A/RES/54/229 Page 2 Noting that contributions to the General Fund of the Institute have not increased along with the increased participation of the developed countries in the training programmes, and stressing the urgent need to address this discrepancy, Reiterating that training activities should be accorded a more visible and larger role in support of the management of international affairs and in the execution of the economic and social development programmes of the United Nations system, 1. Reaffirms the importance of a coordinated United Nations system-wide approach to research and training, and underlines the need for United Nations training and research institutions to avoid duplication in their work; 2. Also reaffirms the relevance of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research, in view of the growing importance of training within the United Nations and the training requirements of States, and the relevance of research activities related to training undertaken by the Institute within its mandate; 3. Stresses the need for the Institute to strengthen further its cooperation with other United Nations institutes and relevant national, regional and international institutes; 4. Welcomes the progress made in building partnerships between the Institute and other agencies and bodies of the United Nations system with respect to their training programmes, and, in this context, underlines the need to develop further and to expand the scope of these partnerships, particularly at the country level; 5. Stresses the need for continuity in the management of the Institute in order to ensure efficient and effective completion of the process of restructuring and revitalization; 6. Requests the Board of Trustees of the United Nations Institute for Training and Research to intensify its efforts to attract experts from developing countries and countries with economies in transition for the preparation of the relevant training materials for the programmes and activities of the Institute, and stresses that the Institute’s courses should focus primarily on development issues; 7. Renews its appeal to all Governments, in particular those of developed countries, and to private institutions that have not yet contributed financially or otherwise to the Institute to give it their generous financial and other support, and urges the States that have interrupted their voluntary contributions to consider resuming them in view of the successful restructuring and revitalization of the Institute; 8. Encourages the Board of Trustees of the Institute to continue its efforts to address the discrepancy between the decline in contributions to the General Fund of the Institute and the increase in participation in its programmes; 9. Also encourages the Board of Trustees to consider organizing events of the Institute at additional sites, including the cities hosting regional commissions, in order to promote greater participation and to reduce costs; 10. Requests the Secretary-General, in consultation with the Institute and with United Nations funds and programmes, to continue to explore ways and means systematically to utilize the Institute in the execution of training and capacity-building programmes; /...