A/RES/60/205
Welcoming the adoption of the Bali Strategic Plan for Technology Support and
Capacity-building of the United Nations Environment Programme, 4
Noting with appreciation the hosting of the second World Information
Technology Forum by Botswana from 31 August to 2 September 2005 in Gaborone,
Acknowledging the urgent need to bridge the digital divide and to assist
developing countries to benefit from the potential of information and
communication technologies,
Noting with appreciation the work of the Commission on Science and
Technology for Development during its intersessional period 2004–2005 on the
theme “Science and technology promotion, advice and application for the
achievement of the internationally agreed development goals contained in the
United Nations Millennium Declaration”, in particular, the recommendation to
facilitate the establishment of a network of centres of excellence in developing
countries 5 with a view to allowing scientists and engineers to interact with each
other and make use of state-of-the-art teaching and research facilities offered by
those centres,
Taking note of the selection by the Commission on Science and Technology for
Development of the substantive theme “Bridging the technology gap between and
within nations” for its work during the intersessional period 2005–2006,5
Taking note also of the report of the Secretary-General on science and
technology for development, 6
Taking note further of the United Nations Conference on Trade and
Development publication entitled The Digital Divide: ICT Development Indices
2004, 7
Reaffirming the need to enhance the science and technology programmes of
the relevant entities of the United Nations system,
Taking note with interest of the establishment of the inter-agency cooperation
network on biotechnology, UN-Biotech, as described in the report of the SecretaryGeneral,6
1.
Affirms its commitment to:
(a) Strengthen and enhance existing mechanisms and to support initiatives
for research and development, including through voluntary partnerships between the
public and private sectors, to address the special needs of developing countries in
the areas of health, agriculture, conservation, sustainable use of natural resources
and environmental management, energy, forestry and the impact of climate change;
(b) Promote and facilitate, as appropriate, access to, and development,
transfer and diffusion of, technologies, including environmentally sound
technologies and the corresponding know-how, to developing countries;
_______________
4
UNEP/GC.23/6/Add.1 and Corr.1, annex.
See Official Records of the Economic and Social Council, 2005, Supplement No. 11 (E/2005/31), chap. I,
sect. A.
6
A/60/184.
7
UNCTAD/ITE/IPC/2005/4.
5
2