"Deeply concerned about the continued worsening of the economic situation in many developing countries, particularly the least developed countries, owing to, inter alia, the deterioration of the external economic environment, as evidenced by the significant decline in living conditions, and the continued increase of widespread poverty in a large number of those countries, "Welcoming with satisfaction General Assembly resolution 47/92 of 16 December 1992, in which the Assembly decided to convene a World Summit for Social Development in Denmark early in 1995, "Convinced that the eradication of poverty constitutes one of the main challenges for Governments, the international community and people themselves and that the situation of continuous and growing deprivation is a violation of fundamental human rights that hinders the achievement of sustainable development of society as a whole, "Convinced of the essential role of international cooperation for development in efforts at all levels aimed at eradicating poverty, "Convinced that poverty affects women more deeply and disproportionately than men, thus making indispensable the formulation of socio-economic policies from a gender perspective, "Noting with concern that rural women, who are the backbone of the rural economy, are most vulnerable to situations of extreme poverty, "Expressing deep concern over the fact that single-parent households headed by women represent a considerable proportion of households living in extreme poverty in numerous societies, "Conscious that the circumstances imposed upon women living in extreme poverty constitute one of the fundamental means by which poverty is transmitted from one generation to another, "Aware that the eradication of poverty demands a vigorous and sustained response at all levels that, in order to be effective, requires international cooperation to complement national efforts, "1. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General (E/CN.6/1993/3) on women in extreme poverty: integration of women’s concerns in national development planning, in particular, the conclusions and recommendations contained therein; "2. Urges Governments, international organizations, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, and community-based organizations to examine more closely the structural causes of poverty and ways and means of overcoming it and to evaluate from a gender perspective the effects of current socio-economic policies; "3. Recommends that Governments should formulate strategies to eradicate poverty, taking into account the specific requirements of women living in poverty, in both rural and urban areas, in order to enable them to fully exercise their social, economic, cultural, civil and political rights, as well as to maximize their resources and to increase their productivity; "4. Calls upon Governments to adopt measures to facilitate women’s access to education, training, health, family planning, and income-77-