Oceans and the Law of the Sea

A/RES/58/240View PDF

Who adopted this document and its mandates?

A Resolution of the General Assembly, under agenda item 52a Oceans and the law of the sea, published in 2004.

What other versions does this mandate have?

29 versions · 1998–2025

This is an older version — the most recent is A/RES/80/110

Year	Symbol	Title	Word length	Text similarity
2025	A/RES/80/110	Oceans and the law of the sea	26,991	82%Compare
2024	A/RES/79/144	Oceans and the law of the sea	29,051	77%Compare
2023	A/RES/78/69	Oceans and the law of the sea	28,253	71%Compare
2023	A/RES/77/248	Oceans and the law of the sea	30,451	83%Compare
2021	A/RES/76/72	Oceans and the law of the sea	29,565	89%Compare

Which reports were submitted under this mandate?

44 reports · 2003–2026

Year	Symbol	Title	Mandate resolution
2026	A/81/345	Oceans and the law of the sea report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/80/110
2026	A/81/68	Oceans and the law of the sea report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/80/110A/RES/78/69
2025	A/80/364	Oceans and the law of the sea report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/79/144
2025	A/80/70	Oceans and the law of the sea report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/79/144
2024	A/79/340	Oceans and the law of the sea report of the Secretary-General	A/RES/78/69

What’s in this document?

84 operative paragraphs

I.Implementation of the Convention and related agreements and instruments

Calls upon all States that have not done so, in order to achieve the goal of universal participation, to become parties to the Convention1 and the Agreement relating to the Implementation of Part XI of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 (“the Agreement”);1

Reaffirms the unified character of the Convention;

Calls upon States that have not done so to become parties to the Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea of 10 December 1982 relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks;⁷

⁷International Fisheries Instruments with Index (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.98.V.11), sect. I; see also A/CONF.164/37.

Once again calls upon States to harmonize, as a matter of priority, their national legislation with the provisions of the Convention, to ensure the consistent application of those provisions and to ensure also that any declarations or statements that they have made or make when signing, ratifying or acceding to the Convention are in conformity therewith and, otherwise, to withdraw any of their declarations or statements that are not in conformity;

Encourages States parties to the Convention to deposit with the Secretary-General charts and lists of geographical coordinates, as provided for in the Convention;

Emphasizes the essential need to improve the implementation of international agreements referred to in article 311 of the Convention and, where appropriate, to foster the conditions for the application of instruments of a voluntary nature, and recalls the important role of international organizations in achieving these goals;

II.Meeting of States Parties

Takes note of the report of the thirteenth Meeting of States Parties to the Convention;⁸

⁸SPLOS/103 and Corr.1.

Requests the Secretary-General to convene the fourteenth Meeting of States Parties to the Convention in New York from 14 to 18 June 2004 and to provide the services required;

III.Settlement of disputes

Notes with satisfaction the continued contribution of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (“the Tribunal”) to the peaceful settlement of disputes in accordance with Part XV of the Convention, underlines the important role and authority of the Tribunal concerning the interpretation or application of the Convention and the Agreement, once again encourages States parties to the Convention that have not yet done so to consider making a written declaration choosing from the means set out in article 287 for the settlement of disputes concerning the interpretation or application of the Convention and the Agreement, and invites States parties to note the provisions of annexes V, VI, VII and VIII to the Convention concerning, respectively, conciliation, the Tribunal, arbitration and special arbitration;

Equally pays tribute to the important and long-standing role of the International Court of Justice with regard to the peaceful settlement of disputes concerning the law of the sea;

Recalls the obligation under article 296 of the Convention requiring all parties to a dispute before a court or a tribunal referred to in article 287 of the Convention to comply promptly with any decisions rendered by such court or tribunal;

Encourages States parties to the Convention that have not yet done so to nominate conciliators and arbitrators in accordance with annexes V and VII to the Convention, and requests the Secretary-General to continue to update and circulate lists of these conciliators and arbitrators on a regular basis;

IV.The Area

Notes the progress of the discussion of issues relating to the regulations for prospecting and exploration for polymetallic sulphides and cobalt-rich crusts in the Area;

Reiterates the importance of the ongoing elaboration by the International Seabed Authority (“the Authority”), pursuant to article 145 of the Convention, of rules, regulations and procedures to ensure the effective protection of the marine environment, the protection and conservation of the natural resources of the Area and the prevention of damage to its flora and fauna from harmful effects that may arise from activities in the Area;

V.Effective functioning of the Authority and the Tribunal

Appeals to all States parties to the Convention to pay their assessed contributions to the Authority and to the Tribunal in full and on time, and appeals also to all former provisional members of the Authority to pay any outstanding contributions;

Calls upon States that have not done so to consider ratifying or acceding to the Agreement on the Privileges and Immunities of the Tribunal⁹ and to the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the Authority;¹⁰

⁹SPLOS/25.

¹⁰ISBA/4/A/8, annex.

VI.The continental shelf and the work of the Commission

Encourages States parties that are in a position to do so to make every effort to make submissions regarding the establishment of the outer limits of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles to the Commission within the time period established by the Convention, taking into account the decision of the eleventh Meeting of States Parties to the Convention;¹¹

¹¹SPLOS/72.

Approves the convening by the Secretary-General of the thirteenth session of the Commission in New York from 26 to 30 April 2004, followed by two weeks of meetings of a subcommission in the event that a submission is made to the Commission, and of the fourteenth session of the Commission from 30 August to 3 September 2004, also followed by two weeks of meetings of a subcommission in the event that a submission is made;

Encourages States and relevant international organizations and institutions to consider developing and making available training courses to assist developing States in the preparation of such submissions, based on the outline for a five-day training course¹² prepared by the Commission in order to facilitate the preparation of submissions in accordance with its Scientific and Technical Guidelines;¹³

¹²CLCS/24 and Corr.1.

¹³CLCS/11 and Corr.1 and Add.1 and Corr.1.

VII.Capacity-building

Calls upon bilateral and multilateral donor agencies and international financial institutions to keep their programmes systematically under review to ensure the availability in all States, particularly in developing States, of the economic, legal, navigational, scientific and technical skills necessary for the full implementation of the Convention and the objectives of the present resolution as well as the sustainable development of the oceans and seas nationally, regionally and globally, and in so doing to bear in mind the rights of landlocked developing States;

Calls upon States and international financial institutions, including through bilateral, regional and global cooperation programmes and technical partnerships, to continue to strengthen capacity-building activities, in particular in developing countries, in the field of marine scientific research by, inter alia, training the necessary skilled personnel, providing the necessary equipment, facilities and vessels, and transferring environmentally sound technologies;

Encourages States to assist developing States, and especially least developed States and small island developing States, as well as coastal African States, on a bilateral and, where appropriate, regional level, in the preparation of submissions to the Commission, including the assessment of the nature of the continental shelf of a coastal State made in the form of a desktop study, and the mapping of the outer limits of its continental shelf;

VIII.Safety of navigation and flag State implementation

Encourages States to ratify or accede to international agreements addressing the safety of navigation and to adopt the necessary measures consistent with the Convention, aimed at implementing and enforcing the rules contained in those agreements;

Urges States and regional economic integration organizations to work within the framework of the International Maritime Organization and in accordance with the Convention and international rules and regulations regarding measures related to the phase-out of single-hull tankers, and welcomes the organization’s giving priority to the consideration of any proposals related thereto;

Welcomes the work of the International Maritime Organization in developing guidelines on places of refuge for ships in need of assistance, and encourages States to draw up plans and to establish procedures to implement those guidelines for ships in waters under their jurisdiction;

Also welcomes the adoption by the General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency at its forty-seventh session of resolution GC(47)/RES/7, concerning measures to strengthen international cooperation in nuclear, radiation and transport safety and waste management, including those aspects relating to maritime transport safety,¹⁴ in which it requested the Agency to develop an action plan, in consultation with its member States and for approval by the Board of the Agency, if possible in March 2004, based on the results of the International Conference on the Safety of Transport of Radioactive Material and within the competence of the Agency;

¹⁴See International Atomic Energy Agency, Resolutions and Other Decisions of the General Conference, Forty-seventh Regular Session, 15–19 September 2003 (GC(47)/RES/DEC(2003)).

