CP/RES. 816 (1319/02)

THE OAS RESTRUCTURING AND MODERNIZATION PROCESS

THE PERMANENT COUNCIL OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES,

HAVING SEEN the Secretary General's document entitled "Report and Recommendations: Restructuring the Organization of American States to Address the Challenges of the Summit Process in Response to Resolutions AG/RES. 1812, 1824, 1836, and 1839 (XXXI-O/01)" (CP/doc.3537/01, December 5, 2001, "the Secretary General's Report and Recommendations"), together with the comments and proposals of several member states in relation to that document; and

CONSIDERING:

That modernization and reform has become a permanent process within the Organization for strengthening its capacity to respond efficiently and effectively to changing mandates and needs;

That the Permanent Council, at its meeting of November 22, 2000, adopted resolution CP/RES. 779 (1256/00), "Restructuring the Inter-American System in the Context of the Summits of the Americas";

That in the Plan of Action of the Third Summit of the Americas in Quebec City, the heads of state and government recognized "the central role of the OAS in supporting the Summit of the Americas process" and instructed the ministers of foreign affairs "to strengthen and reform, where appropriate, the institutional mechanisms and financial capacity of the General Secretariat of the Organization to support the Summit of the Americas process, as technical secretariat, and to provide support to ministerial and sectoral meetings relevant to the OAS;"

That, in response to the Plan of Action, the General Assembly, at its thirty-first regular session, held in San Jose, Costa Rica, adopted resolution AG/RES. 1836 (XXXI-O/01), "Modernization of the OAS and Renewal of the Inter-American System," which instructed the General Secretariat to prepare "a draft proposal for the restructuring and modernization of the OAS" and instructed the Permanent Council, through the Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Affairs and the Special Committee on Inter-American Summits Management, to make recommendations on the proposal to the General Assembly;

That, in response to AG/RES. 1836 (XXXI-O/01), the Secretary General presented his Report and Recommendations to the Permanent Council on December 10, 2001 (CP/doc.3537/01);

That, for the purpose of analyzing the Secretary General's Report and Recommendations, together with additional proposals for reform and modernization presented by the member states, the Permanent Council formed the Joint Working Group on Restructuring and Modernization of the OAS ("Joint Working Group"); and

That the Joint Working Group, after analyzing the Secretary General's Report and Recommendations and the comments and proposals submitted by the member states, recommended that the Permanent Council take a series of decisions to advance the modernization and reform process,

RESOLVES:

1.     To facilitate the work of the Chair of the Permanent Council by amending paragraph 4 of Article 8 of its Rules of Procedure as follows:

Article 8: The chair of the Permanent Council: …

4. May consult the members of the Council to prepare the work for forthcoming meetings. For that purpose, the chair may also consult with the secretary general, the assistant secretary general, the vice chair, and the next chair of the Permanent Council, together with the coordinators of the countries of the subregional groups, as well as with the chairs of the permanent committees.

2.     To recognize the efforts of the newly constituted Working Group on Public Information Policy to identify, inter alia, pragmatic and achievable recommendations for improving the international image of the Organization and its public recognition principally within its member states.

3.     To forward to the Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CIDI) for the corresponding action Appendix E to the Secretary General's Report and Recommendations, "Recommended Modifications to the CIDI Statute and Rules with a view to Facilitating the Holding of and the Preparatory Work of CIDI Ministerials within the Summit Process," in order to improve procedures for holding ministerial meetings convened in the CIDI framework.

4.     To recommend that the General Assembly instruct the General Secretariat to prepare a proposal for providing more appropriate facilities for conferences and meetings at headquarters, to include, but not be limited to, the plans for renovating the Main Building developed in 1995. The proposal should also include plans for teleconference facilities and other improvements with a view to creating modern conference facilities that not only satisfy the immediate needs of the Organization but also enhance the viability of the headquarters as a conference center.

5.     To recommend that the General Assembly establish a formal linkage between the Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG) and the OAS by making appropriate arrangements with the SIRG to ensure that the SIRG, at the ministerial level, meets at least once a year at the same time and place as the General Assembly.

6.     To recommend to the General Assembly that it instruct the Permanent Council, in light of the significant portion of the Regular Fund budget allocated each year to the Inter-American Defense Board (IADB), to examine the relationship between the OAS and the IADB and make recommendations to the General Assembly and the IADB for modifying the IADB's structure and basic instruments to the extent necessary to clarify and obtain consensus on its status with respect to the OAS, including the principle of civilian oversight and the democratic formation of its authorities. This is a multidimensional exercise likely to require specialized input from several of the Permanent Council's standing committees, including the Committee on Hemispheric Security, the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs, and the Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Affairs, with a view to presenting the topic to the Special Conference on Hemispheric Security.

7.     To express satisfaction with the Secretary General's proposal to implement the following Executive Orders, set out in his Report and Recommendations, and to urge the Secretary General to implement them immediately, taking into account the specific comments received from the member states and those set forth below:

        a.     Draft Executive Order No. 01-06, "Establishment of the Secretariat for the Summit Process," set out in Appendix C of CP/doc.3537/01;

        b.     Draft Executive Order No. 01-07, "Services Provided by the General Secretariat to the Ministerial Meetings Related to the Summits of the Americas Process," set out in Appendix D to CP/doc.3537/01;

        c.     Draft Executive Order No. 01-08, "Institutionalization and Coordination of Secretariat Services for International Conflict resolution Activities, CICTE, and Other Security-Related Matters," Appendix F to CP/doc.3537/01, provided, however, that parts 1(c) and 4, regarding the creation of a CICTE Secretariat, are eliminated. This does not mean that the Secretary General may not issue a subsequent executive order creating a separate CICTE Secretariat; however, the creation of a CICTE Secretariat, if it is to go forward, should be postponed pending a revision and adjustment of the corresponding provisions in the Draft Executive Order, taking into account: (i) the recommendations made by CICTE at its January meeting (which took place after this proposal was presented); and (ii) concerns raised by several member states that the creation of a CICTE Secretariat at this time should not require additional resources from the Regular Fund and should not otherwise prejudice Regular Fund support of other currently approved programs;

        d.     Draft Executive Order No. 01-09, "Creation of the Coordinating Committee for Technical Cooperation Activities in Conformity with the Strategic Plan for Partnership for Development," set out in Appendix G to CP/doc.3537/01.

8.     To transmit this resolution to the Permanent Council for consideration as part of its report to the General Assembly on the modernization process, together with the attached draft resolution for implementation of the recommendations set out in the foregoing paragraphs.