Plan of Action
To strengthen democracy, create prosperity
and realize human potential, our Governments will:
1. Making Democracy
Work Better
Electoral Processes and Procedures
Recognizing the relationship among
democracy, sustainable development, the separation of powers,
as well as effective and efficient government institutions,
and, noting that the transparency and accountability of
electoral systems and the independence of bodies responsible
for the conduct and verification of free, fair and regular
elections are essential elements in ensuring support for and
involvement in national democratic institutions:
Share best practices and technologies
with respect to increasing citizen participation in
electoral processes, including voter education, the
modernization and simplification of voter registration and
the voting and counting process, while taking into account
the need to safeguard the integrity of the electoral
process and promoting the full participation and
integration of all persons eligible to exercise the right
to vote, without discrimination;
Continue to enhance electoral
mechanisms, using information and communications
technologies where possible, to effectively guarantee the
impartiality, promptness and independent action of
agencies, tribunals or other bodies responsible for the
conduct, supervision and verification of elections at
national and sub-national levels, and strengthen and
facilitate, with the support of the Organization of
American States (OAS) and other regional and international
organizations, hemispheric cooperation and exchange of
legislative and technological experiences in these areas,
and the deployment of election observers when so
requested;
Convene under the auspices of the OAS,
and with the collaboration of the Inter-American
Development Bank (IDB), meetings of experts to examine in
more depth issues such as: political party registration,
access of political parties to funding and to the media,
campaign financing, oversight and dissemination of
election results and relations of political parties with
other sectors of society;
Transparency and Good Governance
Recognizing that good governance requires
effective, representative, transparent and accountable
government institutions at all levels, public participation,
effective checks and balances, and the separation of powers,
as well as noting the role of information and communications
technologies in achieving these aims:
Promote cooperation among national
agencies in the Hemisphere charged with the development
and maintenance of procedures and practices for the
preparation, presentation, auditing and oversight of
public accounts, with technical assistance where
appropriate from multilateral organizations and
multilateral development banks (MDBs), and support
exchanges of information on oversight activities related
to the collection, allocation and expenditure of public
funds;
Encourage cooperation and exchange of
experiences and parliamentary best practices between
national legislators of the Hemisphere, while respecting
the separation and balance of powers, through bilateral,
subregional and hemispheric vehicles such as the
Inter-Parliamentary Forum of the Americas
(FIPA);
Work jointly to facilitate cooperation
among national institutions with the responsibility to
guarantee the protection, promotion and respect of human
rights, and access to and freedom of information, with the
aim of developing best practices to improve the
administration of information held by governments on
individuals and facilitating citizen access to that
information;
Create and implement programs with the
technical and financial support, where appropriate, of
multilateral organizations and MDBs,
to facilitate public participation and
transparency, using information and communications
technologies where applicable, in decision-making
processes and in the delivery of government services, and
to publish information within time-limits established by
national legislation at all levels of government;
Media and Communications
Noting that access to existing and emerging
information and communications technologies has an
increasingly significant impact on the lives of individuals
and offers important opportunities for democratic development,
and that the media has an important role to play in promoting
a democratic culture:
Ensure the media is free from arbitrary
interventions by the state, and specifically, work to
remove legal or regulatory impediments to media access by
registered political parties including by facilitating,
where possible, equitable access during election campaigns
to television and radio;
Encourage cooperation among public and
private broadcasters, including cable operators, and
independent broadcast regulatory bodies and governmental
organizations, in order to facilitate the exchange of best
industry practices and technologies at the hemispheric
level, to guarantee free, open and independent media;
Encourage media self-regulation
efforts, including norms of ethical conduct, to address
the concerns of civil society with regard to, inter alia,
reducing the dissemination of extreme violence and
negative stereotypes of women and ethnic, social and other
groups, contributing in this way to the promotion of
changes in attitudes and cultural patterns through the
projection of pluralistic, balanced and non-discriminatory
images;
Fight against Corruption
Recognizing that corruption gravely affects
democratic political institutions and the private sector,
weakens economic growth and jeopardizes the basic needs and
interests of a country’s most underprivileged groups, and
that the prevention and control of these problems are the
responsibility of government as well as legislative and
judicial institutions:
Consider signing and ratifying,
ratifying, or acceding to, as soon as possible and as the
case may be, the
Inter-American Convention Against
Corruption, in accordance with their respective legal
frameworks, and promote effective implementation of the
Convention by means of, inter alia, the
Inter-American
Program for Cooperation in the Fight Against Corruption
and associated technical cooperation programs and
activities, including those of relevant multilateral
organizations and MDBs, in the area of good governance and
in the fight against corruption, as well as programs which
each country designs and implements in accordance with
national laws, by its own appropriate bodies that may
require assistance;
Support the establishment as soon as
possible, taking into consideration the recommendation of
the OAS, of a follow-up mechanism for the implementation
of the
Inter-American Convention Against Corruption
by States Parties to this instrument;
Support strengthening the
Inter-American Network of Institutions and Experts in the
Fight Against Corruption in the context of the OAS, as
well as initiatives aimed at strengthening cooperation
among ethics officials and members of civil society;
Strengthen, in cooperation with
multilateral organizations and MDBs, where appropriate,
the participation of civil society in the fight against
corruption, by means of initiatives that promote the
organization, training and linkage of citizens groups in
the context of concrete projects which promote
transparency and accountability in governance;
Continue to promote policies, processes
and mechanisms that protect the public interest, the use
of disclosure of assets mechanisms for public officials in
order to avoid possible conflicts of interest and
incompatibilities, as well as other measures that increase
transparency;
Empowering Local Governments
Recognizing that citizen participation and
appropriate political representation are the foundation of
democracy, and that local governments are closest to the daily
lives of citizens:
Promote mechanisms to facilitate
citizen participation in politics, especially in local or
municipal government;
Promote the development, autonomy and
institutional strengthening of local government in order
to promote favorable conditions for the sustainable
economic and social development of their communities;
Strengthen the institutional capacity
of local governments to allow full and equal citizen
participation in public policies without any
discrimination, facilitate access to those services
fundamental to improving citizens’ quality of life, and
strengthen decentralization and the integral development
of these services in part through commensurate and timely
funding and initiatives that permit local governments to
generate and administer their own resources;
Promote sharing of information, best
practices and administrative expertise among local
government personnel, associations of local governments,
community associations and the public, in part by
facilitating access to information and communications
technologies by municipalities and by encouraging
cooperation and coordination among national, subregional
and regional organizations of mayors and local government;
Stimulate international cooperation in
training directors and managers of local government;
Support convening a meeting in Bolivia of ministers or
authorities at the highest level responsible for policies
on decentralization, local government and citizen
participation in municipal government, and consider
closely the recommendations of the Sixth Inter-American
Conference of Mayors and other relevant processes;
Support the OAS Program of Cooperation and
Decentralization in Local Government, including, with the
support of the IDB, the development of programs and the
effective inclusion of citizens in decision-making
processes;
2. Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
Recognizing that the universal protection
and promotion of human rights, including civil, cultural,
economic, political and social rights, as well as respect for
the norms and principles of international humanitarian law
based on the principles of universality, indivisibility and
interdependence are fundamental to the functioning of
democratic society, stressing the importance of respect for
the rule of law, effective and equal access to justice and
participation by all elements of society in public
decision-making processes:
Implementation of International Obligations
and Respect for International Standards
Consider signing and ratifying,
ratifying, or acceding to, as soon as possible and as the
case may be, all universal and hemispheric human rights
instruments, take concrete measures at the national level
to promote and strengthen respect for human rights and
fundamental freedoms of all persons, including women,
children, the elderly, indigenous peoples, migrants,
returning citizens, persons with disabilities, and those
belonging to other vulnerable or discriminated groups, and
note that the use of the term "peoples" in this
document cannot be construed as having any implications as
to the rights that attach to the term under international
law and that the rights associated with the term
"indigenous peoples" have a context-specific
meaning that is appropriately determined in the
multilateral negotiations of the texts of declarations
that specifically deal with such rights;
Reaffirm their determination to combat
and eliminate impunity at all levels within their
societies
by strengthening judicial systems and national human
rights institutions;
Combat, in accordance with
international law, genocide, crimes against humanity and
war crimes wherever they might occur, and in particular,
call upon all states to consider ratifying or acceding to,
as the case may be, the Rome Statute of the
International Criminal Court;
Recognize the importance of the
Regional Preparatory Conference of the Americas against
Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related
Forms of Intolerance held in Santiago, Chile, in December
2000, and undertake to participate actively in the World
Conference to be held in South Africa in 2001, promoting
its objectives and stressing that
political
platforms based on racism, xenophobia or doctrines of
racial superiority must be condemned as incompatible with
democracy and transparent and accountable governance;
Support efforts in the OAS to consider the need to
develop an inter-American convention against racism and
related forms of discrimination and intolerance;
Strengthening Human Rights Systems
Continue promoting concrete measures to
strengthen and improve the inter-American human rights
system, in particular the functioning of the
Inter-American Court of Human Rights and the
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR),
focusing on: the universalization of the inter-American
human rights system, increasing adherence to its founding
instruments, complying with the decisions of the
Inter-American Court and following up on the
recommendations of the Commission, facilitating the access
of persons to this protection mechanism and substantially
increasing resources to maintain ongoing operations,
including the encouragement of voluntary contributions,
examining the possibility that the Court and the IACHR
will function permanently, and entrust the XXXI General
Assembly of the OAS, which will take place in San Jose,
Costa Rica, in June of this year, to initiate actions to
meet the above-mentioned goals;
Strengthen the capacity of governmental
institutions mandated with the promotion and protection of
human rights, such as national human rights institutions,
thereby recognizing the important function they perform,
and contribute to the successful establishment of a
network of all such institutions of the Hemisphere, using
information and communications technologies to promote and
give effect to sustainable cooperation and better
coordination;
Create and strengthen national human
rights action plans, in accordance with the mandate of the
1993 Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action,
and foster independent national human rights institutions
by seeking, where appropriate, technical and financial
support from multilateral organizations, MDBs and
specialized multilateral agencies;
Seek to promote and give effect to the
Declaration
on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and
Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally
Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms
[also
referred to as the United Nations (UN) Declaration on
Human Rights Defenders];
Advance negotiations within the OAS on
the Proposed American Declaration on the Rights of
Indigenous Peoples with a view toward its earliest
possible conclusion and adoption;
Migration
Reaffirming the commitments made in 1998 at
the Santiago Summit concerning the protection of the human
rights of migrants, including migrant workers and their
families:
Strengthen cooperation among states to
address, with a comprehensive, objective and long-term
focus, the manifestations, origins and effects of
migration in the region;
Promote recognition of the value of
close cooperation among countries of origin, transit and
destination in order to ensure protection of the human
rights of migrants;
Establish an inter-American program
within the OAS for the promotion and protection of the
human rights of migrants, including migrant workers and
their families, taking into account the activities of the
IACHR and supporting the work of the IACHR Special
Rapporteur on Migrant Workers and the UN Special
Rapporteur on Migration;
Commit to undertake the widest possible
cooperation and exchange of information among states
concerning illegal trafficking networks, including
developing preventative campaigns on the dangers and risks
faced by migrants, particularly women and children who
often can be victims of such trafficking, with a view to
eradicating this crime;
Establish linkages with subregional
processes, such as the Regional Conference on Migration
and the South American Conference on Migration, which are
dialogue fora, in order to exchange information on the
migration phenomenon, as well as promote cooperation with
specialized international organizations, such as the
International Organization of Migration (IOM), in order to
advance and coordinate implementation efforts of Summit
mandates;
Human Rights of Women
Continue to implement the
recommendations contained in the
1998 Report of the
Special Rapporteur of the IACHR on the Status of Women in
the Americas and ensure the evaluation of and, where
appropriate, the establishment of national mechanisms for
follow-up;
Integrate fully the human rights of
women into the work of hemispheric institutions, including
the Inter-American Court on Human Rights
and
the IACHR, and increase the nomination of women as
candidates for positions in these bodies;
Request the OAS, through its
specialized organs and particularly the Inter-American
Commission on Women (CIM), to facilitate the integration
of a gender perspective in the work of all its bodies,
agencies and entities through the development of training
programs and the dissemination of information on the human
rights of women, as well as support governments in the
systematic compilation and dissemination of sex
disaggregated data;
Develop, review and implement laws,
procedures, codes and regulations to guarantee
compatibility with international legal obligations and to
prohibit and eliminate all forms of discrimination based
on gender, and continue work begun at the Santiago Summit
that set the goal of legal equality between men and women
by the year 2002;
Develop additional policies and
practices to combat violence against women, including
domestic violence, in accordance with the definition
established
in the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention,
Punishment and Eradication of Violence Against Women
(The Convention of Belém do Pará);
Consider signing and ratifying,
ratifying, or acceding to, as soon as possible and as the
case may be, the UN Convention on the Elimination of
All Forms of Discrimination against Women, and its
Optional Protocol;
Human Rights of Children and Adolescents
Consider, signing and ratifying,
ratifying, or acceding to, as soon as possible and as the
case may be, the two Optional Protocols to the UN
Convention on the Rights of the Child, specifically on
the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict, and the
Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child
Pornography; seek to integrate fully their obligations
pursuant to the UN Convention on the Rights of the
Child, and other international human rights
instruments into national legislation, policy and
practice;
Integrate fully the human rights of
children and adolescents into the work of hemispheric
institutions, including the Inter-American Court of Human
Rights, the IACHR and the Inter-American Children’s
Institute (IACI);
Freedom of Opinion and Expression
Continue to support the work of the
inter-American human rights system in the area of freedom
of expression through the Special Rapporteur for Freedom
of Expression of the IACHR, as well as proceed with the
dissemination of comparative jurisprudence, and seek to
ensure that national legislation on freedom of expression
is consistent with international legal obligations;
Ensure that national legislation
relating to freedom of expression is applied equitably to
all, respecting freedom of expression and access to
information of all citizens, and that journalists and
opinion leaders are free to investigate and publish
without fear of reprisals, harassment or retaliatory
actions, including the misuse of anti-defamation laws;
3. Justice, Rule of Law and Security of the
Individual
Recognizing that equal access to
independent, impartial and timely justice is a cornerstone of
democracy and economic and social development, welcoming more
frequent meetings, consultations and collaboration among our
justice ministers, supreme court justices, attorneys general,
ombudsman officials, law enforcement officials and others, and
noting with satisfaction the increased interest in
collaborating and sharing experiences to develop and implement
judicial and law enforcement reforms:
Access to Justice
Support public and private initiatives
and programs to educate people about their rights relating
to access to justice, and promote measures that ensure
prompt, equal and universal access to justice;
Promote cooperation to exchange
experiences in alternative dispute resolution mechanisms
to expedite the administration of justice, including among
indigenous peoples, for which they may request the support
as appropriate of the OAS, the IDB and other entities;
Independence of the Judiciary
Encourage measures to strengthen the
independence of the judiciary, including transparent
judicial selection, secure tenure on the bench,
appropriate standards of conduct and systems of
accountability;
Hemispheric Meetings of Ministers of
Justice
Continue to support the work done in
the context of the Meetings of Ministers of Justice and
Attorneys General of the Americas, whose Fourth Meeting
will take place in Trinidad and Tobago, as well as
subsequent meetings, and the implementation of their
conclusions and recommendations;
Develop a funding plan for the Justice
Studies Center for the Americas that takes into account
the interests and resources of both governments and other
likely donors, and that will enable the Center to
contribute not only to the modernization and formulation
of public policy in this area, but also to the
institutional development of judicial systems in the
region;
Develop an exchange of best practices
and recommendations, through the Meetings of Ministers of
Justice and other appropriate mechanisms, seeking the
technical and financial support of other multilateral
organizations and MDBs where appropriate, that are
consistent with international human rights standards, to
reduce the number of pre-trial detainees, institute
alternative forms of sentencing for minor crimes and
improve prison conditions throughout the Hemisphere;
Establish, in the OAS, an
Internet-based network of information among competent
legal authorities on extradition and mutual legal
assistance to facilitate direct communications among them
on a regular basis and to identify common problems in
handling specific cases and issues that merit collective
attention and resolution;
Combating the Drug Problem
Recognizing the extreme nature of the drug
problem in the region, renewing their unwavering commitment to
fight it in all its manifestations from an integral
perspective, in accordance with the principle of shared
responsibility, through the coordination of national efforts
and in a spirit of cooperation and mutual respect as
established in the Hemispheric Anti-Drug Strategy, and
also recognizing the work accomplished by the Inter-American
Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) and the Governmental
Experts Group appointed to undertake the first round of the
Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism (MEM):
Note with satisfaction the creation and
implementation of the MEM, and reiterate their commitment
to make this instrument, unique in the world, a central
pillar of assistance toward effective hemispheric
cooperation in the struggle against all the component
elements of the global drug problem;
Implement the proposals and
recommendations found in the national and hemispheric
reports, approved by CICAD, in accordance with the
specific situation of each country;
Continue strengthening and reviewing
the MEM to monitor national and hemispheric efforts
against drugs, and recommend concrete actions to encourage
inter-American cooperation and national strategies to
combat this scourge;
Recommend:
- Intensifying joint
IDB-CICAD efforts in order to obtain financial
resources from the international donor community,
through consultative groups supporting anti-drug
efforts, for alternative development, as well as
demand reduction programs;
- Establishing units with financial
intelligence functions in countries that have not yet
done so, with the support of CICAD and international
agencies specialized in this area, and for which, in
this context, it is recommended that CICAD and IDB
training efforts be expanded;
- Developing, within the framework
of CICAD, a long-term strategy that includes a
three-year program to establish a basic and
homogeneous mechanism to estimate the social, human
and economic costs of the drug problem in the
Americas, and to support countries through the
necessary technical assistance;
Promote bilateral and multilateral
cooperation and information exchange on policies and
actions concerning drug prevention, treatment,
rehabilitation and supply control, and develop educational
campaigns to promote public awareness of the risk of drug
consumption;
Support measures to impede organized
crime, money-laundering, the diversion of chemical
precursors, the financing of armed groups, and other
illicit activities resulting from drug and arms
trafficking;
Promote bilateral and multilateral
cooperation in order to consider in an integral manner the
displacement phenomenon of different factors related to
the drug problem, including the displacement of persons
and illicit crops;
Transnational Organized Crime
Encourage all countries in the
Hemisphere to consider signing and ratifying, ratifying,
or acceding to, as soon as possible and as the case may
be, the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized
Crime, its
Protocol Against the Smuggling of
Migrants by Land, Sea and Air and its
Protocol to
Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons,
Especially Women and Children,
as well as the
Protocol
Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in
Firearms, Their Parts and Components, and Ammunition,
once
that protocol is open for signature;
Implement collective strategies,
including those that emerge from the
Meetings of
Ministers of Justice of the Americas, to enhance the
institutional ability of states to exchange information
and evidence by concluding international agreements on
mutual legal assistance where necessary, develop and
circulate national reports, and strengthen cooperation,
seeking the technical and financial support of
multilateral organizations and MDBs where appropriate, in
order to jointly combat emerging forms of transnational
criminal activity, including trafficking in persons and
the laundering of the proceeds and assets of crime and
cyber-crime;
Review national laws and policies to
improve cooperation in areas such as mutual legal
assistance, extradition and deportation to countries of
origin, acknowledging the serious concerns of countries
that deport certain foreign nationals for committing
crimes in those countries and the serious concerns of the
receiving countries about the negative effect of these
deportations on the incidence of criminality in the
countries of origin, and express the desire to work
together, as appropriate, to address the negative effects
on our societies.