Urges flag States without an effective maritime administration and appropriate legal frameworks to establish or enhance the necessary infrastructure, legislative and enforcement capabilities to ensure effective compliance with, and implementation and enforcement of, their responsibilities under international law and, until such action is undertaken, to consider declining the granting of the right to fly their flag to new vessels, suspending their registry or not opening a registry;

Invites the International Maritime Organization and other relevant competent international organizations to study, examine and clarify the role of the “genuine link” in relation to the duty of flag States to exercise effective control over ships flying their flag, including fishing vessels;

Requests the Secretary-General, in cooperation and consultation with relevant agencies, organizations and programmes of the United Nations system, to prepare and disseminate to States a comprehensive elaboration of the duties and obligations of flag States, including the potential consequences for non-compliance prescribed in the relevant international instruments;

Encourages the acceleration of the work of the International Maritime Organization in developing a voluntary model audit scheme, and urges the organization to strengthen its draft implementation code;

Welcomes the work of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in promoting compliance by States and their fishing vessels with conservation and management measures, and requests the International Maritime Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization to enhance their cooperation and coordination in their efforts with regard to flag State duties relating thereto, including through the Inter-Agency Consultative Group on Flag State Implementation during the period of the Group’s existence;

Also welcomes the work of the International Labour Organization to consolidate and modernize international maritime labour standards, and calls upon Member States to take an active interest in the development of these new standards for seafarers and fishers;

Recognizes the important role of port State controls in promoting the effective enforcement by flag States of, and compliance by shipowners and charterers with, flag States’ and internationally agreed safety, labour and pollution standards, as well as maritime security regulations and conservation and management measures, and further encourages Member States to improve the exchange of appropriate information between port States control authorities;

Invites the International Maritime Organization to strengthen its functions with regard to port State control in relation to safety and pollution standards as well as maritime security regulations and, in collaboration with the International Labour Organization, labour standards so as to promote the implementation of globally agreed minimum standards by all States, and invites the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to continue its work in promoting port State measures in relation to fishing vessels in order to combat illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing;

Calls upon flag and port States to take all measures consistent with international law necessary to prevent the operation of sub-standard vessels and illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities;

Urges all States, in cooperation with the International Maritime Organization, to combat piracy and armed robbery at sea by adopting measures, including those relating to assistance with capacity-building through training of seafarers, port staff and enforcement personnel in the prevention, reporting and investigation of incidents, bringing the alleged perpetrators to justice, in accordance with international law, and by adopting national legislation, as well as providing enforcement vessels and equipment and guarding against fraudulent ship registration;

Calls upon all States and relevant international bodies to cooperate in the prevention and combating of piracy and armed robbery at sea, and urges States to give urgent attention to promoting, concluding and implementing cooperation agreements, in particular at the regional level and in high-risk areas;

Urges States to become parties to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against the Safety of Maritime Navigation and its Protocol,¹⁵ invites States to participate in the review of those instruments by the Legal Committee of the International Maritime Organization to strengthen the means of combating such unlawful acts, including terrorist acts, and further urges States to take appropriate measures to ensure the effective implementation of those instruments, in particular through the adoption of legislation, where appropriate, aimed at ensuring that there is a proper framework for responses to incidents of armed robbery and terrorist acts at sea;

¹⁵International Maritime Organization publication, Sales No. 462.88.12E.

Calls upon States to work together cooperatively and with the International Maritime Organization to strengthen measures to prevent the embarkation of ships involved in the smuggling of migrants;

Once again urges States that have not yet done so to become parties to the Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime,¹⁶ and to take appropriate measures to ensure its effective implementation;

¹⁶Resolution 55/25, annex III.

Welcomes the work of the International Maritime Organization in developing amendments to the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea and to the International Convention on Maritime Search and Rescue on the delivery of persons rescued at sea to a place of safety;

IX.Capacity-building for the production of nautical charts

Welcomes the work of the International Hydrographic Organization and its fourteen regional hydrographic commissions and encourages increased membership of the organization, noting the capacity of the organization to provide technical assistance, facilitate training and identify potential funding sources for the development or improvement of hydrographic services, and calls upon States and agencies to support the trust fund of the organization and examine the possibility of partnerships with the private sector;

Invites the International Hydrographic Organization and the International Maritime Organization to continue their coordinated efforts, to jointly adopt measures with a view to encouraging greater international cooperation and coordination for the transition to electronic nautical charts and to increase the coverage of hydrographic information on a global basis, especially in the areas of international navigation and ports and where there are vulnerable or protected marine areas;

Encourages intensified efforts to build capacity for developing countries, in particular for the least developed countries and small island developing States, as well as coastal African States, to improve hydrographic services and the production of nautical charts, including the mobilization of resources and building of capacity with support from international financial institutions and the donor community, recognizing that economies of scale can apply in some instances at the regional level through shared facilities, technical capabilities and information for the provision of hydrographic services and the preparation of and access to nautical charts;

Welcomes the adoption of criteria and guidelines on the transfer of marine technology by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission;¹⁷

¹⁷See IOC-XXII/2 Annex 12 rev.

