The South Seas Commission Conference, held in Canberra Australia in 1947, established the South Pacific Commission. The first sessions of the South Pacific Commission were held in 1948. The first Research Council meeting was held in 1949 and the first South Pacific Conference in 1950. Between 1947 and 1987, 27 South Pacific Conferences, 13 Research Council, 36 Sessions and sundry progress, evaluation and administrative meetings were held, resulting in over 3400 documents. Printed and published versions of the summaries, i.e. proceedings, of these conferences, etc. have been widely distributed. PMB microfilmed the background documents originally restricted to government delegations. They cover a wide range of activities, and include both the SPC Secretariat's and Island governments' evaluations of projects. They also include papers on socio-economic conditions in Island countries, and proposed projects submitted by the Secretariat or by member governments, as well as examinations by member governments of the Secretariat's administrative and financial policies and infrastructure. A French version (PMB Doc 400F) exists but is defective and has not been distributed. Copies of the inventory to the French version are on file in the Bureau. For further descriptions of the English version see <I>Pambu</I> 3(1) 1988.

For microfilming each document and its attachments was assigned an individual serial number beginning with the first document. The individual serial number also appears on the index worksheet prepared for each document. Each volume (= set of documents for a particular meeting) was filed, in order of date, with the other volumes for a particular year i.e. documents 0001-0010 for 1947, 0011-0073 for 1948 etc. A detailed contents list (year: document numbers: corresponding volume title: reel no.) appears in the preliminaries of Reel 1. The following contents list shows: the reel number: years covered: first and last document number: abbreviated title:<BR>R 1: 1947-48, Docs 0001-0266, South Seas Commission: SPCommission Sessions (1-4): Working Committees Res. Council (1)<BR>R 2: 1949-50, Docs 0267-0272, Prog. Reports<BR>R 3: 1950, Docs 0275-0513, SPC (1): Sess (5): Res. Cnc. (3)<BR>R 4: 1951-52, Docs 0514-0676, Sess (7-10): Res. Cnc. (3-4)<BR>R 5: 1953-56, Docs 0677 - 1150, SPC (2-3): Sess (11-16): Res. Cnc. (6-7)<BR>R 6: 1957-58, Docs 1152-1420, Review: Res. Cnc.. (8-9): Sess (17-18)<BR>R 7: 1959-60, Docs 1421-1647, SPC (4): Sess (19-21): Res. Cnc. (10-11)<BR>R 8: 1961-62, Docs 1648-1801, Res. Cnc. (12): Sess (22-24): SPC (5)<BR>R 9: 1963-65, Docs 1802-1946, Res. Cnc. (13): Sess (25-28): SPC (6)<BR>R 10: 1966-69, Docs 1947-2057, Sess (29-31): SPC (7-9)<BR>R 11: 1969-72, Docs 2058-2206, Sess (33-35): SPC (10-12)<BR>R 12: 1972-74, Docs 2207-2435, Sess (35-36): SPC (13-14): Plan. Cmt. (4)<BR>R 13: 1975, Docs 2436-2503, Plan. Cmt. (5): Cmt. Rep.: SPC (15)<BR>R 14: 1976-77, Docs 2504-2668, Rev. Cmt.: P&E (6-7): Cmt. Rep.: SPC (17)<BR>R 15: 1978-79, Docs 2669-2817, P&E (8-9): Cmt. Rep.: SPC (18-19)<BR>R 16: 1980-81, Docs 2818-2904, Cmt. Rep.: P&E (10-11): SPC (20)<BR>R 17: 1981, Docs 2905-2977, P&E (11): Cmt. Rep.: SPC (21)<BR>R 18: 1982-84, Docs 2978-3174, Cmt. Rep.: P&E (12): SPC (22-23): S.G. Rev.: CRGA (1)<BR>R 19: 1984-86, Docs 3175-3343, CRGA (2-6): SPC (24-26)<BR>R 20: 1987, Docs 3344-3404, CRGA (7-8): SPC (?