At its 48th plenary meeting, on 24 July 2003, in view of the continuing important contributions made by standardized geographical names, toponymic data files and gazetteers to the work of decision makers, cartographers, linguists, planners and the public at large, as well as the essential contribution that the United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names and the United Nations Conferences on the Standardization of Geographical Names continued to make to the work of Member States in the field of geographical information and related cartographic areas, the Economic and Social Council:
