United Nations General Assembly A/RES/57/249 Distr.: General 20 February 2003 Fifty-seventh session Agenda item 86 (c) Resolution adopted by the General Assembly [on the report of the Second Committee (A/57/531/Add.3)] 57/249. Culture and development The General Assembly, Recalling its resolutions 41/187 of 8 December 1986, 46/158 of 19 December 1991, 51/179 of 16 December 1996, 52/197 of 18 December 1997, 53/184 of 15 December 1998 and 55/192 of 20 December 2000 on culture and development, Encouraged by the positive international response to the results of the work of the World Commission on Culture and Development and of the Intergovernmental Conference on Cultural Policies for Development organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization at Stockholm from 30 March to 2 April 1998, Recalling its resolution 56/8 of 21 November 2001, by which it proclaimed 2002 as the United Nations Year for Cultural Heritage, Recalling also its resolution 53/22 of 4 November 1998 on the United Nations Year of Dialogue among Civilizations and its resolution 56/6 of 9 November 2001 on the Global Agenda for Dialogue among Civilizations containing the Programme of Action and the objectives, principles and participants thereof, and recognizing that, in the light of recent events, the United Nations should give greater weight and visibility to the theme of dialogue among civilizations, cultures and religions, since the protection of cultural diversity is closely linked to the larger framework of the dialogue among civilizations and cultures and its ability to achieve genuine mutual understanding, solidarity and cooperation, Encouraged by the Plan of Implementation of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (“Johannesburg Plan of Implementation”), adopted on 4 September 2002, 1 and the Johannesburg Declaration on Sustainable Development, also adopted on 4 September 2002, 2 which urges the promotion of dialogue and _______________ 1 Report 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. 2 Ibid., resolution 1, annex. 02 55582