Promote, where necessary, and in
accordance with national legislation, the adoption of
investigation techniques, contained in the
United
Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime,
which are very important tools in the fight against
organized crime;
Prevention of Violence
Recognizing that violence and crime are
serious obstacles to social harmony and the democratic and
socio-economic development of the Hemisphere, and as well
noting the urgent need for an integral approach toward the
prevention of violence:
Encourage national institutions to work
together and coordinate with all appropriate multilateral
organizations and MDBs in order to implement integrated
programs that include initiatives for conflict resolution,
where appropriate, for sustained prevention, permanent
attention, public education and treatment relevant to
cases of violence against persons, families and
communities, strengthening national institutional
capacities in these areas;
Consider developing cooperation with
the media and entertainment industry with a view to
avoiding the promotion and dissemination of a culture of
violence, thus contributing to a culture of peace;
Encourage greater use of
community-based policing, to develop increased dialogue
and interaction of law enforcement authorities with civil
society and local communities;
Promote cooperation to modernize
criminal law, using information and communications
technologies as appropriate, with a focus on human rights
training and prevention of acts of violence, particularly
violence perpetrated by law enforcement officials, in
order to reduce violence against civilians and foster
values necessary in our societies to retain social
harmony;
Promote the exchange of national
experiences and best practices on the use of police
profiling with a view to preventing biased detentions,
which tend to affect mostly minorities and the poor;
Expand opportunities to share
experiences, techniques and best practices among
government and civil society agencies involved in
combating psychological, sexual or physical violence in
the domestic setting and on the job, recognizing that such
violence is overwhelmingly directed against women and
children;
Seek to adopt necessary measures to
prevent, impede and punish violence, the segregation and
exploitation of women, minors, the elderly, persons with
disabilities and other vulnerable groups, and seek to
ensure that national legislation addresses acts of
violence against them and that these laws are enforced,
recognizing that where victims of violence require legal
assistance to obtain redress, every effort should be made
to guarantee that they receive such assistance;
Request multilateral and other
organizations that participate in the Inter-American
Coalition for the Prevention of Violence to intensify
their support and technical assistance to those countries
that so request, in the elaboration of national strategies
and actions regarding this topic;
Promote concrete measures to prevent
hostile actions against minorities in the Hemisphere, as
well as the violent activities of local, regional and
international movements that support and foster racist
ideologies and terrorist practices to reach their goals;
Increase regional cooperation with a
view to preventing the criminal use of firearms and
ammunition, and examine additional measures and laws at
the national level if required;
Implement, as soon as possible, the
Inter-American
Convention Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and
Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives and Other
Related Materials, and apply the CICAD Model
Regulations, as appropriate;
4. Hemispheric Security *
Recognizing that democracy is essential for
peace, development and security in the Hemisphere which, in
turn, are the best basis for furthering the welfare of our
people, and noting that the constitutional subordination of
armed forces and security forces to the legally constituted
authorities of our states is fundamental to democracy:
Strengthening Mutual Confidence
Hold the Special Conference on Security
in 2004, for which the OAS Committee on Hemispheric
Security will conclude the review of all issues related to
approaches to international security in the Hemisphere, as
defined at the Santiago Summit;
Continue with priority activities on
conflict prevention and the peaceful resolution of
disputes, respond to shared traditional and
non-traditional security and defense concerns and support
measures to improve human security;
Support the efforts of the Small Island
Developing States (SIDS) to address their special security
concerns, recognizing that for the smallest and most
vulnerable states in the Hemisphere, security is
multi-dimensional in scope, involves state and non-state
actors and includes political, economic, social and
natural components, and that the SIDS have concluded that
among the threats to their security are illicit drug
trafficking, the illegal trade in arms, increasing levels
of crime and corruption, environmental vulnerability
exacerbated by susceptibility to natural disasters and the
transportation of nuclear waste, economic vulnerability
particularly in relation to trade, new health threats
including the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)/Acquired
Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) pandemic and increased
levels of poverty;
Improve the transparency and
accountability of defense and security institutions and
promote greater understanding and cooperation among
government agencies involved in security and defense
issues, through such means as increased sharing of defense
policy and doctrine papers, information and personnel
exchanges, including, where feasible, cooperation and
training for participation in UN peace-keeping activities
and to respond better to legitimate security and defense
needs, by improving transparency of arms acquisitions in
order to improve confidence and security in the
Hemisphere;
Continue promoting greater degrees of
confidence and security in the Hemisphere, inter alia
through sustained support for measures, such as those set
forth in the Santiago and San Salvador
Declarations on
Confidence and Security Building Measures (CSBMs), and
for existing mechanisms, agreements and funds, and
consider signing and ratifying, ratifying, or acceding to,
as soon as possible and as the case may be, the
Convention
on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and
Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction,
the Inter-American Convention on Transparency in
Conventional Weapons Acquisitions, and the
Inter-American
Convention Against the Illicit Manufacturing of and
Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives and Other
Related Materials, giving full support to the UN
Conference on the Illicit Trade in Small Arms and Light
Weapons in all Its Aspects to be held in July 2001,
bearing in mind the results of the Regional Preparatory
Meeting of Latin America and the Caribbean, held in
Brasilia in November 2000, and the work of the OAS, which
contributed a regional perspective to the discussions;
Strongly support the Third Meeting of
State Parties to the Convention on the Prohibition of
the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of
Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction, to be
held in September 2001 in Managua, Nicaragua, and the
Review Conference of the 1980 UN
Convention on
Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Certain
Conventional Weapons Which May Be Deemed to Be Excessively
Injurious or to Have Indiscriminate Effects, to be
held in December 2001 in Geneva; as well as the efforts of
the OAS to pursue the goal of the conversion of the
Western Hemisphere into an anti-personnel- landmine-free
zone;
Call for an experts meeting, before the
Special Conference on Security, as a follow-up to the
regional conferences of Santiago and San Salvador on CSBMs,
in order to evaluate implementation and consider next
steps to further consolidate mutual confidence;
Promote financial support to the OAS
Fund for Peace: Peaceful Settlement of Territorial
Disputes, established to provide financial resources to
assist with defraying the inherent costs of proceedings
previously agreed to by the parties concerned for the
peaceful resolution of territorial disputes among OAS
member states;
Support the work leading up to the
Fifth Meeting of Defense Ministers of the Americas to take
place in Chile, as well as meetings that will take place
subsequently;
Fight Against Terrorism
Support the work initiated by the
Inter-American Committee on Terrorism (CICTE)
established
within the OAS as a result of the
Commitment of Mar del
Plata adopted in 1998, and encourage hemispheric
cooperation to prevent, combat and eliminate all forms of
terrorism, taking into account the approval of the Statute
and Work Plan of CICTE;
Consider signing and ratifying,
ratifying, or acceding to, as soon as possible and as the
case may be, those international agreements related to the
fight against terrorism, in accordance with their
respective internal legislation;
5. Civil Society
Recognizing the important role of
participation by civil society in the consolidation of
democracy and that this participation constitutes one of the
vital elements for the success of development policies, noting
that men and women have the right to participate, with
equality and equity, in the decision-making processes
affecting their lives and well-being, and considering that the
diversity of opinion, experience and technical expertise of
civil society constitute a significant and valuable resource
for initiatives and responses of government and democratic
institutions:
Strengthening Participation in Hemispheric
and National Processes
Seek to establish public and private
funding instruments aimed at building the capacity of
civil society organizations in order to highlight the work
and contribution of these organizations and to promote
accountability;
Develop strategies at the national
level and through the OAS, other multilateral
organizations and MDBs to increase the capacity of civil
society to participate more fully in the inter-American
system, as well as in the political, economic and social
development of their communities and countries, fostering
representativeness and facilitating the participation of
all sectors of society; and increase the institutional
capacity of governments to receive, absorb and act on
civil society input and advocacy, particularly through the
use of information and communications technologies;
Promote participation of all minority
groups in forging a stronger civil society;
Develop educational programs, in
conjunction with relevant civil society organizations,
academic experts and others, as appropriate, to provide
democracy and human rights education and to promote the
introduction of books and educational materials that
reflect the ethnic, cultural and religious diversity of
the Americas as part of primary and secondary school
curricula;
6. Trade, Investment and Financial
Stability
Trade and Investment
Ensure negotiations of the FTAA
Agreement are concluded no later than January 2005 and
seek its entry into force as soon as possible thereafter
but, in any case, no later than December 2005, in
conformity with the principles and objectives established
in the San Jose Ministerial Declaration, in particular the
achievement of a balanced, comprehensive agreement,
consistent with WTO rules and disciplines, the results of
which will constitute a single undertaking embodying the
rights and obligations, as mutually agreed:
Ensure the transparency of the
negotiating process, including through publication of the
preliminary draft FTAA Agreement in the four official
languages as soon as possible and the dissemination of
additional information on the progress of negotiations;
Foster through their respective
national dialogue mechanisms and through appropriate FTAA
mechanisms, a process of increasing and sustained
communication with civil society to ensure that it has a
clear perception of the development of the FTAA
negotiating process; invite civil society to continue to
contribute to the FTAA process; and, to this end, develop
a list of options that could include dissemination
programs in smaller economies, which could be supported by
the Tripartite Committee or other sources;
Ensure full participation of all our
countries in the FTAA, taking into consideration the
differences in the levels of development and size of the
economies of the Hemisphere, in order to create
opportunities for the full participation of the smaller
economies and to increase their level of development;
Supervise and support, with technical
assistance, the full implementation of adopted business
facilitation measures;
Instruct our representatives in the
institutions of the Tripartite Committee to continue
securing the allocation of the resources necessary to
contribute to the support of the work of the FTAA
Administrative Secretariat;
Urge the Tripartite Committee
institutions to continue to respond positively to requests
for technical support from FTAA entities; and request the
institutions, according to their respective internal
procedures, to favorably consider requests for technical
assistance related to FTAA issues from member countries,
in particular from the smaller economies, in order to
facilitate their integration into the FTAA process;
Economic and Financial Stability
Welcome and support the work of our
Ministers of Finance, who met in Toronto, Canada on April
3-4, 2001, to promote financial and economic stability as
well as strong and sustainable growth, as fundamental
preconditions for accelerated development and poverty
