AG/RES. 1678 (XXIX-O/99)

MECHANISMS FOR IMPLEMENTING THE INTER-AMERICAN DIALOGUE ON PARTNERSHIP FOR DEVELOPMENT

(Resolution adopted at the first plenary session, held on June 7, 1999)

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

HAVING SEEN:

The Strategic Plan for Partnership for Development 1997-2001, which establishes the role of the Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CIDI) as a forum for inter-American dialogue, promoter of cooperation activities, and mechanism to facilitate the exchange of information, experience, and knowledge;

The Statutes of the Inter-American Council for Integral Development, which, in Article 15, authorize CIDI to establish such special committees as it deems necessary, and which, in Article 16, authorize CIDI to create other subsidiary bodies and agencies to address specialized topics;

Resolution AG/RES. 1524 (XXVII-O/97), "Strengthening Partnership for Development Activities within the Framework of the Inter-American Council for Integral Development," which urges the member states to promote the use of CIDI mechanisms, particularly its regular and specialized ministerial meetings, to follow up on the decisions adopted at the Summits of the Americas, in accordance with the priorities established in the Strategic Plan, as well as to propose and carry out initiatives for implementing those decisions;

Resolution AG/RES. 1574 (XXVIII-O/98), "Specialized Conferences," which instructs the Inter-American Travel Congress and the Inter-American Conference of Ministers of Labor to hold their meetings at the ministerial level within the framework of the sectoral meetings of CIDI;

The Declaration of Santiago and Plan of Action of the Second Summit of the Americas;

Resolution CIDI/RES. 50 (III-O/98), "CIDI and the Summits of the Americas," which recommends to the sectoral authorities of the member states that they use CIDI mechanisms, particularly its sectoral and specialized ministerial meetings, as appropriate, to assist the member states in implementing the decisions of the Summits of the Americas; and

Resolution CIDI/RES. 55 (IV-O/99), entitled "Mechanisms for Implementing the Inter-American Dialogue on Partnership for Development";

BEARING IN MIND:

That CIDI has resolved to promote increased participation by sectoral, political, and technical authorities of the member states, as well as by their specialized institutions, in the specialized and sectoral meetings of CIDI; the mobilization of additional financial resources for cooperation; the implementation of an information network; and support for human resource training and instruction, among other activities;

That, pursuant to resolution AG/RES. 1574 (XXVIII-O/98), the Inter-American Travel Congress and the Inter-American Conference of Ministers of Labor are to hold their ministerial meetings within the framework of the sectoral meetings of CIDI, in keeping with the priority of sustainable development of tourism and the priority of social development and creation of productive employment, respectively, of the Strategic Plan for Partnership for Development 1997-2001;

That the General Assembly, through resolution AG/RES. 1440 (XXVI-O/96), established the Inter-American Committee on Sustainable Development as a subsidiary body of CIDI;

That CIDI, through its Permanent Executive Committee (CEPCIDI), established the Social Development Committee (CDS), pursuant to resolution AG/RES. 1424 (XXVI-O/96);

That the Special Committee on Trade (SCT) was placed within the framework of CIDI as a special committee, pursuant to Article 34 of the CIDI Statutes and AG/RES. 1438 (XXVI-O/96);

That CEPCIDI, after complying with the instructions provided in AG/RES. 1573 (XXVIII-O/98), authorized the establishment of a Special Inter-American Committee on Ports, through resolution CEPCIDI/RES. 41 (XLIX-O/98); and

That CIDI created the Inter-American Science and Technology Committee, and that the General Assembly, through AG/RES. 1576 (XXVIII-O/98), approved its establishment;

RECALLING:

That CIDI has empowered CEPCIDI to identify and implement, within its areas of competence, specific partnership for development projects that concretely express the will of the Heads of State and Government and of the CIDI sectoral meetings to take collective action;

That the Executive Secretariat for Integral Development seeks to maximize the support of governments, international financial and cooperation agencies, and the private sector and thereby strengthen inter-American dialogue in the area of partnership for development;

That at the Second Summit of the Americas, held in Santiago, Chile, in April 1998, the Heads of State and Government of the member states instructed the OAS to foster, coordinate, and facilitate cooperation and collective action in the Hemisphere, through the ministerial meetings and other mechanisms being developed by member states within the CIDI framework, and, to that end, to convene, in consultation with the coordinating countries, forums for technical consultation among countries of the Hemisphere to further the implementation of the commitments set forth in Chapter I, "Education: The Key to Progress," of the Plan of Action of Santiago; and

That the follow-up to the Summits of the Americas, in the case of certain mandates that call for sectoral ministerial meetings, requires that such meetings, where appropriate, be held within the CIDI/OAS framework; and

CONSIDERING the advisability of systematically organizing the mechanisms for inter-American dialogue at the sectoral level in the CIDI framework, with a view to efficient partnership for development and maximal use of the human and financial resources of the Organization and the member states,

RESOLVES:

1. To invite the member states, through their sectoral authorities, to use the Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CIDI) mechanisms for inter-American dialogue, in each of the priority areas identified in the Strategic Plan for Partnership for Development 1997-2001.

