A/RES/53/191 Page 2 Expressing its deep appreciation to the Government of Senegal for the generous offer to host the second session of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention, Expressing its deep appreciation to the Secretary-General and to all bilateral and multilateral contributors, including intergovernmental, regional and non-governmental organizations, for the contribution and the support they provided to the interim secretariat of the Convention, Noting with appreciation the work undertaken by the interim secretariat in contributing to the ratification and implementation of the Convention at the national, subregional and regional levels, including in promoting public awareness, Looking forward to the continued efforts of the Conference of the Parties and its subsidiary bodies in addressing desertification and drought issues in the light of the provisions of the Convention, as well as of the decisions taken by the Conference of the Parties at its first session,4 Having considered the report of the Secretary-General5 on the implementation of resolution 52/198, submitted in accordance with paragraph 21 thereof, and noting in this context the statement made on 22 October 1998 to the Second Committee of the General Assembly by the Executive Secretary of the Convention on the progress made by all actors in implementing the provisions of the Convention,6 1. Welcomes the convening of the second session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, particularly in Africa, at Dakar, from 30 November to 11 December 1998, in accordance with paragraph 19 of its resolution 52/198; 2. Calls upon all States and other actors to contribute to the successful outcome of the second session of the Conference of the Parties; 3. Also calls upon all countries that are not yet parties to the Convention to ratify or accede to the Convention as soon as possible; 4. Notes that the United Nations, the Convention secretariat and the Government of Germany signed a headquarters agreement on 18 August 1998,7 which will be before the Conference of the Parties at its second session for adoption, subject to ratification by the German Parliament; 5. Invites the host Government and the Convention secretariat to contribute fully to the relocation of the secretariat and its effective functioning at Bonn, and also invites the secretariat to continue its efforts with a view to finalizing the relocation as soon as possible; 4 See ICCD/COP(1)/11/Add.1. 5 A/53/516. 6 See Official Records of the General Assembly, Fifty-third Session, Second Committee, 22nd meeting, and corrigendum. 7 ICCD/COP(2)/8 and Corr.1 and Add.1 and 2. /...