UNITED NATIONS	HS
	Commission on Human Settlements	Distr. LIMITED HS/C/17/L.18 12 May 1999 ORIGINAL: ENGLISH

The Commission on Human Settlements,

Considering General Assembly resolution 40/199 of 17 December 1985 on cooperation between the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) and the United Nations Environment Programme,

Noting the importance of this cooperation for the effective implementation of Agenda 21 1/ and of the Habitat Agenda 2/ and the Istanbul Declaration on Human Settlements, adopted at the second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II), specifically chapter IV, sections C, D and E of the Habitat Agenda, 3/

Recalling its resolutions 15/8 of 1 May 1995 and 16/20 of 6 May 1997, on cooperation between the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) and the United Nations Environment Programme in the Sustainable Cities Programme,

Taking note of the recommendations of the United Nations Task Force on Environment and Human Settlements of 1998, as set forth in the report of the Secretary-General on environment and human settlements to the General Assembly at its fifty-third session 4/ and of decision 20/17 of 5 February 1999 of the Governing Council of the United Nations Environment Programme on the report of the Secretary-General on environment and human settlements,

Taking note of the joint progress report of the Executive Director of the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) and the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme on cooperation between the Centre and the Programme, 5/

Noting with satisfaction the achievements of the joint Sustainable Cities Programme and of the joint Urban Environment Forum,

Realizing that similar joint activities between the Centre and the United Nations Environment Programme can contribute greatly to the concretization of the new strategic focus of the Centre,

1. Requests the Executive Director to continue and to expand cooperation between the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) and the United Nations Environment Programme, particularly in the Sustainable Cities Programme, the project on managing water for African cities and the Urban Environment Forum, and to participate in this respect, if requested to do so, in the coordination mechanisms of the United Nations system to respond to natural disasters, with a view to spearheading the advancement of collective know-how and normative guidelines;

2. Requests the Executive Director to strengthen cooperative efforts between the Centre and the United Nations Environment Programme regarding media outreach on public information and awareness-building activities;

3. Requests the Executive Director to initiate substantive collaboration between the United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (Habitat) and the United Nations Environment Programme on the preparation of global reports, such as the Global Environment Outlook, the State of the World's Cities, and the Global Report on Human Settlements, in order to enhance impact and to raise efficiency;

4. Encourages all Governments actively to support these cooperative activities;

5. Requests the Executive Director to report on progress in implementing the present resolution to the Commission at its eighteenth session.

2/    Report of the United Nations Conference on Human Settlements (Habitat II), Istanbul, 3-14 June 1996, chap. I, resolution 1, annex I (A/CONF.165/14).

3/    Ibid., annex II.

4/    A/53/463.

5/    HS/C/17/10.