A/RES/56/64 8. Welcomes the development of the United Nations News Service by the Department of Public Information, and requests the Secretary-General to continue to exert all efforts to ensure that publications and other information services of the Secretariat, including the United Nations web site and the United Nations News Service, contain comprehensive, objective and equitable information about the issues before the Organization and that they maintain editorial independence, impartiality, accuracy and full consistency with resolutions and decisions of the General Assembly; 9. Takes note of the report of the Secretary-General on the reorientation of United Nations activities in the field of public information and communications, 7 encourages him to continue the reorientation exercise, while stressing the need to take into account the views of Member States, and requests him to report thereon to the Committee on Information at its twenty-fourth session; 10. Emphasizes that, through its reorientation, the Department of Public Information should maintain and improve its activities in the areas of special interest to developing countries and, where appropriate, other countries with special needs, including countries in transition, and that such reorientation contributes to bridging the existing gap between the developing and the developed countries in the crucial field of public information and communications; 11. Concurs with the view of the Secretary-General that the development of a strategic vision linking all the components of the Secretariat with emphasis on planning cooperation within the Organization constitutes the central element for continuing reorientation, and encourages the Department of Public Information to maintain, improve and expand its activities in the areas of special interest to developing countries; 12. Encourages the Secretary-General to strengthen the cooperation between the Department of Public Information and other departments of the Secretariat, in particular those dealing with priority issues; 13. Welcomes the initiatives that have been taken by the Department of Public Information to strengthen the public information system of the United Nations, and, in this regard, stresses the importance of a coherent and resultsoriented approach being undertaken by the United Nations, the specialized agencies and the programmes and funds of the United Nations system involved in public information activities and the provision of resources for their implementation, and that this be done taking into account feedback from Member States on the relevance and effectiveness of its programme delivery; 14. Requests the Department of Public Information to continue to ensure the greatest possible access for United Nations guided tours and to ensure that displays in public areas are kept as informative, up-to-date, relevant and as technologically innovative as possible; 15. Recognizes the need for the Department of Public Information to increase its outreach activities in all regions, requests the Secretary-General to include, in his next report on the reorientation of United Nations activities in the field of public information and communications, an analysis of the present reach and scope of the Department’s activities, identifying the widest possible spectrum of audiences and geographical areas which are not covered adequately and which may require special _______________ 7 A/AC.198/2001/2. 5