A/RES/58/242 Expressing its deep appreciation and gratitude to the Government of Cuba for hosting the sixth session of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention in Havana from 25 August to 5 September 2003, 1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General; 4 2. Welcomes the decision 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 its sixth session, to accept the Global Environment Facility as a financial mechanism of the Convention, pursuant to article 21 of the Convention; Also welcomes the decision of the Council of the Global Environment 3. Facility at its meeting, held in Washington, D.C., from 14 to 16 May 2003, to establish a new operational programme on sustainable land management, and, in that regard, urges the Executive Secretary, in collaboration with the Managing Director of the Global Mechanism, to consult with the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Global Environment Facility, with a view to preparing and agreeing upon a memorandum of understanding, as mandated by the Conference of the Parties, for the consideration of and adoption by the Conference of Parties and the Council of the Global Environment Facility; Further welcomes the outcome of the Second Assembly of the Global 4. Environment Facility, held in Beijing from 16 to 18 October 2002, in particular the decision to designate land degradation as a new focal area of the Facility, which will, inter alia, support the implementation of the Convention; Notes with appreciation the increased number of affected developing 5. country parties that have adopted their national, subregional and regional action programmes, and urges affected developing countries that have not yet done so to accelerate the process of elaboration and adoption of their action programmes, with a view to finalizing them as soon as possible; Invites affected developing countries to place the implementation of their 6. action programmes to combat desertification high among their priorities in their dialogue with their development partners; Calls upon affected parties, with the collaboration of relevant multilateral 7. organizations, including the Global Environment Facility implementation agencies, to integrate desertification into their strategies for sustainable development; Urges the international community to take effective measures for the 8. implementation of the Convention through bilateral and multilateral cooperation programmes; Urges the United Nations funds and programmes, the Bretton Woods 9. institutions, the donor countries and other development agencies to integrate actions in support of the Convention in their strategies to support the achievement of internationally agreed development goals, including those contained in the United Nations Millennium Declaration;3 10. Welcomes the strengthened cooperation between the secretariat of the Convention and the Global Mechanism through the elaboration and implementation of a joint work plan aimed at maximizing the impact of resources and actions, _______________ 4 2 A/58/158.