A/RES/57/262 Welcoming the establishment of the Office of the High Representative for the Least Developed Countries, Landlocked Developing Countries and Small Island Developing States, and emphasizing the importance of issues related to small island developing States within the United Nations system, Recognizing that, within the context of the challenges of development, small island developing States experience specific problems arising from small size, remoteness, geographical dispersion, vulnerability to natural disasters, fragile ecosystems, constraints on transport and communication, isolation from markets, vulnerability to exogenous economic and financial shocks, limited internal markets, lack of natural resources, limited freshwater supply, heavy dependence on imports and limited commodities, depletion of non-renewable resources and migration, Recognizing also the significant efforts of small island developing States to achieve sustainable development and the need to continue to enhance their capacities to participate effectively in the multilateral financial and trading system, Reiterating the importance of the vulnerability index as a tool for assessing, and thereby addressing, the vulnerability of small island developing States, as well as identifying the challenges to their sustainable development, Recognizing the relevance of such work to the mandate of the Committee for Development Policy concerning criteria for the identification, including designation and graduation, of the least developed countries, Noting the efforts to implement the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States at the national, regional and international levels and the need for regional and global institutions to continue to supplement the efforts being made at the national level, inter alia, through the provision of adequate financial and technical support, Emphasizing the continuing need for the technical and financial support of projects that were presented within the context of the implementation of the Programme of Action, inter alia, at the meeting of representatives of donor countries and small island developing States, held in New York from 24 to 26 February 1999, 7 as well as the partnership initiatives presented by small island developing States and their organizations during the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Noting in this regard the preparatory activities undertaken at the national and regional levels for the Summit, and expressing its appreciation to the Government of Singapore for hosting the interregional meeting of the Alliance of Small Island States held in preparation for the Summit from 7 to 11 January 2002, 1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General; 8 2. Reiterates the urgent need for the full and effective implementation of the Programme of Action for the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States 3 and of the Declaration and review document adopted by the General Assembly at its twenty-second special session 1 to assist small island developing States in their efforts to achieve sustainable development; 3. Welcomes the efforts made at the national, subregional and regional levels to implement the Programme of Action; _______________ 7 8 2 See A/S-22/4. A/57/131.