Bolivia, New Chair of the OAS Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CIDI)

The leadership of the OAS Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CIDI) was transferred on January 13, 2014 to Bolivia from Belize. In assuming the chairmanship, the Permanent Representative of Bolivia to the OAS, Ambassador Diego Pary, explained that for his government "democracy is deepened when integral development is an essential element in the design of public policies, and therefore we will translate that vision into the multilateral work we do at this Organization."

The ceremony was held at OAS headquarters in Washington DC, and included the participation of Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza; Assistant Secretary General, Albert Ramdin; Executive Secretary for Integral Development, Sherry Tross, and Permanent Representatives of the member States (see picture).

During the event, the former Chair of the Council, the Permanent Representative of Belize, Ambassador Nestor Mendez, stressed the importance of the development agenda for the OAS, noting that he considered it a cross-cutting issue that covers all topics of the Organization, observing that: “Unless we are able to provide development to our people, all the efforts done in human rights, democracy and security are in jeopardy."

Ambassador Pary shared his perspective that the Social Charter of the Americas, adopted at the 2012 OAS General Assembly held in Bolivia, "should become the main instrument of our work in CIDI”. The Social Charter is based on the recognition that “the peoples of the Americas legitimately aspire to social justice and their governments have a responsibility to promote it.” It also acknowledges that development with equity and democracy are interdependent and mutually reinforcing. The Ambassador praised the “significant progress” made in the areas of water resources, education and teacher training, youth employment, tourism, culture and migration, among others, while observing that there are still many issues that require special attention from the Council. 

The CIDI is a permanent forum for member states to discuss and follow-up on development issues. Through its different regular and sectorial meetings, the CIDI has effectively served to promote the exchange of policy and technical cooperation in the region.