Article 15 43. Several delegations noted that in light of article 19 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, article 15 of the protocol was redundant. Many delegations expressed the view that a specific reference to the Committee’s powers with regard to rules of procedure should be included in the protocol for the purposes of clarity. Delegations adopted the article ad referendum. Article 16 44. Possible implications of the adoption and entry into force of the optional protocol with regard to the Committee’s requirements for meeting time and resources were discussed. In this regard, the financial regulations and rules of the United Nations, in particular those applying to the preparation of the proposed programme budget by the Secretary-General and its review and approval by the General Assembly following the consideration of the reports of the financial and budgetary committees, were noted. While there was recognition that to enter into any particular aspect of possible implications would be premature, it was pointed out that the Committee’s responsibilities under the optional protocol would have implications for the Committee’s meeting time. In this regard, it was suggested that the recent amendment of article 20 (1) of the Convention could be reflected in the optional protocol. Possible resource implications with regard to the Secretariat’s servicing of the Committee would also have to be addressed by Member States in due course in accordance with established regulations and rules. 45. Note was taken of the proposed new paragraph on resources, introduced by the Chairperson, which restates article 17 (9) of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. 46. Following consideration of the resource issues by the Working Group, a proposal was made by the Chairperson to remove provisions pertaining to resources, including meeting time, from the text of the optional protocol and to have these elements reflected in the resolution by which the finalized text of the protocol would be adopted. Pending further discussion, the paragraphs were retained in brackets. Article 17 47. Delegations adopted article 17 of the draft protocol ad referendum. Article 18 48. While several delegations expressed the view that the optional protocol should enter into force after the fifth instrument of ratification or accession was lodged with the Secretary-General, they were willing to join the many delegations who favoured entry into force after 10 ratifications or accessions. A number of delegations, arguing for consistency with the threshold established in the Convention, were of the view that 20 should be required. -93-