reduction, and to ensure that the benefits of
globalization are broadly and equitably distributed to all
our people;
Recognize the value of efforts
undertaken to advance Hemispheric integration, including
improved access to goods, services, capital and
technology, to achieve the full range of social and other
objectives;
Support the efforts of Finance
Ministers to address the challenges associated with
globalization, to protect the most vulnerable and prevent
crises, and affirm the importance of having the benefits
of globalization widely distributed to all regions and
social sectors of our countries, recognizing, at the same
time, the unique challenges faced by small states;
Affirm that greater attention must be
given to increasing economic growth and reducing poverty
in a mutually reinforcing way, and that this priority must
include social sector policies that effectively achieve
poverty reduction and greater investment in people, with
improved access to basic education and health services;
Instruct our Finance Ministers to
continue to explore ways to ensure that international
financial institutions, regional development banks and
other international bodies take adequate account of Summit
initiatives in their lending policies and technical
assistance programs for the Hemisphere;
Corporate Social Responsibility
Recognizing the central role that
businesses of all sizes play in the creation of prosperity and
the flow and maintenance of trade and investment in the
Hemisphere, and, noting that businesses can make an important
contribution to sustainable development and increasing access
to opportunities, including the reduction of inequalities in
the communities in which they operate, and taking into
consideration the increasing expectations of our citizens and
civil society organizations that businesses carry out their
operations in a manner consistent with their social and
environmental responsibilities:
Support the continued analysis and
consideration in the OAS of corporate social
responsibility, ensuring that civil society, including the
private sector, is appropriately and regularly consulted
and that this process benefits from the experiences of
other international organizations, national agencies and
non-governmental actors;
Convene a meeting as early as feasible in 2002 with the
support of the OAS, the IDB and other relevant
inter-American organizations involving representatives
from governments, civil society, including mainly the
business community, to deepen dialogue on corporate social
responsibility in the Hemisphere, raise awareness of key
issues to be determined and discuss ways to promote the
development, adoption and implementation by the business
community of principles of good conduct that will advance
corporate social and environmental responsibility;
7. Infrastructure and Regulatory
Environment
Recognizing that the development of
physical infrastructure is an important complement to economic
integration; that advances in the area of infrastructure will
release new driving forces toward a broad and deep
integration, setting in motion dynamics that should be
encouraged; and that infrastructure projects geared to
integration should be complemented by the adoption of
regulatory and administrative regimes that facilitate their
implementation:
Telecommunications
Recognizing that states have the sovereign
right to regulate their own telecommunications sectors and
that affordable and universal access to new information and
communications technologies is an important means to raise the
living standards of our citizens and reduce the divide between
rural and urban populations, and between countries; noting the
importance of increasing cooperation with the private sector
to further modernize and expand our telecommunications
sectors; acknowledging and reaffirming our efforts in and
dedication to market opening and increasing free, fair and
equitable competition in all telecommunications services,
while respecting the regulatory framework of each country, in
order to attract investment needed to develop infrastructure
and to reduce the cost of service; stressing the importance of
adopting policies to protect the interests of users and
enhance the quality, efficiency, coverage and diversity of
services, all based on respect for user privacy; and bearing
in mind the social, political, economic, commercial and
cultural needs of our populations, in particular those of less
developed communities:
Propose measures designed to modernize
national laws, as appropriate, based on principles such
as: permanence of strong and independent regulatory
bodies; a pro-competitive approach, including the adoption
of rules on dominant operators; a flexible regulatory
framework consistent with technological convergence, and
to develop human and institutional capacity in support of
these principles;
Facilitate the upgrading of human
resources in the telecommunications sector through ongoing
training programs on telecommunications policy,
regulation, management and technology, and request the
Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (CITEL), in
coordination with national agencies, the International
Telecommunication Union (ITU)'s Centre of Excellence for
the Americas, and in partnership with regional and
subregional organizations and the private sector, to
create a focal point for information on human resource
development programs to foster exchanges of information on
relevant training programs among governments,
universities, industry associations and the private
sector, in order to assist countries of the Americas in
meeting the growing need for trained and competent
personnel in the rapidly changing knowledge-based economy;
Take measures striving to implement the
Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) for Conformity
Assessment developed by CITEL without prejudice to
each participant`s sovereign right to regulate its own
telecommunications sector, and encourage discussion of
adequate standards to ensure interoperability for existing
and future telecommunications networks and the timely
introduction of technology in new and existing markets,
taking into account the regulations and recommendations of
the ITU and other appropriate standard-setting bodies;
Support the convening of the ITU World
Summit on the Information Society to be held in 2003,
which will focus on the use of information and
communications technologies for social and economic
development;
Recommend that our national bodies work
within CITEL to prepare guidelines on Universal Service,
based on principles to be developed by CITEL and develop a
clear definition of the responsibilities of governments
and private entities;
Instruct, as appropriate, our
telecommunications authorities and our relevant regulatory
bodies, working within our regional and sub-regional
agencies and organizations to develop and implement before
the next Summit of the Americas a cooperative and
collaborative program to support a connectivity agenda for
the Hemisphere;
Encourage increased competitiveness and
productivity of all sectors through applications such as
distance education and tele-health and promote the
creation of domestic activities dedicated to the
generation of Internet-based industries;
Request ministries or departments
responsible for telecommunications and appropriate
regulatory bodies to cooperate, within CITEL, in order to
clarify and simplify rules governing the provision of
satellite services in our countries, and work to complete
the development of a Hemispheric Web site including each
country’s requirements and forms of application for
licensing to provide satellite-based telecommunications
services;
Promote the modernization and expansion
of telecommunications infrastructure in rural and urban
areas through timely introduction of new technologies and
services, in particular broadband technologies, the
adoption of new standards on telecasting, Web casting, and
Internet Protocol (IP), paying particular attention to
spectrum management, interconnection policies, appropriate
pace of development and emergency communications;
Address voluntary funding for the
implementation of CITEL's additional mandates set out in
this Plan of Action;
Transport
Recognizing that environmentally sound,
safe, and efficient transportation systems, including
multi-modal corridors, are essential to the quality of the
daily lives of the people of the Americas as well as to trade
in goods and services among our countries; and reaffirming our
support for the ongoing efforts of our Ministers responsible
for transportation, through the Western Hemisphere Transport
Initiative (WHTI), to increase the integration of our
transportation systems and practices:
Endorse the areas for cooperation
identified at the Ministers' meeting in Punta del Este,
Uruguay, in March 2001;
Promote and facilitate increased
cooperation, convergence and information-sharing in the
transportation-related activities of the five subregions
of the Hemisphere and with multilateral organizations,
with a view to furthering the development of human and
institutional capacity and ensuring the environmental
sustainability of transportation systems and
infrastructure; to this end, request that the UN Economic
Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)
continues to provide its valuable support to the WHTI;
Improve human resources development
programs by encouraging exchanges of personnel among the
countries and institutions of the region, as well as the
development of, and participation in,
transportation-related training programs and the
dissemination of information regarding these programs by
way of the WHTI's Web site and by other means;
Emphasize the need to develop proper
infrastructure and high safety standards as a principal
priority for the WHTI's work program, while recognizing
the importance of human and institutional capacity
development in ensuring the safety of transportation
services;
Actively and collectively encourage
international maritime and air carriers to fully comply
with International Maritime Organization (IMO),
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), and
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) standards of
safety governing the transport of dangerous goods
including nuclear, hazardous and noxious substances and
waste and stress the importance of having effective
liability mechanisms in place;
Actively and collectively encourage
international maritime carriers, in particular cruise
ships, to comply with IMO standards in relation to the
protection of the marine environment, and to take full
account of the special area status of the wider Caribbean;
Acknowledging the concerns of some
states about the transport of radioactive material,
including waste, through routes close to the coasts of
states or along navigable waterways of the Hemisphere and
the potential health consequences for our people and the
possible threat to the marine environment, and consistent
with maritime rights and obligations in international law;
encourage and support full compliance with existing IMO
and IAEA conventions, standards and codes of practice and
stress the importance of having effective liability
mechanisms in place; encourage the consideration by the
IAEA and the IMO and other competent international bodies
to strengthen additional international measures, as
necessary, which may include: the assurance of
non-contamination of the marine environment; the recovery
of radioactive material, including waste, in the case of
accidental release; the provision of relief,
rehabilitation or reconstruction, as appropriate, for
affected people in the case of an accident; and invite
countries shipping radioactive material, including waste,
to provide timely information to potentially affected
states in the Hemisphere relating to such shipments,
consistent with the need to maintain and ensure the safety
and security of those shipments;
Instruct our Ministers of
Transportation to explore the possibility of discussing
the modernization of air services in order to meet the
growing flow of people and goods that has been taking
place in the Hemisphere;
Energy
Recognize that in pursuing the regional
integration of energy markets, issues such as market
reform and stability, regulatory reform and trade
liberalization will be addressed; support and endorse the
Hemispheric Energy Initiative which promotes policies and
practices to advance such integration;
8. Disaster Management
Recognizing the need to develop, implement
and sustain shared comprehensive disaster management
strategies and programs to reduce the vulnerability of our
populations and economies to natural and man-made disasters
and to maintain or quickly restore minimum levels of
consumption, income and production at the household and
community levels in the aftermath of disasters, including
irregular population settlements; acknowledging in this regard
the need to expand the community of stakeholders at the
regional, national and local levels engaged in the formulation
of early warning systems, the management of risk and response
operations in the event of disasters and integrated
sustainable development strategies:
Develop the capacity to forecast,
prepare for and mitigate the potential impacts of natural
and man-made hazards; promote vulnerability reduction;
adopt and enforce better building codes and standards;
ensure appropriate land-use practices; inventory and
evaluate the vulnerability of critical facilities and
infrastructure; estimate climate change variability and
sea-level rise and assess their possible impacts; and in
pursuit of the above, create the requisite legal framework
and establish the cooperative mechanisms to access and