X.Marine environment, marine resources and the protection of vulnerable marine ecosystems

Emphasizes once again the importance of the implementation of Part XII of the Convention in order to protect and preserve the marine environment and its living marine resources against pollution and physical degradation, and calls upon all States to cooperate and take measures, directly or through competent international organizations, for the protection and preservation of the marine environment;

Calls upon States to continue to prioritize action on marine pollution from land-based sources as part of their national sustainable development strategies and programmes, in an integrated and inclusive manner, as a means of implementing the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities;¹⁸

¹⁸A/51/116, annex II.

Welcomes the continued work of States, the United Nations Environment Programme and regional organizations in the implementation of the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities, and encourages increased emphasis on the link between freshwater, the coastal zone and marine resources in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals, taking into account the time-bound targets in the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (“Johannesburg Plan of Implementation”),¹⁹ in particular the target on sanitation, and the Monterrey Consensus of the International Conference on Financing for Development;²⁰

¹⁹Report of the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg, South Africa, 26 August–4 September 2002 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.03.II.A.1 and corrigendum), chap. I, resolution 2, annex.

²⁰Report of the International Conference on Financing for Development, Monterrey, Mexico, 18–22 March 2002 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.02.II.A.7), chap. I, resolution 1, annex.

Calls upon States to advance the implementation of the Global Programme of Action for the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities and the Montreal Declaration on the Protection of the Marine Environment from Land-based Activities,²¹ to enhance maritime safety and the protection of the marine environment from pollution and other physical impacts, and to improve the scientific understanding and assessment of marine and coastal ecosystems as a fundamental basis for sound decision-making through the actions identified in the Johannesburg Plan of Implementation;

²¹E/CN.17/2002/PC.2/15, annex, sect. 1.

Welcomes the work of the Convention on Biological Diversity,²² the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and other relevant global and regional organizations in the development of strategies and programmes for the implementation of an integrated ecosystem-based approach to management, and urges those organizations to cooperate in the development of practical guidance in this regard;

²²United Nations, Treaty Series, vol. 1760, No. 30619.

Reiterates its call for urgent consideration of ways to integrate and improve, on a scientific basis, the management of risks to the marine biodiversity of seamounts, cold water coral reefs and certain other underwater features;

Invites the relevant global and regional bodies, in accordance with their mandates, to investigate urgently how to better address, on a scientific basis, including the application of precaution, the threats and risks to vulnerable and threatened marine ecosystems and biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction; how existing treaties and other relevant instruments can be used in this process consistent with international law, in particular with the Convention, and with the principles of an integrated ecosystem-based approach to management, including the identification of those marine ecosystem types that warrant priority attention; and to explore a range of potential approaches and tools for their protection and management; and requests the Secretary-General to cooperate and liaise with those bodies and to submit an addendum to his annual report to the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session, describing the threats and risks to such marine ecosystems and biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction as well as details on any conservation and management measures in place at the global, regional, subregional or national levels addressing these issues;

Notes the scientific and technical work under the Convention on Biological Diversity relating to marine and coastal biodiversity;

Reaffirms the efforts of States to develop and facilitate the use of diverse approaches and tools for conserving and managing vulnerable marine ecosystems, including the establishment of marine protected areas, consistent with international law and based on the best scientific information available, and the development of representative networks of such marine protected areas by 2012;

Encourages States, in accordance with the Convention and other relevant instruments, either bilaterally or regionally, to jointly develop and promote contingency plans for responding to pollution incidents, as well as other incidents that are likely to have significant adverse effects on marine biodiversity;

Urges States and relevant global and regional bodies to enhance their cooperation in the protection and preservation of coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass beds, including through the exchange of information;

Reiterates its support for the International Coral Reef Initiative and welcomes the outcomes of the Second International Tropical Marine Ecosystems Management Symposium, held in Manila in 2003, supports the work under the Jakarta Mandate on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine and Coastal Biological Diversity,²³ and notes that the International Coral Reef Initiative and other relevant bodies are considering incorporating cold water coral ecosystems into their programmes of activities;

²³See A/51/312, annex II, decision II/10.

