of the Commission were divided on the scope of the agenda for the Conference and therefore the structure of the committees. Although there was general agreement that the agenda should include topics relating to the three themes of the Decade and should provide a follow-up to the 1975 Conference, it was felt that it should be more precise. Some members were of the opinion that the committees should be structured in accordance with the three themes of the Decade and that the three themes should be accorded equal emphasis. They felt that development could not be approached separately from equality and peace, for women though they participated in development, were not equal to men and the possibility or continuation of conflict posed a threat to development. 

4. In this connexion one representative expressed the opinion that paragraph 6 of the report of the Secretary-General which sets forth certain specific objectives to be achieved as a minimum in that five year period dealt with only one objective of the decade, namely development, and omitted the other two objectives, peace and equality. The representative of the Secretary-General explained, however, that paragraph 6 merely reproduced paragraph 46 of the World Plan of Action in which the Conference of IWY had stressed the development aspects in the minimum targets to be achieved during the Decade, although a number of these specific objectives were predicated on the principle of equality of rights, opportunities and responsibilities. She drew attention to paragraph 9 which referred to topics for discussion by the Conference based on the three themes and to paragraph 13 which states that the agenda of the Conference might include three main topics based on the three objectives of the Decade. Another representative requested listing of topics for review and appraisal and stressed that two targets required more emphasis: electoral rights of women i.e. election on equal footing and participation by women in decision-making on local, national and international levels. 

5. A number of representatives were of the opinion that the integration of women in development should receive more attention than the other two themes. One suggestion which received support was to sub-divide this topic into three: educational opportunities, employment opportunities and special training for women and to establish three separate committees to consider them. Another suggestion was to have tow committees which would discuss development and the plenary would discuss peace.  It was suggested that special place and emphasis should be placed on community development, on women in economic development and on methods for increasing employment opportunities for women. 

Documentation 

6. It was suggested that a deadline should be established for the submission of documentation for the Conference. Some felt that the deadline should be 1 April 1979. One representative suggested that Conference documentation should be available for the Commission's consideration in 1980. 

7. Some representatives expressed the opinion that the amount of documentation should be limited. As for the subject matter of documents, one representative suggested that three documents should be prepared on each of the three themes of the Decade. Another suggestion was made to include a study by special rapporteur on the portrayal of women by the mass media. 

Contribution of the United Nations System 

8. The role of regional economic commissions was seen as a crucial one for the preparation for the conference. One representative felt that the regional commissions could play an important role in the collection of data on the regional level and in the preparation of indicators for the status of women on the regional level. The contributions of the regional commissions and the specialized agencies was considered essential for the Conference. 

Contribution of intergovernmental organizations outside the United Nations system and nongovernmental organizations 

9. A number of member states felt that due to the close relationship between non-governmental organizations and women of the grass-roots level, the role of non-governmental organizations should receive full support. For a better understanding of what was done at the national level, the assistance of NGOs was needed. 

ORGANIZATIONAL ASPECTS OF TEH CONFERENCE 

Participation 

10. The Commission considered the question of participation in the Conference. The participation of both men and women in the government delegations was stressed. Some members suggested the inclusion of representatives from women's organizations, women's commissions and trade unions. 

Date, duration and the site of the Conference

11.No comments were made on the suggestion contained in the note of the Secretary-General (E/CN.6/600) that the Conference might be convened sometime during the period June–September 1980. 

12. One representative expressed the opinion that the duration of the Conference should be two weeks. 

13. On the question of site of the Conference, the Commission was informed that two invitations to act as hosts to the Conference were received from the Governments of Bulgaria and Iran and there was the possibility also of holding the Conference at the United Nations Headquarters, New York. The representative of Iran stated that the Government of Bulgaria had informed the Government of Iran that Bulgaria would be ready to withdraw the invitation in favour of Iran's invitation. He noted, however, that the site had to be decided on by the General Assembly. 

Title of the Conference 

14. It was suggested by one representative that the Conference should be called "The Contribution of Women to an Evolving World". 

Working Languages 

15. A suggestion was made that the working languages of the Conference should be the official languages of the United Nations. 

Financial implications of the Conference 

16. The Secretary of the Commission informed the commission that the preliminary financial estimates, as contained in the annex to E/CN.6/600, were $700,000 and did not include the cost of preparatory meetings nor information activities prior to and during the Conference. 