share advances in science and technology and their
application in the early warning, preparedness for and
mitigation of these hazards;
Promote the exchange of information on
the vulnerability of infrastructure exposed to disasters
as well as the early warning capacity, particularly in the
border areas of the countries of the Americas, in order to
design specific prevention measures in the fields of
engineering and legislation with the aim of reducing the
socio-economic impact of natural disasters;
Establish or strengthen, where
appropriate, partnerships with all relevant actors,
including the private sector, technical professional
associations, regional institutions, civil society,
educational and research institutions and other
multilateral coordinating agencies such as the Office for
the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), in the
development and implementation of disaster management
policies and programs at the national and community
levels, and promote greater awareness and effective
integration of these policies and programs among national
policy makers, local authorities, communities and media,
and promote the insurance and reinsurance of the social
and economic infrastructure as well as the
decentralization of information and decision-making;
Promote the exchange of knowledge and
experiences regarding the combat against inappropriate
practices in the exploitation of natural resources and
unsustainable patterns of consumption, including the
problems of waste management, which increase the
vulnerability of the people to natural disasters;
Promote the development of
telecommunications for humanitarian assistance; actively
encourage greater use and interoperability of
telecommunications and other technologies and information
systems that allow the observation and monitoring of
different natural phenomena; use early warning systems
such as remote sensing imagery, Geographic Information
Systems
(GIS) based data necessary to address and
prevent emergencies; promote the compatibility of these
systems in the planning and response to emergency
operations among governments, specialized agencies,
relevant international organizations, and Non-Governmental
Organizations (NGOs), and, in this spirit, consider
signing and ratifying, ratifying, or acceding to, as soon
as possible and as the case may be, the
Tampere
Convention on the Provision of Telecommunication Resources
for Disaster Mitigation and Relief Operations;
Establish information networks with the
involvement of the Inter-American Committee on Natural
Disaster Reduction (IACNDR) and other relevant regional
and international organizations to exchange scientific and
technological knowledge and experiences; encourage further
regional and subregional action to reduce risks and
improve response to natural disasters; promote joint
research and development technologies and contribute to
strengthen coordination of national prevention and
response agencies in natural disasters; to achieve this,
draw on the work of ECLAC on the improvement, up-dating
and implementation of its damage assessment methodology
and continue to promote natural disaster mitigation and
risk reduction awareness and preparedness;
Consider the creation of a hemispheric
system for prevention and mitigation of disasters that
would include, among others, a specialized database
containing the best information available on the
characteristics, experiences, strengths and weaknesses of
national and regional agencies responsible for disaster
prevention and mitigation and provide a new framework for
technical cooperation and research aimed at creating a
hemispheric culture of prevention and solidarity;
Adopt and support, as appropriate,
initiatives aimed at promoting capacity building at all
levels, such as the transfer and development of technology
for prevention – risk reduction, awareness,
preparedness, mitigation – and response to natural and
other disasters, as well as for the rehabilitation of
affected areas;
Promote mechanisms that incorporate
risk management and risk reduction methods in public and
private development investments;
Convene within a year a hemispheric
meeting on disaster preparedness and mitigation with the
support of the IACNDR and the participation of a wide
range of government entities, regional and MDBs, private
entities, NGOs and the research, scientific and technical
communities, to discuss and develop cooperative efforts to
facilitate implementation of Summit mandates on disaster
management;
Request the IDB to undertake a
feasibility study in partnership with the OAS, the World
Bank, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and other
relevant inter-American organizations, as well as the
private sector, including insurance companies, on measures
to reduce and/or pool risk in a manner that results in
reduced premiums on catastrophic insurance, and mechanisms
to facilitate contingent re-construction financing and the
immediate release of funds to resolve urgent needs of the
affected country; this study would examine the
relationship between re-insurance and national and
community disaster management capacities, as well as
trends toward dis-investment and job losses in those
economic sectors requiring costly catastrophic insurance
coverage and the role such measures might play in this
regard; share with the private sector experiences in the
development and application of risk management tools such
as risk transfer instruments, vulnerability assessment
methodologies and risk reduction incentives for the
private sector;
9. Environmental Foundation for Sustainable
Development
Environment and Natural Resources
Management
Recognizing that the protection of the
environment and the sustainable use of natural resources are
essential to prosperity and to the sustainability of our
economies, as well as the quality of life and health for
present and future generations; and committed to advancing
sustainable development throughout the Hemisphere consistent
with our 1994 and 1998 Summit of the Americas Declarations and
Plans of Action and the 1996 Santa Cruz de la Sierra
Declaration and Plan of Action:
Welcome the outcomes and endorse the
areas of cooperation identified at the recent hemispheric
meeting of Ministers responsible for the Environment held
in Montreal;
Reaffirm our commitments to implement
Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) to which we
are party, including through enactment and effective
enforcement of any necessary domestic laws, reiterating
common and differentiated responsibilities as set forth in
Principle 7 of the1992 Rio Declaration
on
Environment and Development
and taking into
account the needs and concerns of small developing
countries and noting, in this context, the recently
concluded Global Convention on Persistent Organic
Pollutants; also stress the need to build synergies
among MEAs to enhance their effectiveness in
implementation and to strengthen international
cooperation;
Support the preparatory process for the
2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development to review
progress achieved in the implementation of the outcome of
the UN Conference on Environment and Development, focusing
on areas where further efforts are needed to implement
Agenda
21 and explore ways to reinvigorate the global
commitment to sustainable development;
Request the OAS through its General
Secretariat, in coordination with other agencies, to
organize a meeting at the ministerial level before the end
of 2001, to be held in Bolivia on the occasion of the
fifth anniversary of the Santa Cruz de la Sierra Summit of
1996, and present contributions to the Rio+10 Summit in
2002, recognizing that by its nature, sustainable
development has long-term goals that require the countries
of the Hemisphere to act in concert in this area;
Request the United Nations Environment
Program (UNP.) and PAHO to support the convening of a
regional meeting between Ministers responsible for the
Environment and Ministers of Health to take stock of
progress achieved, to identify priority areas for renewed
emphasis and cooperative initiatives, and to explore ways
of moving forward in the Americas and globally, with a
view to contributing to the 2002 World Summit on
Sustainable Development, recognizing the links between the
environment and human health;
Resolve, as parties to the
United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, to
pursue its objectives in accordance with its provisions
and to address the issue of climate change as a priority
for action, working constructively through international
processes in order to make the necessary progress to
ensure a sound and effective response to climate change;
recognize the vulnerabilities in all our countries, in
particular of Small Island Developing States and low-lying
coastal states, and the need to support the conduct of
vulnerability assessments, the development and
implementation of adaptation strategies, capacity building
and technology transfer;
Promote the adoption, implementation
and enforcement of national legislation, regulations,
standards and policies that provide for high levels of
environmental protection, recognizing the right of each
country to set its own levels of environmental protection
and, to this end, reinforce cooperative partnerships,
placing particular emphasis on achieving cleaner air,
enhancing access to safe water and sanitation services,
and strengthening national and regional capacities for
integrated water resources management and for waste
management;
Consult and coordinate domestically and
regionally, as appropriate, with the aim of ensuring that
economic, social and environmental policies are mutually
supportive and contribute to sustainable development,
building on existing initiatives undertaken by relevant
regional and international organizations;
Support initiatives such as the
Hemispheric Round-table for Cleaner Production in
furtherance of our efforts to promote partnerships among
government, industry and civil society and advance, as
appropriate, the Plans of Action and the Global Cleaner
Production Information Network launched at the 2000
Montreal International Pollution Prevention Summit;
Promote and support implementation of
priorities for action set out in the
Bahia Declaration
on Chemical Safety at the national level, particularly
those aimed at increasing public access to information on
toxic substances and at strengthening capacity in this
area;
Promote improved environmental
management at the municipal level, including through
information exchange among local communities, the
development of environmentally sound technology and the
promotion of partnerships to facilitate, as appropriate,
technology transfer, capacity building, including the
strengthening of local institutions and services, and
support for initiatives such as the World Bank Clean Air
Initiative and IDB programs in this area;
Advance hemispheric conservation of
plants, animals and ecosystems through, as appropriate:
capacity building, expanding partnership networks and
information sharing systems, including the Inter-American
Biodiversity Network; cooperation in the fight against
illegal trade in wildlife; strengthening of cooperation
arrangements for terrestrial and marine natural protected
areas, including adjacent border parks and important areas
for shared species; support for regional ecosystem
conservation mechanisms; the development of a hemispheric
strategy to support the conservation of migratory wildlife
throughout the Americas, with the active engagement of
civil society; and the promotion the objectives and the
implementation of the Convention on Biological
Diversity and the UN
Convention to Combat
Desertification;
Promote the adoption of concrete and
urgent actions towards the implementation of sustainable
forest management; promote policies, practices, incentives
and investment in support of sustainable forest
management, building on existing hemispheric initiatives
and cooperation, as well as support the UN Forum on
Forests and its program of work;
Reaffirm our commitment to advancing
environmental stewardship in the area of energy by
advancing policies, practices, transference of and access
to technologies, that are economically efficient and take
the environmental impacts of energy development and use
into account; and endorse and support the work of the
Hemispheric Energy Initiative in this area;
Promote the development of
environmentally sound exploitation and management of
minerals and metals, recognizing the importance of the
social and economic dimensions of the activities of the
mining sector, and support the work of regional and
international fora in this area;
10. Agriculture Management and Rural
Development
Recognizing the fundamental importance of
agriculture as a way of life for millions of rural families of
the Hemisphere as well as the role it plays in the creation of
prosperity as a strategic sector in our socio-economic system
and taking note of the importance of developing its potential
in a manner compatible with sustainable development that would
ensure adequate treatment and attention to the rural sector:
Promote dialogue involving government
ministers, parliamentarians and civil society, in
particular organizations linked to rural areas as well as
the scientific and academic communities, with the
objective of promoting medium and long-term national
strategies toward sustainable improvement in agriculture
and rural life;
Support national efforts to strengthen
rural enterprises, in particular small- and medium-sized
enterprises and promote, where appropriate, a favorable
environment for agri-business; encourage, in a