2. To urge sectoral authorities in member states, where they have not already done so, to adopt the mechanisms of the inter-American dialogue existing in the CIDI framework, particularly specialized or sectoral meetings at the ministerial level or its equivalent, or inter-American committees, with the capacity to propose modifications necessary for their functioning within CIDI.

3. To renew its instruction to the labor and travel authorities, issued in resolution AG/RES. 1574 (XXIX-O/98), to hold their ministerial-level meetings within the framework of the sectoral meetings of CIDI; and to urge them to present to CIDI, through CEPCIDI, the necessary amendments to their regulations so as to adapt their ministerial-level meetings to the existing mechanisms of the CIDI framework, in keeping with the priority of social development and creation of productive employment and the priority of sustainable development of tourism, respectively, of the Strategic Plan for Partnership for Development 1997-2001;

4. To amend the Statutes of CIDI as follows:

Article 5. Bodies of CIDI

CIDI shall have the following subsidiary bodies:

a. The Permanent Executive Committee of the Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CEPCIDI);
b. Nonpermanent specialized committees;
c. Inter-American committees; and
d. Other subsidiary bodies and the agencies established by the Council.

Article 15. Inter-American Committees of CIDI

CIDI may establish, with the approval of two thirds of the member states, inter-American committees related to the priority areas of the Strategic Plan. CIDI shall define in each case the nature, purpose, structure, and operation of the committees that it establishes.

Article 16. Purpose of the Inter-American Committees

The purpose of the inter-American committees shall be to lend continuity to the sectoral dialogue on partnership for development in a given sector, follow up on the mandates issued at the ministerial level, and identify multilateral cooperation initiatives.

Article 17. Composition of the Inter-American Committees

The inter-American committees shall comprise sectoral authorities at the policy-making and technical levels, accredited by the government of each member state.

Article 18. Functions of the Inter-American Committees

In their areas of competence, the inter-American committees shall have the following functions, among others, as appropriate:

a. Propose and promote partnership for development policies;

b. Support the preparation and follow-up of specialized or sectoral meetings at the ministerial or equivalent level;

c. Contribute to the preparation and implementation of inter-American partnership for development programs;

d. Formulate guidelines for drafting and presenting proposals for partnership for development projects and activities, in keeping with the Strategic Plan for Partnership for Development, the Statutes of the Special Multilateral Fund of the Inter-American Council for Integral Development, the inter-American program concerned, and other pertinent documents;

e. Define and implement strategies for attracting and mobilizing additional resources to finance partnership for development programs, projects, and activities;

f. Carry out other functions that are consistent with their objectives, as well as those assigned to them by the General Assembly or CIDI, or requested by CEPCIDI.

Article 16 shall become article 19, and so on.

5. To transmit this resolution to the trade authorities who, pursuant to CIDI/RES. 45 (III-O/98) and AG/RES. 1581 (XXVIII-O/98), have been asked for their opinions regarding the future role of the Special Committee on Trade, so that they may take it into account in making their recommendations and may decide on the advisability of amending Article 34 of the CIDI Statutes.

6. To change the names of the following subsidiary bodies of CIDI: "Social Development Committee" to "Inter-American Committee on Social Development"; "Special Inter-American Committee on Ports" to "Inter-American Committee on Ports"; and, depending on the recommendations of the trade authorities, "Special Committee on Trade" to "Inter-American Committee on Trade."

7. To instruct the Permanent Council and CIDI to implement the mechanisms referred to in this resolution, within the resources available in the program-budget of the Organization, following the guidelines set forth below:

a. The annual contribution from the program-budget of the OAS for the ministerial meetings and the meetings of the inter-American committees shall alternate among sectors. In the year in which the Organization does not allocate resources to a specific sector, the authorities of that sector shall procure external sources of funding or use their own resources.

b. The General Secretariat shall provide the support services approved in the program-budget for a given sector, on the understanding that the General Secretariat personnel services for each sector would be limited by the ceiling on the number of posts financed by the program-budget each year. If other secretariat services are needed, they shall be financed by other resources, from specific funds or other funds of the sectoral authorities, or from external sources, in accordance with the General Standards to Govern the Operations of the General Secretariat and other applicable instruments.

8. CIDI shall ensure that the authorities of each sector enjoy the greatest possible degree of technical autonomy, in accordance with the provisions of the OAS Charter and other applicable instruments.