Parallel activities at the Conference 

17. Members of the Commission were divided on the need to have parallel activities at the Conference similar to the Tribune of the Mexico Conference. Some felt that the Tribune at Mexico was ineffective and there was no interaction between the Tribune and the Conference. Some members were of the opinion that money should not be spent on a similar Tribune. Some others favoured parallel activities and said that careful organizations and consideration should be given to the planning of the Tribune. While still others felt that the Tribune or a similar non-governmental organizational activity should be organized prior to the Government Conference so that its decisions and recommendations could be considered by the Conference. Among the suggestions were the following: the preparation of an agenda for the Tribune's consideration, better transportation facilities between the Conference location and the Tribune location, clearer links between the governmental delegations and representatives of non-governmental organizations and setting criteria for non-governmental organizations' participation. One representative was of the opinion that the Tribune should have a small liaison office staffed by the United Nations whose function would be to report developments form one meeting to the other. 

18. In reply to a question concerning the financial implications of parallel activities oat the Conference, the Secretary informed the Commission that the Tribune in Mexico was not financed by the United Nations and that the United Nations had played very little part in its organization. It had been organized by the non-governmental organizations themselves and was open to the public as well. 

Publicity for the Conference 

19. The need to have effective information activities prior to the Conference was stressed. One representative was of the opinion that information materials should be made available to non-governmental organizations prior to the Conference to provide a clear idea about the conference and related activities. 

Preparatory Meetings 

20. The Commission agreed that preparation for the 1980 Conference should receive more careful and detailed planning and consideration ahead of time unlike the IWY 1975 Conference. The timing of the decision to convene the IWY Conference had not allowed adequate preparation for the Conference. Several representatives expressed the hope that preparatory meetings would be scheduled for the Conference. There was, however, a difference of opinion as to what would be the most appropriate body to do the preparatory work for the Conference. Some representatives were of the opinion that an ad hoc committee of about sixteen representatives should be the preparatory body. One member felt that the number of representatives should be 23 and not 16 and that the ad hoc committee should convene three meetings in 1977, 1978 and 1979. It was pointed out that should an ad hoc committee be agreed on, it could not being to function until late 1977 because of the necessity of the approval of the Economic and Social Council to its creation. 

21. Some representatives felt the Commission at its 1978 session could be the preparatory committee for the Conference and if necessary a special session could be convened for the preparation of the Conference. 

22. The Secretary of the Commission informed the Commission that since the General Assembly had approved the Conference, ECOSOC was not in a position to appoint the CSW as a preparatory committee. Such a step would require the approval of the General Assembly. 

23. In addition to the consideration of a preparatory committee, the Commission also considered the possibility of convening preparatory meetings such as seminars and regional conferences, etc. Some members felt that regional seminars should precede the 1980 Conference similar to the regional seminars which were convened in 1975. The year 1979 was considered especially suitable for convening regional seminars. Regional seminars were also seen as a means of involving non-governmental organizations in the preparations for the conference. It was also felt that the recommendations by these seminars would contribute to a better understanding to regional problems and situation. One representative felt that the subject of mass communication media and its portrayal of women should be among the subjects discussed in regional seminars. The representative of ESCAP informed the Commission that ESCAP would hold a regional seminar prior to the Conference, in which it would review the Asian Five Year Programme for implementation of the Regional Plan of Action for Asia and the Pacific. 

24. A number of representatives stressed the need to have preparatory national seminars as a means of highlighting awareness of the 1980 Conference. As in the preparation of the 1975 conference, it was felt that national commissions and national liaison officers should be appointed to facilitate communication between the national and international levels. 

25. Some representatives were of the opinion that international seminars should be part of the preparation for the Conference and that they should focus on the three themes of the Conference. 

26. In the discussion on the preparation for the Conference, the need to consider financial resources ahead of time was stressed and that the earmarking of funds to subsidize regional seminars should be done at an early stage. 