complementary manner, the training of small- and
medium-sized rural entrepreneurs as well as the
modernization of training institutions in this field;
Encourage the development of markets in
the Hemisphere for goods obtained through the sustainable
use of natural resources;
Strive to facilitate access to markets
for those goods derived from alternative development
programs implemented in countries engaged in the
substitution of illicit crops;
Instruct the Ministers of Agriculture,
during the next meeting of the Inter-American Board of
Agriculture, to promote, in cooperation with the
Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA),
joint action by all the actors of the agricultural sector
to work towards the improvement of agricultural and rural
life that enables the implementation of the Plans of
Action of the Summits of the Americas;
11. Labor and Employment
Recognizing that employment is the most
direct way in which economic activity is linked to the
improvement of the standard of living of our citizens and that
true prosperity can only be achieved if it includes protecting
and respecting basic rights of workers as well as promoting
equal employment opportunities and improving working
conditions for people in all countries in the region, with
special attention to those in the informal sector, to people
belonging to ethnic and religious minorities, other vulnerable
persons including women, youth, indigenous, migrant workers,
persons with disabilities and persons with HIV/AIDS; and
noting the importance of investing in human resource
development, of promoting employment security consistent with
economic growth and developing mechanisms to assist workers
with periods of unemployment, as well as of strengthening
cooperation and social dialogue on labor matters among
workers, their organizations, employers and governments:
Reaffirm the fundamental importance of
the Inter-American Conference of Ministers of Labor,
welcome the progress made through its Plan of Action
adopted in 1998, support the preparatory process for the
Twelfth Conference in 2001, and direct Ministers to build
upon the Vińa del Mar Declaration
which focused on
the social dimensions of globalization and the
modernization of Labor Ministries, by collaborating in the
examination of the labor dimension of the Summit of the
Americas process, in order to identify areas of agreement
and issues where further work needs to be done;
Respect the International Labor
Organization (ILO) Declaration on the Fundamental
Principles and Rights at Work and its Follow-Up,
adopted in 1998, adopt and implement legislation and
policies that provide for the effective application of
core labor standards as recognized by the ILO and consider
the ratification and implementation of fundamental ILO
Conventions;
Consult and coordinate, domestically
and regionally in the appropriate fora, with a view to
contributing to raising the living standards and improving
the working conditions of all people in the Americas;
create a process for improved collaboration and
coordination on the labor dimensions of the Summit of the
Americas process between Labor Ministries and other
appropriate ministries and key international institutions
within the Americas that have a critical role to play in
the improvement of labor conditions, in particular the
OAS, the ILO, ECLAC, as well as the IDB and the World
Bank;
Develop new mechanisms to increase the
effectiveness of projects and other technical assistance
designed to build the capacity of smaller economies and
their institutions to effectively implement labor laws and
standards and to foster equality of opportunity with
respect to gender, among others, in strategies to promote
employment, training, life-long learning and human
resource development programs with the objective of
promoting access to more and better employment in the new
economy;
Strengthen the capacity of the
Ministers of Labor to develop and implement effective
labor and labor market policies; collaborate with
employers and labor organizations to develop and generate
information on labor markets; participate in dialogue,
tripartite consultations and dispute resolution
strategies; and adopt ongoing strategies and programs as a
core element for professional development in the labor
market;
Continue to work towards the
elimination of child labor, and as a priority, promote the
hemispheric ratification and implementation of the
ILO
Worst Forms of Child Labor Convention, 1999 (No. 182),
work to bring national laws, regulations and policies into
conformity with this Convention,
and take immediate
action to eliminate the worst forms of child labor;
Promote and protect the rights of all
workers, in particular those of working women, and take
action to remove structural and legal barriers as well as
stereotypical attitudes to gender equality at work,
addressing, inter alia, gender bias in recruitment;
working conditions; occupational discrimination and
harassment; discrimination in social protection benefits;
women’s occupational health and safety; and unequal
career opportunities and pay;
12. Growth with Equity
Recognizing that economic growth is
fundamental to overcoming economic disparities and
strengthening democracy in the Hemisphere, and that in order
to achieve sustained economic growth and political and social
stability, it is necessary to face the primary challenge that
confronts the Hemisphere - the eradication of poverty and
inequity - that requires an integrated and focused approach,
which promotes better competitiveness, equity enhancing trade
and more equitable access to opportunities, taking into
account the difficulties that the countries of the region
face, including those under the Heavily Indebted Poor
Countries (HIPC) initiative, in obtaining financing for their
development; and that it is necessary to take measures at the
national and hemispheric levels in order to create a positive
environment for business, maximize the benefits of orderly
migration, minimize the effects of economic volatility and
natural disasters and encourage social stability and mobility
in order to promote a more equitable distribution of the
benefits of economic growth:
Development Financing
Acknowledge the need for development
financing, including aid from bilateral donors and lending
from the MDBs on appropriate terms, and commit to support
our Finance Ministers and the MDBs in promoting policies
to develop and maintain access to international capital
markets to finance our sustainable development efforts,
recognizing that debt servicing constitutes a major
constraint on investment for many countries in the
Hemisphere;
Enabling Economic Environment
Design and implement, with the
cooperation of the IDB, the World Bank, other donors, as
appropriate, as well as the ILO, building upon the work
begun in regional and sub-regional programs after the 1998
Santiago Summit of the Americas, legislation, policies and
regulations that reduce startup costs, support the
creation of new financial products for lower-income groups
and youth, foster the development of credit unions,
community finance institutions and supporting institutions
such as credit bureaus and create conditions that
encourage commercial banks and other appropriate financial
institutions to broaden their client base to include more
micro, small- and medium-sized enterprises and strengthen
the capacities of micro, small- and medium-sized
enterprise development agencies;
Provide and improve where necessary,
both in rural and urban areas, access to quality
information systems for micro, small- and medium-sized
enterprises through the creation of non-discriminatory
mechanisms with the cooperation of the IDB, the World
Bank, other donors, as appropriate, as well as ECLAC, and
establish programs aimed at promoting the use of computers
and the Internet, based on public and private sector
partnership, to gain greater access to information
technology, to credit and markets and to instruments
designed to assist them in all these areas;
Support and encourage, with the
cooperation of the IDB and other donors as appropriate,
the formation of business incubators, associative
networks, joint projects, national competitiveness
programs, credit unions and complementary agreements among
micro, small- and medium-sized enterprises as part of a
broader strategy allowing them to share best practices, to
improve access to information, credit and adequate
marketing systems and to break prevailing situations of
isolation;
Increase access to opportunities for
sustainable entrepreneurship, productivity and employment
among young people;
Improve, as appropriate, social safety
nets at the national and regional levels to stabilize
individual and household income and consumption by such
means as stabilization funds, micro-credit schemes, crop
insurance programs, job retraining and training in
vocational, entrepreneurial and business skills, with the
involvement of the MDBs and development agencies as well
as non-governmental and community-based organizations and
to establish regional networks to share best practices and
experiences;
Promote, in cooperation with the CIM,
IICA, other appropriate inter-American institutions and
the World Bank, improved market access for disadvantaged
entrepreneurs, particularly women, youth, persons with
disabilities, indigenous and rural populations, by
developing programs that generate local employment and
provide training, retraining and life-long learning,
particularly in new technologies, and affordable services
in business management, product development, financing,
production and quality control, marketing and the legal
aspects of business; by establishing outreach programs to
inform low-income and poor populations, particularly in
rural and remote areas, of opportunities for market and
technology access and by providing assistance, monitoring,
mentoring , advisory and other support services to enable
these groups to take advantage of such opportunities;
Migration
Recognizing the positive aspects and
benefits of orderly migration in countries of origin, transit
and destination as a factor contributing to economic growth
and national and regional development:
Support initiatives designed to
strengthen linkages among migrant communities abroad and
their places of origin and promote cooperative mechanisms
that simplify and speed up the transfer of migrant
remittances and substantially reduce the costs of sending
them;
Support voluntary initiatives designed
by communities or individuals for the use of funds in
investment and productive projects benefitting the general
welfare in communities of origin;
Promote the discussion of the migration
phenomenon at the hemispheric level with due regard for
its multi-dimensional nature and regional differences and,
in so doing, consider the inclusion of the topic of
migration in discussions on trade and economic
integration;
Support programs of cooperation in
immigration procedures for cross-border labor markets and
the migration of workers, both in countries of origin and
destination, as a means to enhance economic growth in full
cognizance of the role that cooperation in education and
training can play in mitigating any adverse consequences
of the movement of human capital from smaller and less
developed states;
Strive to ensure that migrants have
access to basic social services, consistent with each
country's internal legal framework;
Create and harmonize statistical
information systems and foster the sharing of information
and best practices through the use of new information and
communications technologies, with the aim of promoting the
modernization of migration management;
Enhancing Social Stability and Mobility
Continue and deepen progress toward
implementation of the agenda for improving property
registration established at the 1998 Santiago Summit of
the Americas with particular emphasis on regularizing
informal property rights, in accordance with national
legislation, to ensure that all valid property rights are
formally recognized, that disputes are resolved, and that
modern legal frameworks to legitimize property records and
encourage marketable property titles are adopted; and that
these actions include the formulation of institutional,
political and regulatory reforms that would facilitate the
use of property registration as a mechanism to enable
property owners to access credit and allow commercial
banks and MDBs to expand their customer base among lower
income sectors; promote greater cooperation and exchange
of information and technology to modernize the systems of
registry and cadastre in the Hemisphere, and also request
multilateral and bilateral cooperation institutions to
continue supporting and strengthening, in a complementary
manner, their financial and technical assistance programs;
Support, in cooperation with ECLAC and
the World Bank, research at the hemispheric level to
generate disaggregated data on the differential impact of
economic policies and processes on women and men, rural
and urban populations, indigenous and non-indigenous, and
communities of high or low social mobility, and on their
respective participation in economic growth;
Promote recognition of the social and
economic contribution made by the unpaid work performed by
women predominantly in the home, and consider providing
innovative social safety nets in conformity with national
law;
Promote greater recognition of the
economic contribution of women's activities in the
subsistence and informal sectors and provide, through the
international and regional MDBs and the donor community,
necessary assistance to communities participating in such
activities, giving greater awareness at the national level
