A/RES/51/241 Page 5 IX. THE AGENDA 23. Bearing in mind rule 81 of the rules of procedure of the General Assembly, the requirements for reopening debate on an agenda item which the Assembly had decided was completed will continue to be as at present and should be made clear to delegations through a statement from the President of the Assembly. A delegation wishing to reopen debate on an agenda item should send a written request to the President of the Assembly. The President will then undertake soundings to ascertain whether the request enjoys wide support. In the light of these soundings, the President shall announce in the Journal of the United Nations the date of the meeting of the Assembly to consider the question of reopening debate on the item, bearing in mind the requirements of rule 81. 24. The General Assembly shall take further steps to rationalize and streamline the agenda, based on the Guidelines on the Rationalization of the Agenda of the General Assembly agreed to by the Assembly in annex I to its resolution 48/264 of 29 July 1994, and in particular shall make greater use of clustering, biennialization or triennialization of agenda items. Items that could be considered at a later session shall be identified, taking into account the priorities set by the medium-term plan. 25. As a general rule, agenda items that could be considered in the Main Committees shall be referred to the Main Committees rather than the General Assembly in plenary meetings. 26. The Main Committees shall give specific attention to rationalizing their future agenda and shall consider recommending any possible clustering, biennialization or triennialization of items. X. ORGANIZATION OF WORK 27. The General Assembly is the highest political body with universal membership of the Organization. Consideration of agenda items directly in plenary meetings shall be reserved for urgent issues or issues of major political importance, bearing in mind paragraphs 1 and 2 of annex I to General Assembly resolution 48/264. 28. The President of the General Assembly, with a view to ensuring that there is a systematic and transparent process for participation by delegations in discussions on action to be taken on items considered directly in plenary meetings, shall assess the debate in plenary meetings and, where appropriate, organize open-ended informal consultations, under the chairmanship of the President or one of the Vice-Presidents of the Assembly, to discuss the need for and content of any action. 29. The Secretariat shall ensure, in consultation with the President, that priority is accorded to the availability of a meeting room and services to facilitate these consultations. 30. All Main Committees shall hold brief organizational sessions once the General Assembly has taken decisions on the agenda, before the commencement of the general debate. Bureaux of the Main Committees shall meet earlier to draw up recommendations on the organization and programme of work. 31. The Main Committees shall meet in substantive session only after the end /...