Committee on Conferences

The Committee on Conferences was established on an experimental basis by the General Assembly in its resolution 2239 (XXI) of 20 December 1966 and re-established in resolution 3351 (XXIX) of 18 December 1974. On 21 December 1988, in its resolution 43/222, the General Assembly decided to retain the Committee as a permanent subsidiary organ. The Committee reports to the General Assembly through the Administrative and Budgetary Committee (Fifth Committee) and serves as an oversight body of the Department for General Assembly and Conference Management.

Work of the Committee

In addition to the standard items on its agenda, the Committee has regularly considered new developments and innovations as well as challenges relating to conference management that the Department for General Assembly and Conference Management may have brought to the Committee's attention in the annual report of the Secretary-General on the pattern of conferences. These include issues related to:

The calendar of conferences and meetings
The utilization of conference-servicing resources and facilities at New York, Geneva, Vienna and Nairobi, including statistical data on the provision of conference services
Documentation and publication-related matters
Translation and interpretation-related matters
The potential for harnessing information technology
Enhancing integrated global management