UN General Assembly
1974

111. We all know that it was due to the developing countries that that Committee extended its discussions to cover the whole of the law of the sea, and finally agreed on the need to hold a Third Conference on the Law of the Sea at Caracas. My delegation shares the view of most African delegations which participated in the Caracas session, and believes we must abandon the traditional doctrines of the law of the sea in favor of a new concept, that of the common heritage of mankind, which implies free access by all to the riches of the sea, and an equitable distribution among all of the income obtained from the exploitation of its resources. In that connexion, Senegal supports the establishment of a new international organization to administer matters relating to the high seas, the common heritage of mankind, the resources of which would be used mainly in the fight against underdevelopment. Hundreds of millions of dollars might thus be devoted every year to that noble cause.