to gender issues in macro-economic planning and
policy-making;
Cooperate and promote dialogue on
forced displacement, geared toward the improvement of the
attention given to populations displaced by violence,
taking into account the problems that these populations
face; and harmonize national legislation in accordance
with rules and standards of international humanitarian
law, including the Geneva Convention
of 1951;
Invite the IACHR and its Special
Rapporteur on Internally Displaced Persons to continue to
monitor and report on situations of forced displacement
with a view to promoting durable solutions aimed at
addressing the root causes of such phenomena;
13. Education
Recognizing that education is the key to
strengthening democratic institutions, promoting the
development of human potential, equality and understanding
among our peoples, as well as sustaining economic growth and
reducing poverty; further recognizing that to achieve these
ends, it is essential that quality education is available to
all, including girls and women, rural inhabitants, persons
with disabilities, indigenous, and persons belonging to
minorities; reaffirming the commitments made at previous
Summits to promote the principles of equity, quality,
relevance and efficiency at all levels of the education system
and ensure, by 2010, universal access to and completion of
quality primary education for all children and to quality
secondary education for at least 75 percent of young people,
with increasing graduation rates and lifelong learning
opportunities for the general population; and also reaffirming
the commitment to eliminate gender disparities in primary and
secondary education by 2005:
Entrust the OAS to organize, within the
framework of the Inter-American Council for Integral
Development (CIDI), a meeting of Ministers of Education in
Uruguay, to be held before the end of 2001, with a mandate
to:
- identify and set up appropriate
hemispheric mechanisms to ensure the implementation of
the education initiatives in this Plan of Action and to
continue to promote actions on priorities identified in
previous Summits based on a careful evaluation of our
collective achievements in this area;
- establish time lines and benchmarks
for follow-up on the implementation of our commitments
in education;
- establish, in light of the
fundamental importance of mobilizing resources to
support sustained investment in education at all levels,
a cooperative mechanism to promote the development of
productive partnerships among governments and with
regional and international organizations and the MDBs;
- promote the participation of and
dialogue with relevant civil society organizations to
strengthen partnerships between the public sector and
other sectors of our societies in implementing this Plan
of Action;
Formulate and implement policies,
within the framework of a strategy for resolving social
inequalities, to promote access to quality basic education
for all, including early childhood and adult education,
particularly to promote literacy, while providing for
alternative methods that meet the needs of disadvantaged
segments of the population or of those excluded from
formal education systems, in particular girls, minorities,
indigenous, and children with special education needs;
share information and successful experiences in
encouraging educational participation and addressing
student retention within certain groups, especially boys
-in particular in the Caribbean countries - whose drop-out
rate at the secondary level is high in certain regions;
Support and promote lifelong learning
by:
- offering varied curricula based on
the development of skills, knowledge, civic and
democratic values;
- providing flexible service delivery
mechanisms, including the use of information and
communications technologies, to foster employability,
personal growth and social commitment; and
- certifying skills acquired on the
job;
Strengthen education systems by:
- encouraging the participation of
all sectors of society in order to obtain a consensus on
policies that are viable and that guarantee the
appropriate and continuous distribution of resources;
- decentralizing their
decision-making and promoting the participation of civil
society, especially parents; and
- promoting transparent school
management in the interest of securing an adequate and
stable allocation of resources so that educational
institutions can play a leading role as agents for
change;
Enhance the performance of teachers by:
- improving their conditions of
service; and
- raising the profile of the
profession by providing, in addition to solid initial
preparation, opportunities for ongoing professional
development, and by designing accessible, flexible,
dynamic and relevant training strategies using, among
other means, new information and communications
technologies;
Support ongoing regional projects for
comparable indicators and educational assessment resulting
from the Santiago Summit, including cooperation
initiatives based on performance assessment programs
regarding educational processes and achievement, taking
into consideration studies in pedagogy and assessment
practices previously developed by countries; develop
comparable indicators to assess the services provided by
each country to people with special education needs and
promote the exchange of information on policies,
strategies and best practices in the Americas;
Strive to ensure that secondary
education is more responsive to evolving labor market
requirements by promoting the diversification of programs
and experimentation with new, more flexible teaching
methods with emphasis on science and technology, including
the use of new information and communications
technologies, and by supporting the establishment of
mechanisms for the recognition and certification of
acquired skills; and to this end, promote the exchange of
information and best practices and support cooperation
projects;
Promote more effective dialogue between
society and institutions of higher education, and
facilitate access for all to these institutions by
balancing growing demand with higher quality standards and
public funding with greater commitment from the private
sector; support hemispheric cooperation for research in
science and technology aimed at the solution of specific
problems in the region and the transfer of knowledge;
Support the mobility, between countries
of the Hemisphere, of students, teachers and
administrators at institutions of higher education and of
teachers and administrators at the elementary and
secondary levels, in order to provide them with new
opportunities to take part in the new knowledge-based
society, to increase their knowledge of other cultures and
languages, and to enable them to access information on
post-secondary studies and learning opportunities offered
across the Hemisphere, through new or existing hemispheric
networks, such as the educational Web site set up after
the Santiago Summit; continue to support initiatives in
this field such as those carried out by the IDB and the
OAS;
Promote access by teachers, students
and administrators to new information and communications
technologies applied to education, through training geared
toward new teaching approaches, support for development of
networks and sustained strengthening of information
clearinghouses, in order to reduce the knowledge gap and
the digital divide within and between societies in the
Hemisphere;
Science and Technology
Promote the popularization of science
and technology necessary to advance the establishment and
consolidation of a scientific culture in the region; and
stimulate the development of science and technology for
regional connectivity through information and
communications technologies essential for building
knowledge-based societies;
Support the development of high-level
human capital for the development of science and
technology research and innovation that would encourage
the strengthening of the agricultural, industrial,
commercial and business sectors as well as the
sustainability of the environment;
Promote, with the support of existing
cooperation mechanisms, the development of the regional
program of science and technology indicators;
Endeavor to implement and follow up on
the scientific and technological activities mentioned
above, counting on the support of hemispheric cooperation
and coordination mechanisms related to this field;
14. Health
Recognizing - further to the commitments
made at the Miami and Santiago Summits and in accordance with
agreed-upon international development goals in the areas of
maternal, infant, child and reproductive health - that good
physical and mental health is essential for a productive and
fulfilling life, and that equitable access to quality health
services is a critical element in the development of
democratic societies, and for the stability and prosperity of
nations; that the enjoyment of the highest standard of health
is one of the fundamental rights of every human being without
distinction of race, religion, political belief, economic or
social condition, as set forth in the
Constitution
of
the World Health Organization; that gender equality and
concern for indigenous peoples, children, the elderly and
under-served groups must be of paramount concern in the
development of health policy; that health outcomes are
affected by physical, social, economic and political factors
and that the technical cooperation of the Pan American Health
Organization (PAHO) and other relevant international
organizations should continue to support health actions in the
Hemisphere, in a manner consistent with the
Shared Agenda
for Health in the Americas signed by PAHO, the IDB, and
the World Bank:
Health Sector Reform
Reaffirm their commitment to an
equity-oriented health sector reform process, emphasizing
their concerns for essential public health functions,
quality of care, equal access to health services and
health coverage, especially in the fields of disease
prevention and health promotion, and improving the use of
resources and administration of health services; promote
the continued use of scientifically validated,
agreed-upon, common indicators for assessing
effectiveness, equity and efficiency of health systems;
Strengthen and promote development of
domestic standards of practice, accreditation and
licensing procedures, codes of ethics, and education and
training programs for health personnel; improve the mix of
health personnel in the provision of health services to
better respond to national health priorities;
Intensify
efforts and share and
promote best practices to:
_ reduce maternal and infant
morbidity and mortality;
_ provide quality reproductive health
care and services for women, men and adolescents; and
_ carry out commitments made at the
Cairo International Conference on Population and
Development and its five-year follow-up in New York;
Develop processes to evaluate the
efficacy of alternative health practices and medicinal
products to ensure public safety and share this experience
and knowledge with other countries in the Americas;
Communicable Diseases
Commit, at the highest level, to combat
HIV/AIDS and its consequences, recognizing that this
disease is a major threat to the security of our people;
in particular seek to increase resources for prevention,
education and access to care and treatment as well as
research; adopt a multi-sectoral and gender sensitive
approach to education, to prevention and to controlling
the spread of HIV/AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases
(STDs) by developing participatory programs especially
with high risk populations, and by fostering partnerships
with civil society including the mass media, the business
sector and voluntary organizations; promote the use of
ongoing horizontal mechanisms of cooperation to secure the
safety of blood; increase national access to treatment of
HIV/AIDS-related illnesses through measures striving to
ensure the provision and affordability of drugs, including
reliable distribution and delivery systems and appropriate
financing mechanisms consistent with national laws and
international agreements acceded to; continue dialogue
with the pharmaceutical industry and the private sector in
general to encourage the availability of affordable
antiretrovirals and other drugs for HIV/AIDS treatment,
and promote strategies to facilitate the sharing of drug
pricing information including, where appropriate, that
available in national data banks; promote and protect the
human rights of all persons living with HIV/AIDS, without
gender or age discrimination; utilize the June 2001 UN
General Assembly Special Session on AIDS as a platform to
generate support for hemispheric and national HIV/AIDS
programs;
Enhance programs at the hemispheric,
national and local levels to prevent, control and treat
communicable diseases such as tuberculosis, dengue,
malaria and Chagas;
Promote healthy childhood development
through: prenatal care, expanded immunization programs,
control of respiratory and diarrheal diseases by
conducting programs such as the Integrated Management of
Childhood Illnesses, health education, physical fitness,
access to safe and nutritious foods, and the promotion of
breast-feeding;
Non-Communicable Diseases
Implement community-based health care,
prevention and promotion programs to reduce health risks
and non-communicable diseases such as cardiovascular
disease and including hypertension, cancer, diabetes,
mental illness as well as the impact of violence and
accidents on health;
Participate actively in the negotiation
of a proposed Framework Convention on Tobacco Control;
develop and adopt policies and programs to reduce the
consumption of tobacco products, especially as it affects
