Media Center

Press Release

OAS Co-organized Workshop on Access to Information for Sustainable Development with Mayors and Civil Society of Trifinio Region

The Organization of American States (OAS) and the Tri-National Commission of the Trifinio Plan (CTPT) between Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, held last week a workshop on public participation and access to information for sustainable development, which included the participation of mayors and representatives of civil society.

Inaugurating the event in the ruins of Copan in Honduras and near the border with El Salvador and Guatemala, the Honduran Vice President, Lorena Herrera, urged the participants to "empower themselves and make use of existing tools within legislation and to form work groups to promote integral development that includes everyone."

The Mayor of San Augustin Copán, Melvin Paredes, said "it is important to know the places to which we can turn to when a problem of environmental issues is presented to us so we can take legal action, if applicable." Mayor Paredes said that "through these processes we can foster greater accountability at the level of the government and municipalities."

Claudia de Windt, from the OAS Department of Sustainable Development, said "what we expect from this workshop is to strengthen the mechanisms for citizen participation in this region, so that communities can be involved in decisions that affect their development, and to build consensus between the various actors to avoid conflict, so they know where and to whom to appeal when faced with certain problems and difficulties." De Windt added that "we would love for the workshop participants to involve their communities, and help us to ensure these participatory spaces will be used when necessary."

The workshop was attended by 75 people, including mayors, counselors, community leaders and civil society representatives from El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.
During the event, the Inter-American Strategy for the Promotion of public participation in decision-making for sustainable development (ISP) was presented. In particular, the principles and recommendations contained in the Strategy were detailed, as well as public participation mechanisms available in Honduran, Guatemalan and Salvadoran laws. In addition, participants from different localities in the Trifinio region exchanged experiences on participatory mechanisms for civil society established under free trade agreements and international financial institutions.

As a result of the exercises established during the workshop, the population of the Trifinio region will be able to involve itself in the decision making process for development and to contribute to the achievement of a more transparent and democratic society.

This event is part of a series of workshops organized by the OAS in Central America and the Dominican Republic as part of the "Pathways to Prosperity Initiative," of which the OAS is a strategic partner. This initiative serves as a dialogue at the political level so that OAS member countries can learn from each experience, sharing best practices and collaborating to promote inclusive growth, prosperity and sustainable development. The Clearing House of the initiative is established in the OAS Department of Sustainable Development, and works in close coordination with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) of the United Nations.

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

Reference: E-371/14