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OAS Hosts Seminar on Cultural Information Systems Given by Argentina for Countries of the Caribbean

The Interim Representative of the Mission of Argentina to the Organization of American States (OAS), MartÍn Gómez Bustillo, and the Executive Secretary for Integral Development of the OAS, Jorge Saggiante, today inaugurated a seminar designed for the countries of the Caribbean and given by the Argentine Mission and Ministry of Culture on the “Development of Cultural Information Systems,” at the headquarters of the OAS in Washington, D.C.

The course, which will conclude Friday, October 12, aims to raise awareness about Argentina’s experience in the development of an integrated system of cultural information of a national and federal range, which was designed as a management tool for cultural policy, and as a service intended to aid the democratization of content diffusion in this area. The course will be given by experts from the Cultural Information System of Argentina (SinCa) and includes the participation of civil service professionals working within the framework of the highest national authority responsible for cultural management from Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago.

At the opening ceremony of the seminar, which was organized in response to the interest expressed by the Caribbean countries in the framework of the Inter-American Commission of Culture in 2010, Minister Gómez Bustillo expressed his hope that this exchange of experiences will be a mechanism to deepen links between the countries participating in the multilateral bodies, and expressed his hope that this interaction would generate more and new examples of “South-South Cooperation.”

“The multilateral sphere is a favorable stage for the development of cooperative activities among all countries of our region, which to a greater or lesser extent have technical skills and experiences that can be made available to others, fostering a mutually enriching horizontal exchange,” said Gómez Bustillo.

The Argentinian diplomat highlighted that his country, “has a long tradition and a well-earned reputation in the performance of this type of collaboration with other countries,” which it has been developing “successfully for more than 20 years through its Argentinian Fund for South-South and Triangular Cooperation.” The principles that guide the Fund, he explained, are “solidarity, horizontality, fairness, consensus, reciprocity, flexibility and triangular cooperation.”

For his part, Jorge Saggiante emphasized that South-South Cooperation is for the countries of the continent, “an increasingly more important instrument.” This collaboration, he added, “does not necessarily translate only intoinancial resources,” but also in the transfer “of good experiences, skills, and knowledge.”

Saggiante highlighted “the importance of culture for the evolution of our societies,” considering it a “fundamental element that generates an integral development.” The key, he continued, is the contribution of the culture to sustainable development, “a concept that not only tries to generate more gross domestic product and more employment, but also results in social inclusion, an essential aspect of the work of the OAS.”

Regarding the content of the seminar, Executive Secretary Saggiante said that the analysis and the management of cultural information is an area “where there are an enormous amount of interpretations,” but by “respecting the diversity of its concepts we cam find elements and indicators that allow us to establish what is its value and importance, and establish how we can act in this environment.”

Also present at the inauguration ceremony were the Republic of Argentina’s National Director of Cultural Policy and International Cooperation of the Ministry of Culture, Mónica Guariglio; and the OAS Director of the Office of Education and Culture from the Department of Education, and Culture of the Executive Secretariat for Integral Development, Lenore García Yaffee.

A gallery of photos of the event is available here.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-358/12