103.The Council noted that since its Seventy-eighth Session, a further eight unscheduled sessions had been approved and 54 sessions had been cancelled, making a total for the biennium of 17 unscheduled sessions and 88 cancelled sessions.
104.Details of the unscheduled sessions approved and of the sessions cancelled since the Seventy-eighth Session of the Council are given in Appendix E.
105.The Council noted that three countries - India, Mexico and the Philippines - had offered to host the Ninth World Forestry Congress. All three countries had a distinguished record of progress in forestry and substantial forestry and forest industries development programmes. Moreover, all three countries had a variety of ecological and socio-economic environments that were positive elements for the success of the Congress.
106.As regards physical facilities and resources to be made available, the Council was satisfied that all prospective host countries would be able to maintain the previous standards in the organization and conduct of the Ninth Congress.
107.Some members recalled that the Delegation of Mexico at the Eighth Forestry Congress had announced the intention of its Government to extend an invitation for the Ninth Congress to be held in their country, and referred to the discussions to this effect in the Fifth Session of the Committee on Forestry.
108.While several delegations stressed the principle of "rotation" of venue of the Congress among the various geographic regions of the world as a criterion in the selection of the site for the Ninth Congress, the Council agreed that the Ministers of the prospective host countries consult among themselves during the Conference with a view to arriving at a consensus.
109.The Council requested the Director-General to invite the three Ministers concerned to consult on this matter and expressed the wish to decide the issue at its Eighty-first Session after receiving a report on the Ministers' Consultation.
110.The Council decided that its Eighty-first Session would be convened on Friday 27 November 1981.
1CL 80/7; CL 80/PV/5; CL 80/PV/6.
2CL 80/10; CL 80/PV/5; CL 80/PV/6.
3 CL 80/PV/6.
