A/RES/55/151 secretariat of the Commission in financing and organizing seminars and symposia, in particular in developing countries, and in the award of fellowships to candidates from developing countries to enable them to participate in such seminars and symposia; 8. Appeals to the United Nations Development Programme and other bodies responsible for development assistance, such as the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, as well as to Governments in their bilateral aid programmes, to support the training and technical assistance programme of the Commission and to cooperate and coordinate their activities with those of the Commission; 9. Appeals to Governments, the relevant bodies of the United Nations system, organizations, institutions and individuals, in order to ensure full participation by all Member States in the sessions of the Commission and its working groups, to make voluntary contributions to the trust fund for travel assistance to developing countries that are members of the Commission, at their request and in consultation with the Secretary-General; 10. Decides, in order to ensure full participation by all Member States in the sessions of the Commission and its working groups, to continue, in the competent Main Committee during the fifty-fifth session of the General Assembly, its consideration of granting travel assistance to the least developed countries that are members of the Commission, at their request and in consultation with the SecretaryGeneral; 11. Requests the Secretary-General to strengthen the secretariat of the Commission within the bounds of the resources available so as to ensure and enhance the effective implementation of the programme of the Commission; 12. Stresses the importance of bringing into effect the conventions emanating from the work of the Commission for the global unification and harmonization of international trade law, and to this end urges States that have not yet done so to consider signing, ratifying or acceding to those conventions; 13. Requests the Secretary-General to submit to the General Assembly at its fifty-sixth session a report on the implications of increasing the membership of the Commission, and invites Member States to submit their views on this issue; 14. Expresses its appreciation to Gerold Herrmann, Secretary of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law since 1991, who will retire on 31 January 2001, for his outstanding and devoted contribution to the process of unification and harmonization of international trade law in general and to the Commission in particular. 84th plenary meeting 12 December 2000 3