Encourages States to cooperate, directly or through competent international bodies, in exchanging information in the event of accidents involving foreign vessels on coral reefs, and in promoting the development of economic assessment techniques for both restoration and non-use values of coral reef systems;

Emphasizes the need to mainstream coral reef management approaches into national development strategies, as well as into the activities of relevant United Nations agencies and programmes, international financial institutions and the donor community;

Welcomes the convening by the International Maritime Organization of a diplomatic conference to adopt an international convention for the control and management of ships’ ballast waters and sediments;

Notes with interest the ongoing discussions in the Marine Environment Protection Committee of the International Maritime Organization on the designation of the Western European Atlantic coast and the English Channel as a particularly sensitive sea area, and encourages the organization to consider the eventual adoption of the proposed associated protective measure as long as it is consistent with the Convention;

XI.Regional cooperation

Emphasizes once again the importance of regional organizations and arrangements for cooperation and coordination in integrated oceans management, and, where there are separate regional structures for different aspects of oceans management, such as environmental protection, fisheries management, navigation, scientific research and maritime delimitation, calls for those different structures, where appropriate, to work together for optimal cooperation and coordination;

Notes that there have been a number of initiatives at the regional level, in various regions, to further the implementation of the Convention, and in this context notes the results of the Second Plenary Meeting of the Conference on Maritime Delimitation in the Caribbean, held in Mexico City on 13 and 14 October 2003, as well as of the functioning of its Caribbean-focused Assistance Fund, which is intended to facilitate, mainly through technical assistance, the voluntary undertaking of maritime delimitation negotiations between Caribbean States, takes note once again of the Fund for Peace: Peaceful Settlement of Territorial Disputes established by the General Assembly of the Organization of American States in 2000 as a primary mechanism, given its broader regional scope, for the prevention and resolution of pending territorial, land border and maritime boundary disputes, and calls upon States and others in a position to do so to contribute to these Funds;

XII.Regular process for global reporting and assessment of the state of the marine environment, including socio-economic aspects

Welcomes the report of the Secretary-General containing proposals on modalities for the establishment of a regular process under the United Nations for global reporting and assessment of the state of the marine environment, including socio-economic aspects,²⁴ and requests the Secretary-General, in close collaboration with Member States, relevant organizations and agencies and programmes of the United Nations system, other competent intergovernmental organizations and relevant non-governmental organizations, to take the following steps to establish the regular process by 2004:

²⁴A/58/423.

Convene a group of experts of no more than twenty-four participants, comprising representatives of States, including all regional groups, and representatives from intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations, including scientists and policy makers, to produce, including by possibly hiring a consultant, a draft document with details on the scope, general framework and outline of the regular process, peer review, secretariat, capacity-building and funding, and to consider, review and refine the draft document;

Transmit the draft document to States and relevant intergovernmental organizations, non-governmental organizations, scientific associations, funding mechanisms and other parties for written comments and for indication of specific issues to be addressed in the first assessment;

Request the group of experts to revise the draft document in the light of comments made;

Convene an international workshop with representatives from all interested parties, in conjunction with the fifth meeting of the Consultative Process, to further consider and review the draft document;

Convene an intergovernmental meeting to finalize and adopt the document and to formally establish the regular process;

Accepts the offer of the Government of Iceland to host this intergovernmental meeting in Reykjavik in 2004, in accordance with paragraph 17 of resolution 47/202 A of 22 December 1992;

Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session on the development of the regular process;

XIII.Open-ended informal consultative process on oceans and the law of the sea

Requests the Secretary-General to convene the fifth meeting of the Consultative Process in New York from 7 to 11 June 2004, and to provide it with the necessary facilities for the performance of its work and to arrange for support to be provided by the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, in cooperation with other relevant parts of the Secretariat, including the Division for Sustainable Development of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, as appropriate;

Recommends that, in its deliberations on the report of the Secretary-General on oceans and the law of the sea at its meeting, the Consultative Process should organize its discussions around the following areas:

New sustainable uses of the oceans, including the conservation and management of the biological diversity of the seabed in areas beyond national jurisdiction;

as well as issues discussed at previous meetings;

XIV.Inter-agency coordination and cooperation

Reiterates its request to the Secretary-General to establish an effective, transparent and regular inter-agency coordinating mechanism for issues relating to oceans and seas within the United Nations system, taking into account paragraph 49 of Part A of the report of the Consultative Process at its third meeting;²⁵

²⁵See A/57/80.

