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OAS GENERAL ASSEMBLY APPROVES QUOTA SCALE AND NEW BUDGETARY CEILING

The General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS) approved a transitional quota scale that will determine the contributions member countries will make to the General Secretariat over the next two years. It also approved a new budgetary ceiling of $81.5 million for 2007, paving the way for a possible increase in the OAS Regular Fund for the first time in more than a decade.

The 34 countries, meeting in a special session of the General Assembly until 10:30 last night, reached a consensus agreement after two days of negotiations.

“The member states showed great flexibility and above all a clear political will to strengthen the Organization,” OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza said today. “The decisions taken by the General Assembly represent a positive starting point that will help the OAS move ahead with the mandates that it has been given in such priority areas as democracy, human rights, development and security,” he added.

The quota scale determines the percentage of the annual OAS Regular Fund that is the responsibility of each member state. Several of the countries that are required to pay a smaller percentage under the revised assessment said that they would not reduce their payments to the OAS, as an indication of their confidence in the Organization.

Many delegations praised the Chair of the special General Assembly session, Ambassador Manuel María Cáceres of Paraguay, for guiding the negotiations toward a consensus. Under the interim agreement, the countries will consider a new methodology for determining quotas, with the goal of adopting a definitive quota assessment scale at the 2007 regular session of the General Assembly.

The countries also considered the issue of a new budgetary ceiling for the Regular Fund, which has been frozen at $76.275 million since 1996. Insulza has said that the General Secretariat and other entities financed by the General Fund need an increase in funding to be able to continue operating with the current level of staffing and services, taking into account the Organization’s increased activities and new mandates.

During this meeting, its 31st special session, the General Assembly authorized the General Secretariat to present a draft budget with a higher ceiling for the consideration of the General Assembly during its next regular session, which will take place this June in the Dominican Republic.

The new budgetary ceiling that was approved represents a potential increase of more than $5 million for the Regular Fund. Of this amount, around $2.25 million could come from a 3 percent increase in member states’ contributions, with the difference derived from other sources of income.

Reference: E-016/06