About the OAS

• Who We Are
• What We Do
• Our Structure
  • General Assembly
  • Meetings of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs
  • Councils
  • Inter-American Juridical Committee
  • Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
  • General Secretariat
    • Secretary General
    • Assistant Secretary General
    • Secretariats
    • Other Autonomous and/or Decentralized Organs, Agencies, Entities, and Dependencies
  • Specialized Conferences
  • Specialized Organizations
• Our Locations
• Contact Us
• Offices in the Member States
• Our History
• Logo
• Authorities

General Assembly

The General Assembly is the supreme organ of the Organization of American States and comprises the delegations of all the member states. The mechanisms, policies, actions, and mandates of the Organization are determined by the General Assembly, and its functions are defined in Chapter IX of the OAS Charter.  Article 56 explains that “all Member States have the right to be represented in the General Assembly.  Each State has the right to one vote.”  Article 57 notes that “the General Assembly shall convene annually during the period determined by the Rules of Procedure and at a place selected in accordance with the principle of rotation,” and Article 58 goes on to state that “in special circumstances and with the approval of two thirds of the Member States, the Permanent Council shall convoke a special session of the General Assembly.”  All member states are represented at the General Assembly and have the right to one vote.

Declarations and Resolutions

• Regular Sessions
• Special Sessions

37 Regular Session of the General Assembly
Panama, Republic of  Panama, June 2007
Energy for Sustainable Development

36 Regular Session of the General Assembly
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, June 2006
Good Governance and Development in the Knowledge-Based Society