57. As a result of a series of meetings, the Inter-Agency Co-ordinating Committee (IACC) for the establishment of a Regional African Satellite Communications System agreed on the organization and assignment of tasks among its members for the implementation of phase II feasibility study. 58. With a view to identifying areas of ECA/Brazil co-operation on the improvement and development of telecommunications in Africa, a preliminary study on the status, operation and maintenance of the PANAFTEL project was undertaken. 59. During the first quarter of 1985, the secretariat, in collaboration with a member of the IACC, will organize a conference of potential donors to mobilize financial resources for implementing phase II feasibility study on the establishment of a Regional African Satellite Communications System, and to work out ways of implementing some of the ECA/Brazil co­ operation recommendations resulting from the ECA/Brazil study. 60. The secretariat carried out studies on rural postal services with a view to indentifying the main obstacles to their development and on tariff harmonization. In connection with the improvement of postal services in Africa, it undertook a study (RAF/81/054) in the land-locked countries, in collaboration with the Universal Postal Union (UPU) . It also started preparations for the ninth technical consultative meeting on postal services, scheduled to take place in 1985. 9. International trade and finance 61. The secretariat focused on five broad issues: domestic and intra- African trade and co-operation; trade information and promotion; money and finance; trade with non-African countries; and activities of trans­ national corporations in Africa. (a) Domestic trade 62. Activities in 1984 were a continuation of those initiated during the previous year. The emphasis was on the identification of domestic trade distribution channels, bearing in mind the current food crisis in Africa. The preliminary study on the situation of domestic trade in Africa 
**Analysis**
The text appears to focus on the development and improvement of various sectors in Africa, particularly in the areas of trade, communication, and postal services. It also mentions the organization of conferences and meetings to discuss cooperation and implementation of projects. This suggests that the text is related to economic development, specifically in the areas of trade and communication.

**Category**
Transport and communication, Economic development