United Nations A/RES/57/255 General Assembly Distr.: General 6 February 2003 Fifty-seventh session Agenda item 87 (b) Resolution adopted by the General Assembly [on the report of the Second Committee (A/57/532/Add.2)] 57/255. International cooperation to reduce the impact of the El Niño phenomenon The General Assembly, Recalling its resolutions 52/200 of 18 December 1997, 53/185 of 15 December 1998, 54/220 of 22 December 1999, 55/197 of 20 December 2000 and 56/194 of 21 December 2001 and Economic and Social Council resolutions 1999/46 of 28 July 1999, 1999/63 of 30 July 1999 and 2000/33 of 28 July 2000, Reaffirming the importance of developing strategies at the national, subregional, regional and international levels that aim to prevent, mitigate and repair the damage caused by natural disasters that result from the El Niño phenomenon, Taking into account the Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development 1 and the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (“Johannesburg Plan of Implementation”), 2 Noting with interest the partnership initiatives voluntarily undertaken by some Governments, international organizations and major groups, and announced at the Summit, 1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General; 3 2. Welcomes the efforts undertaken by the Government of Ecuador, in cooperation with the World Meteorological Organization and the inter-agency secretariat for the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, towards the establishment of the International Centre for the Study of the El Niño Phenomenon at Guayaquil, Ecuador, and the announcement made regarding its opening in _______________ 1 Report of the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg, South Africa, 26 August–4 September 2002 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.03.II.A.1 and corrigendum), chap. I, resolution 1, annex. 2 Ibid., resolution 2, annex. 3 A/57/189. 02 55618