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OAS and RAMSAR Sign Memorandum of Cooperation

  February 17, 2010

The Organization of American States (OAS), through its General Secretariat, today signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with the Secretariat of the Convention on Wetlands (RAMSAR) committing the two organizations to pursue joint activities that would advance their mutual interests.

The document was signed by Cletus Springer, Director of the OAS Department of Sustainable Development, on behalf of OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza, and Anada Tiega, Secretary General of the Convention. The two parties reiterated that the MOC made sense because their respective institutions share similar conservation and management goals and have enjoyed positive cooperation in the past at an informal level. The ceremony was held at OAS headquarters in Washington, D.C.

Joint activities to be undertaken under the MOC include: sharing data, knowledge and information relevant to biodiversity conservation of wetlands and sustainable management within the Americas, and the development and execution of joint projects related to the parties’ respective strategic plans and mandates.

The two parties also have agreed to make the signed document a “living agreement,” and to this end will convert it into a six-year Action Plan with clear milestones.

To learn more about the work of the OAS Department of Sustainable Development, please visit the OAS website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-042/10