AG/RES. 1965 (XXXIII-O/03)

SUPPORT FOR AND FOLLOW-UP TO THE SUMMITS OF THE AMERICAS PROCESS 

(Resolution adopted at the fourth plenary session, held on June 10, 2003) 

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY, 

HAVING SEEN the Annual Report of the Permanent Council to the General Assembly (AG/doc.4156/03 add. 6), on the activities of the Committee on Inter-American Summits Management and Civil Society Participation in OAS activities in 2002-2003, presented pursuant to resolution AG/RES. 1847 (XXXII-O/02); 

RECALLING that, in resolution AG/RES. 1349 (XXV-O/95), the General Assembly established a Special Committee of the Permanent Council on Inter-American Summits Management, open to all member states, to ensure effective, timely, and appropriate follow-up to the activities assigned to the Organization by the Summit of the Americas and to coordinate OAS preparation, participation, and follow-up with regard to future Summits, and that, in subsequent resolutions, it instructed the Special Committee to present to the General Assembly at its regular sessions, through the Permanent Council, a written report on its activities; 

RECALLING ALSO that, at its meeting of July 31, 2002, the Permanent Council decided to merge the Special Committee on Inter-American Summits Management and the Committee on Civil Society Participation in OAS Activities, which then became the Committee on Inter-American Summits Management and Civil Society Participation in OAS Activities (CISC); 

TAKING NOTE of the commitments set forth in the Plan of Action of the Third Summit of the Americas, held in Quebec City, in the section “Follow Up to the Plan of Action,” in particular, the recognition of the function that the CISC fulfills in coordinating the OAS activities emanating from the Summit process and the establishment, in Executive Order 02-3, of the Secretariat for the Summit Process; 

RECALLING that the Declaration of Quebec City recognizes the significant results of the ministerial meetings held in support of the mandates of the Summits of the Americas as well as the importance of the contribution made by civil society to the Summit process; 

RECOGNIZING that the CISC has served as a framework for civil society participation in the Summits of the Americas process; 

RECOGNIZING ALSO the importance of coordinated, timely, and effective follow-up of the Plan of Action of the Third Summit of the Americas and the previous plans of action, as well as the preparations for the Summits of the Americas and the pivotal role of the inter-American system, and especially of the OAS, in this matter; and 

TAKING INTO ACCOUNT the decision of the member states to hold a Special Summit of the Americas in Mexico at the end of 2003, 

RESOLVES: 

1.                   To renew the mandate issued to the Permanent Council to coordinate the activities assigned to the Organization of American States in connection with the Summits of the Americas. 

2.         To instruct the organs, agencies, and entities of the Organization to continue to give the highest priority to carrying out the initiatives assigned to them by the General Assembly, in accordance with the mandates of the Summits of the Americas, and to report regularly on these activities to the Permanent Council through the Committee on Inter-American Summits Management and Civil Society Participation in OAS Activities. 

3.                   To request the General Secretariat to continue to serve, through the Secretariat for the Summit Process, as the technical secretariat and institutional memory of the Summit process, in keeping with the Plan of Action of the Third Summit of the Americas, to support the preparation and technical coordination of future summits, and to offer to help member states implement the mandates assigned in the Plan of Action. 

4.         To instruct the Permanent Council to continue to support and facilitate civil society participation in the Summits of the Americas process as well as the efforts of member states to foster such participation. 

5.                   To request that the General Secretariat, by way of the Joint Summit Working Group chaired by the OAS Secretariat for the Summit Process: 

a.                   Present an annual report to the Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG) with regard to the support provided to member states in pursuing Summit mandates; 

b.                   In its capacity as coordination mechanism, continue to promote the mandates of the Summits in all agencies and to foster collaboration among them; and 

c.                   Hold at least one meeting of agency heads each year, to review progress made and plan joint activities, as a complement to the regular interagency meetings. 

6.          To request the General Secretariat to continue providing the necessary support for ministerial and sectoral meetings related to the implementation of Summit mandates on topics of interest to the OAS. 

7.          To request the General Secretariat to strengthen the Secretariat for the Summit Process, providing it with the human and financial resources it needs in order to support the preparation and follow-up of the Summits of the Americas. 

8.          To instruct the General Secretariat to carry out the actions mentioned in this resolution within the resources allocated in the program-budget of the Organization and other resources; and to instruct the Secretary General to seek additional voluntary funds for execution of the activities mentioned in this resolution. 

9.          To request the Permanent Council to report to the General Assembly at its thirty-fourth regular session on the implementation of this resolution.