27. At the 674th meeting, the representative of Iran, on behalf of Colombia, Egypt, Guinea, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Senegal and Venezuela, introduced draft resolution E/CN.6/L.717 entitled "Preparatory work for the 1980 Conference". The draft resolution read as follows: 
	The Economic and Social Council 
	Considering that the General Assembly in its resolution 3520 (XXX) decided to convene in 1980 a World Conference of all States to review and evaluate the progress made in implementing the objectives of the International Women's Year and, where necessary, to readjust existing programmes in the light of new data and research available. 
	Recalling Economic and Social Council resolution 1999 (LX) in which it requested the Commission on the Status of Women at its twenty-sixth session to consider different aspects of the preparatory work for the World Conference including its agenda and decided to consider at its sixty-fourth session the preparatory work for the conference on the basis of deliberations of the Commission on the Status of Women and the Committee on Review and Appraisal, 
	Noting the recommendations made by the Commission on the Status of Women as contained in its report on the twenty-sixth session, 
	1. Decides, in connexion with the next review and appraisal of the implementation of the WPA and the preparatory work required for the World Conference of the Decade in 1980, to establish on the basis of equitable geographical distribution an ad hoc committee composed of 16 representatives of the Governments members of the Commission on the Status of Women to submit tot he Commission at its twenty-seventh and twenty-eighth sessions in 1978 and 1980 proposals concerning the substantive and administrative arrangements for the Conference, taking into account all the relevant reports relating to the review and appraisal of the implementation of the WPA, as well as the discussions and the documents submitted (E/CN.6/600 and E/CN.6/L.713), at the twenty-sixth session of the Commission. 
	2. Requests the Secretary-General to prepare for the consideration of this committee in 1978 a report outlining a programme of concrete action for the second half of the Decade for Women: Equality, Development and Peace as the basis for a report to be submitted to the World Conference in 1980. 

28. As the draft resolution envisaged the establishment of an ad hoc preparatory committee, which would meet twice before the Conference, questions were raised concerning the financial implications of the meetings. 

29. The Secretary informed the Commission that the financial implications for each two-week meeting would be $52,360. With a view to educing the financial implications and cutting down on the cost of travel for members of the ad hoc Committee, the representative of the United Kingdom proposed an oral amendment to the end of paragraph 1 which was accepted by the sponsors and further amended orally by Iran. It read as follows: 
	"The ad hoc committee shall meet, if possible, immediately before the 1978 and 1980 sessions of the Commission on the Status of Women. If it is deemed necessary by the Commission on the Status of Women an additional meeting of the ad hoc committee will be held in 1979." 

30. The Secretary of the Commission pointed out that timing for the ad hoc committee meetings would depend on the ECOSOC calendar of meetings which would be drawn up in the summer of 1977 and 1979. 

31. The representatives of France of the USSR expressed their reservations on the financial implications of there [sic] meetings. 

32. The USSR representative proposed an oral amendment to operative paragraph 1 to replace the word "administrative" by the word "organizational". The amendment was accepted by the sponsors. 

33. The sponsors decided to delete the words "in 1980" in operative paragraph 2 in order to allow adequate time for the Secretary-General to draw up a programme for the second part of the Decade. 

34. At its 674th meeting on 15 December 1976 the Commission approved without a vote the draft resolution as orally amended. (For the text, see Chapter _____ resolution and Chapter ____, draft resolution ________________.). 

COMMISSION ON THE STATUS OF WOMEN
Resumed twenty-sixth session 
Geneva, 6–17 December 1976 
Item 9 

ADOPTION OF THE REPORT OF THE COMMISSION 
ON ITS RESUMED TWENTY-SIXTH SESSION 

DRAFT REPORT 

Rapporteur: Homa ROUHI (Iran) 

Chapter .......... COMMUNICATIONS CONCERNING 
		THE STATUS OF WOMEN

Chapter .......... PROGRAMME OF WORK 

1. Item 6 was discussed at the 676th meeting. The Commission had before it a Note by the Secretary-General (E/CN.6/602). 

2. It also had statements from two non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council, Category II; the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (E/CN.6/NGO/274) and the International Youth and Student Movement for the United Nations (E/CN.6/NGO.262). 

3. In introducing the report the representative of the Secretary-General drew the situation of the Commission to decision 86 (LVIII) of 16 May 1975 in which the Council had invited the Commission to consider the advisability of continuing to deal with communications concerning the status of women in the light of the report of the Secretary-General (E/5628) and the discussion in the Social Committee of the Council at its fifty-eighth session and to report to the Council at its sixty-second session. 

4. She drew the attention of the Commission to paragraphs 5 to 8 of the report which summarized the procedures for handling communications concerning human rights and to paragraphs 9 and 10 which referred to procedures for handling communications concerning the status of women. 

5. She reminded the Commission that procedures for handling communications regarding allegations of violations of human rights and the status of women were first established by the Economic and Social Council in its resolutions 75 (V) and 76 (V) respectively. While procedures for dealing with communications concerning human rights were amended and expanded by the Council in part by resolutions 728F (XXVIII), 1235 (XLII) and 1503 (XLVIII), communications concerning the status of women had continued to be handled on the basis of Council resolution 76 (V) as amended by resolution 304 (XI) of the Council. 

