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MINISTERS EMPHASIZE ROLE OF CULTURE IN FIGHTING POVERTY IN AMERICAS

The ministers of culture of the Americas concluded their three-day meeting in Montreal, Canada, underscoring the significant contribution of the cultural sector to the fight against poverty, through job creation and income generation. Cultural initiatives also help to improve the dignity and quality of life for the hemisphere’s peoples, they agreed.

They also renewed their commitment to ongoing progress and concrete results in four areas agreed on in a list of priority activities to be carried out under the auspices of the Inter-American Committee on Culture, an Organization of American States (OAS) forum. The four areas covered by the conference are: the preservation and presentation of cultural heritage; culture and the enhancement of dignity and identity; culture and the creation of decent jobs and the overcoming of poverty; and culture and the role of indigenous peoples.

The Montreal Final Statement issued at the conclusion yesterday of the Third Inter-American Meeting of Ministers of Culture and Highest Authorities, stresses the importance of preserving and presenting the diverse cultural expressions of the Americas “as a substantial factor in ensuring social cohesion and sustainable economic development in the Americas in an age of globalization.”

Among the priority actions being considered are subregional workshops to promote cooperation and information-sharing to protect cultural heritage against looting; an international seminar on cultural diversity; a knowledge-sharing workshop on rescue and promotion of indigenous and traditional crafts; and joint activities on culture and its contribution to the economy and development. The ministers also agreed on a proposal for a joint workshop that would be sponsored by the OAS and the Inter-American Foundation on Culture and Development and held within the framework of the Inter-American Development Bank’s annual meeting. The purpose of that workshop is to help cultural institutions access programs of the international development and financial agencies.

Describing the event as “extremely fruitful,” Canada’s Minister of Public Works and Government Services, Michael Fortier, said at the concluding press conference that the meeting underscored a “genuine willingness to increase cooperation between our countries in order to build more cohesive societies that embrace cultural diversity.” He restated Canada’s commitment to the priority activities, and emphasized the need to “marshal our resolve in meeting the goals established within the ambit of the Inter-American Committee on Culture.”

Ambassador Alfonso Quiñónez, OAS Executive Secretary for Integral Development, noted that the meeting provided an “excellent opportunity for exchange of ideas among delegations.” He identified as “an important value-added” the exchange of very interesting experiences and discussions that were translated into proposals for action to benefit the various countries. Quiñónez also thanked the government of Canada for hosting the meeting.

Brazil’s Minister of Culture, Gilberto Gil, who chaired part of Wednesday’s sessions, said the cultural agenda has been advanced, including in the vital links the meeting established between culture and development. He said culture is vital to citizenship, human and social rights and in terms of the economic activity, and noted the increasing focus on culture as fundamental to the future of the planet.

During Wednesday’s sessions, the Director of the OAS Summits of the Americas Secretariat, Luis Alberto Rodriguez, delivered a detailed presentation on the cultural agenda of the hemisphere in relation to the fifth Summit of Trinidad and Tobago in 2009. He noted that as the OAS member governments prepare for that Summit, “cultural development will be an important cross-cutting theme.” Culture can strengthen democratic governance, and marginalized groups gain social recognition through their cultural expressions, he said.

Reference: E-246/06