Requests the Secretary-General to bring the present resolution to the attention of heads of intergovernmental organizations, the specialized agencies and funds and programmes of the United Nations engaged in activities relating to ocean affairs and the law of the sea, drawing their attention to paragraphs of particular relevance to them, and underlines the importance of their constructive and timely input for the report of the Secretary-General on oceans and the law of the sea and of their participation in relevant meetings and processes;

Invites the competent international organizations, as well as funding institutions, to take specific account of the present resolution in their programmes and activities and to contribute to the preparation of the comprehensive report of the Secretary-General on oceans and the law of the sea;

XV.Activities of the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea

Expresses its appreciation to the Secretary-General for the annual comprehensive report on oceans and the law of the sea,4 prepared by the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, as well as for the other activities of the Division, in accordance with the provisions of the Convention and the mandate set forth in resolutions 49/28, 52/26, 54/33, and 56/12 of 28 November 2001;

Requests the Secretary-General to continue to carry out the responsibilities entrusted to him in the Convention and related resolutions of the General Assembly, including resolutions 49/28 and 52/26, and to ensure that appropriate resources are made available to the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea for the performance of such responsibilities under the approved budget for the Organization;

Invites Member States and others in a position to do so to support the training activities under the TRAIN-SEA-COAST Programme of the Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea;

XVI.Trust funds and fellowships

Recognizes the importance of assisting developing countries, in particular the least developed countries and small island developing States, in implementing the Convention, and urges States, intergovernmental organizations and agencies, national institutions, non-governmental organizations and international financial institutions, as well as natural and juridical persons, to make voluntary financial or other contributions to the trust funds, as referred to in resolution 57/141, established for this purpose;

Also recognizes the importance of the Trust Fund for preparation of submissions to the Commission in assisting developing States, in particular the least developed countries and small island developing States, in preparing their submissions where their continental shelves extend beyond 200 nautical miles and, in order to facilitate the management of the Trust Fund, amends, as set out in the annex to the present resolution, sections 1, 4 and 6 of the terms of reference, guidelines and rules of the Trust Fund, as contained in annex II to resolution 55/7 of 30 October 2000, in accordance with paragraph 31 of the annex;

Urges Member States and others in a position to do so to contribute to the further development of the Hamilton Shirley Amerasinghe Memorial Fellowship Programme on the Law of the Sea established by the General Assembly in its resolution 35/116 of 10 December 1980;

XVII.Fifty-ninth session of the General Assembly

Requests the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its fifty-ninth session on the implementation of the present resolution, including other developments and issues relating to ocean affairs and the law of the sea, in connection with his annual comprehensive report on oceans and the law of the sea, and to provide the report in accordance with the modalities set out in resolutions 49/28, 52/26 and 54/33, and also requests the Secretary-General to make the report available, in its current comprehensive format, at least six weeks in advance of the meeting of the Consultative Process;

Decides to include in the provisional agenda of its fifty-ninth session the item entitled “Oceans and the law of the sea”.

Annex I

Amendments to the terms of reference, guidelines and rules of the Trust Fund for the purpose of facilitating the preparation of submissions to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf for developing States, in particular the least developed countries and small island developing States, and compliance with article 76 of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea

Reasons for establishing the Trust Fund

In paragraph 2, amend the last sentence to read:

“The earliest deadline for submission for States is 13 May 2009.”

Application for financial assistance

In paragraph 17, amend sub-item (a) (iv) to read:

“(iv) The curriculum vitae of the trainees, including their date of birth;”

Granting of assistance

Amend paragraph 23 to read:

“23. The Secretary-General will provide financial assistance from the Fund for requests approved on the basis of the evaluation and recommendation of the Division on the advice of the Panel of Experts. Payments will be processed by the Organization in accordance with standard practices.”