CONFERENCE OF THE STATES PARTIES WITHIN THE MECHANISM FOR FOLLOW-UP ON IMPLEMENTATION OF THE INTER-AMERICAN CONVENTION AGAINST CORRUPTION FRAMEWORK 

The Conference is the principal organ of the Mechanism and prepares general guidelines and directions in the framework of the purposes and basic principles contained in provisions 1 and 2 of the Report of Buenos Aires. It shall have general authority to supervise the implementation of the Mechanism and to adopt the decisions it deems appropriate to achieve its objectives, according to article 2 of its Rules of Procedure. 

The Conference shall be comprised of the States Parties to the Convention that are members of the Mechanism. 

FIRST MEETING 

Washington, DC. April 1-2, 2004 

In accordance with article 5 of the “Report of Buenos Aires”, the First Meeting of the Conference of the States Parties to the Mechanism for Follow-Up on Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, was held in the OAS Headquarters, Washington, DC, on April 1-2, 2004. 

In addition to the provisions of the “Report of Buenos Aires,” another text of particular importance was the “Declaration of Nuevo Leon,” adopted at the Special Summit of the Americas held in Monterrey, Mexico, on January 13, 2004, by which the Heads of State and Government pledged themselves to increase their “cooperation within the framework of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, particularly by strengthening its follow-up mechanism” and, to this end, they charged this meeting of the Conference of the States Parties within the MESICIC framework with proposing “specific measures to strengthen” the mechanism. 

The first order of business was the approval of the Conference’s Rules of Procedure of the Conference of States Parties within the MESICIC framework, and in accordance with Article 5 of the Rules, the Conference elected the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Conference until the following meeting.

CHAIR:		BRAZIL
	His Excellency Valter Pecly Moreira, Ambassador, Permanent Representative
VICE CHAIR:		NICARAGUA
	Her Excellency Cármen Marina Gutiérrez, Ambassador, Permanent Representative

 Lastly, the Conference approved the Conclusions and Recommendations of Concrete Measures to Strengthen the MESICIC, complying with the central mandate of the Declaration of Nuevo Leon as regards this Conference of States Parties.