6. IN the discussion on this item opinion was divided as to the advisability of the Commission on the Status of Women continuing to deal with communications concerning the status of women. 

7. In support of the Commission dealing with communications, a number of reasons were put forward. It was pointed out that the communication system provided an important source of information. It helped pinpoint gross and persistent violations. The Commission, it was stated, would be more sensitive and more committed to complaints relating to [the] status of women and there was no other appropriate forum for receiving communications relating to the status of women. It was stressed that by denying this channel of communication to women the very credibility of the Commission would be affected. 

8. Representatives who opposed the handling of communications by the Commission on the Status of Women gave the following reasons in support of their position. It was stated that violations of human rights whether of women or men should be placed in the same footing and the human rights bodies were sufficiently competent to deal with them. By dividing rights into those of women and men it would weaken them. There would be to o much duplication in the work and the different committees and commissions, especially with the coming into force of the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In view of the very heavy agenda of the Commission on the Status of Women it would not have the time to deal satisfactorily with communications and would be detracted from it work on the Programme for the Decade. It was pointed out that there was no significant change and no reason to go back on the decision which the Commission had taken at its last session to delete this item from its work programme. 

9. The representatives of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Sweden, Thailand, United Kingdom and the United States of America submitted a draft resolution on communications concerning the Status of Women (E/CN.6/L.686). 

10. At its 677th meeting, on 16 December 1976, the Commission adopted the resolution by 14 votes in favour, 5 against and 3 abstentions. 

11. Explanations of vote were given by Greece, Pakistan and Indonesia. The representative of Greece felt that by the Commission on the Status of Women taking up this question, the distinction between rights of women and men would be institutionalized and might perpetuate discrimination. The human rights machinery in her opinion would have a global view and should be strengthened. Reverting to previous practice in her view was not very expedient. 

12. The representative of Pakistan abstained in view of the short time for consideration of this matter and the difficulty of getting her Government's instructions. 

13. The representative of Indonesia abstained on the grounds that the handling of communications relating to the status of women would duplicate the work of the Commission on Human Rights. (For the text see Chapter .... resolution ....).  

Item 7 – Programme of Work 

14. This item was taken up by the Commission at its 677th meeting. the Commission had before it (A/10006(vol. II)) the Medium-Term Plan for the Period 1978–1981 Volume I (A/31/6/Add.1) the Report of the Committee for Programme and Co-ordination on the Work of its Sixteenth Session (A/31/38).

15. The representative of the Secretary-General drew the Commission's situation to the programme budget for the biennium 1976–1977 which was contained in document A/10006 Vol. II. As this programme budget had been drawn up before the World Conference of Mexico City, June–July 1975, it did not take into account the staff requirements for carrying out the programme for the implementation of the World Plan of Action. By General Assembly resolution 1520 (XXX) the Secretariat had been asked to prepare revised estimates to the 1977 budget because of the implications of the World Plan of Action. These revised estimates were presently under discussion with the Secretariat. 

16. Currently the programme budget for the biennium 1978–79 which would be based on the medium-term plan was being prepared and would take into account the decisions of the Commission at its current twenty-sixth session. 

17. She informed the Commission that it would be helpful for the Secretariat to have the guidance of the Commission on the Medium-Term Plan for 1978–1981 which was prepared early in 1976 and was submitted so the Committee for Programme and Co-ordination of the Economic and Social Council in May 1976 (Z/[ ] Add.1, Vol. I). The relevant paragraphs (1777 to 1803) relating to the three such programmes of the Branch for the Promotion of Equality of Men and Women were sub-programme [ ] Integration of Women in Development; sub-programme 5; International Instruments Relating to the Status of Women and sub-programme 6; Women and Peace. 

18. The Commission was informed that during the discussions in the Committee on Programme and Co-ordination some amendments were introduced, taking into account the World Plan of Action and the resolutions of the General Assembly. The Committee recommended that the programme be raised from below average rate of growth to above average rate of growth. 

19. The Commission was also informed about the Voluntary Fund and the resolution on the Voluntary Fund which had been endorsed by the General Assembly. 

20. A few questions were raised with respect to the budget and the additional staffing that was required for the programme for the Decade. 

21. The Commission concluded this item by approving in general the medium-term plan continued in document A/31/6/Add.1 (paragraphs 1777 to 1805) and took note of the relevant recommendations of the Committee for Programme and Co-ordination (document A/31/38).