children; share best practices and lessons learned in the
development of programs designed to raise public
awareness, particularly for adolescents, about the health
risks associated with tobacco, alcohol and drugs;
Connectivity
Provide sound, scientific and technical
information to health workers and the public, utilizing
innovations such as the Virtual Health Library of the
Americas; encourage the use of tele-health as a means to
connect remote populations and to provide health services
and information to under-served groups, as a complement to
the provision of existing health care services;
15. Gender Equality
Recognizing that women's empowerment, their
full and equal participation in the development of our
societies, and their equal opportunities to exercise
leadership are all central to the reduction of poverty, the
promotion of economic and social prosperity, people-centered
sustainable development, consolidation of democracy and
conflict resolution and the development of equal partnerships
between women and men; further recognizing that these
principles are the basis for promoting gender equality and
women's human rights in the Americas and working towards the
elimination of the full range of inequalities:
Endorse the
Inter-American Program
on the Promotion of Women's Human Rights and Gender Equity
and Equality approved at the First Meeting of
Ministers or of the Highest Ranking Authorities
Responsible for the Advancement of Women, held in April
2000, by the CIM; endorse as well the
Regional
Programme of Action for the Women in Latin America and the
Caribbean 1995-2000 and the further actions and
initiatives adopted at the Twenty-Third Special Session of
the UN General Assembly (Beijing +5) to implement the
Beijing
Declaration and its
Platform for Action; and
integrate a gender perspective into the programs, actions
and agendas of national and international events, to
ensure that women's experiences and gender equality are an
integral dimension of the design, implementation and
evaluation of government and inter-American policies and
programs in all spheres;
Strengthen national machineries and
other government bodies responsible for the advancement of
women and for the promotion and protection of the human
rights of women; provide them with the necessary human and
financial resources, including through exploring
innovative funding schemes so that gender is integrated
into all policies, programs and projects; and support both
the fundamental role that women's organizations have
played and will continue to play in advancing gender
equality and the joint efforts between governments and the
private sector which contribute to respect and
understanding of the human rights of women;
Promote gender equity and equality and
women's human rights by strengthening and fostering
women's full and equal participation in political life in
their countries and in decision-making at all levels;
Reinforce the role of the CIM as the
technical advisor to the Summit Implementation Review
Group (SIRG) on all aspects of gender equity and equality
and recognize the importance of the CIM in follow-up to
relevant Summit recommendations; provide for an
appropriate level of resources to the CIM to carry out its
role as the principal hemispheric policy-generating forum
for the advancement of the human rights of women and
particularly of gender equality; promote the support and
participation of the IDB, the World Bank and ECLAC in the
implementation of and follow-up to this Plan of Action;
Promote the use of information and
communications technologies as a mechanism to address
inequalities between men and women and ensure women's
equality of access to these new technologies and to the
requisite training; to this end, ensure that government
connectivity programs and programming at local, national
and regional levels, integrate a gender perspective
representative of the diversity of women within various
groups, including indigenous peoples and rural and ethnic
minorities;
Strengthen systems for collecting and
processing statistical data disaggregated by sex, and
adopt the use of gender indicators that will contribute to
a baseline analysis of the status of women and to the
implementation of public policies at the national and
regional levels, and that make it possible to improve the
monitoring and assessment of regional and international
agreements;
16. Indigenous Peoples
Recognizing that the unique cultures,
histories and demographic, socio-economic and political
circumstances of indigenous peoples (as the term is explained
in the section of this Plan of Action entitled "Human
Rights and Fundamental Freedoms") in the Americas
necessitate special measures to assist them in reaching their
full human potential, and that their inclusion throughout our
societies and institutions is a valuable element in the
continuous strengthening, not only of human rights in our
hemispheric community, but also, more broadly, of our
democracies, economies and civilizations; noting that although
progress has been made, it is necessary to strengthen
participation of indigenous peoples, communities, and
organizations, to promote an open and continuous dialogue
between them and governments, and to continue to work together
to ensure effective implementation of the relevant mandates in
the Santiago Summit Plan of Action:
Make their best efforts, in accordance
with national legislation, to encourage donor agencies,
the private sector, other governments, regional and
international organizations as well as MDBs to support
hemispheric and national conferences in order to exchange
experiences among indigenous peoples and their
organizations in implementing activities to promote their
sustainable cultural, economic and social development, and
in such other areas as may be identified by indigenous
peoples;
Acknowledge the value that the world
views, uses, customs and traditions of indigenous peoples
can make to policies and programs related to the
management of lands and natural resources, sustainable
development and biodiversity; on this basis, develop
corresponding strategies and methods to consider and
respect indigenous peoples' cultural practices and protect
their traditional knowledge in accordance with the
principles and objectives of the
Convention on
Biological Diversity;
Increase the availability and
accessibility of educational services in consultation with
indigenous peoples, especially women, children and youth,
in accordance with their values, customs, traditions and
organizational structures, by promoting linguistic and
cultural diversity in education and training programs for
indigenous communities; promote national and regional
strategies for indigenous women, children and youth;
similarly, encourage international exchange programs and
public and private sector internships in order to promote
equal opportunity, raise the average school-leaving age,
maximize individual and collective achievement, and
promote lifelong learning for all indigenous people;
Promote and accommodate, as
appropriate, the particular cultural, linguistic and
developmental needs of indigenous peoples, in urban and
rural contexts, into the development and implementation of
educational initiatives and strategies, with special
attention to building institutional capacity, connectivity
and linkages, including through national focal points,
with other indigenous peoples of the Hemisphere;
Promote and enhance, in all sectors of
society, and especially in the area of education, the
understanding of the contribution made by indigenous
peoples in shaping the national identity of the countries
in which they live;
Develop strategies, measures, and
mechanisms aimed at ensuring the effective participation
of indigenous peoples in the design, implementation and
evaluation of comprehensive health plans, policies,
systems and programs that recognize the value of
developing holistic communities that take into
consideration cultural, economic and social realities and
circumstances;
Support the
Health of Indigenous
Peoples Initiative, promoted by PAHO, in assisting states
and in consultation with indigenous peoples, to formulate
integrated public policies and health systems that foster
the health of indigenous peoples, in designing and
implementing inter-cultural frameworks and models of care
specifically aimed at addressing the health needs and
priorities of these peoples, and in improving information
collection, analysis and dissemination on the health and
social conditions of these peoples, with particular
emphasis on children;
Reduce the digital, communications and
information gaps between the national average and
indigenous peoples and communities, through relevant
connectivity and communications programs and projects that
provide services in the fields of political, economic and
social development, including the use of indigenous
peoples information networks;
Promote the collection and publication
of national statistics to generate information on the
ethnic composition and socio-economic characteristics of
indigenous populations in order to define and evaluate the
most appropriate policies to address needs;
Support the process of reform of the
Inter-American Indian Institute, based on extensive
consultations among states and indigenous peoples of the
Hemisphere, and further develop processes to ensure broad
and full participation of indigenous peoples throughout
the inter-American system, including in the discussions on
the Proposed American Declaration on the Rights of
Indigenous Peoples;
17. Cultural Diversity
Recognizing that respect for and value of
cultural diversity contribute to social and economic dynamism,
and are positive factors in the promotion of good governance,
social cohesion, human development, human rights and peaceful
co-existence in the Hemisphere, and that the effects of
globalization offer great possibilities for the promotion of
cultural diversity, but also raise concerns about the ability
of some communities to express certain aspects of their
cultural identity; further recognizing the unique role of
cultural property in the strengthening of geographic, social,
historic and anthropological bonds within societies;
acknowledging the need to strengthen strategies to prevent the
illicit trafficking in cultural property which is detrimental
to the preservation of the collective memory and cultural
heritage of societies and threatens the cultural diversity of
the Hemisphere; and bearing in mind that the General Assembly
of the UN declared the year 2001 as the Year of Dialogue Among
Civilizations;
Enhance partnerships and exchanges of
information, including through the use of information and
communications technologies, by holding a series of
seminars among experts, government officials and
representatives of civil society on the importance of the
linguistic and cultural diversity of the Hemisphere to
promote a better acceptance, understanding, appreciation
and respect among the peoples of the region;
Encourage the convocation of a meeting
at the ministerial or highest appropriate level, with the
support of the CIDI, to discuss cultural diversity with a
view to deepening hemispheric cooperation on this issue;
Create an environment to foster
awareness and understanding of cultural and linguistic
diversity of countries in the Americas, through a variety
of means, including the use of new communications
technologies as well as the Internet; support, by means of
broad collaboration, new media projects which promote
inter-cultural dialogue through the production and
distribution of cultural products created for television,
film, the recording industry, the publishing industry and
the electronic media; enrich the diversity of cultural
content of these industries, inter alia through the
preservation and restoration of cultural property and
through the return of illegally acquired cultural property
in accordance with our international obligations;
Promote social cohesion, mutual respect
and development by:
_ recognizing the contribution of
physical education and fair, drug-free sport; and
_ supporting initiatives which:
preserve and enhance traditional and indigenous sport,
strengthen the role of women in sport, and increase
opportunities for children and youth, persons with
disabilities and minorities to participate in and
benefit from sport and other physical activities;
Commit to active cooperation among
diverse institutions, at both the national and
international levels, to eradicate the illicit traffic in
cultural property further to the 1970
United Nations
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the
Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of
Cultural Property; also, promote joint action with
civil society organizations to implement and support
policies, plans and programs that will strengthen and
promote research, recovery, study, conservation,
maintenance, restoration, access to and appreciation of
cultural heritage and cultural property through proper
care, preservation and use;
18. Children and Youth
Recognizing that promoting the rights of
children and their development, protection and participation
is essential to ensure that they reach their full potential;
further recognizing the effectiveness and the need for
intervention centered on protection against discrimination,
inequity, abuse, exploitation and violence, especially of the
most vulnerable and taking into account a gender perspective;
asserting the importance of the cooperation endorsed at the
Tenth Summit of Ibero-American Heads of States and Governments
in Panama, as well as the significant opportunity for progress
for children in 2001 in the context of the Inter-American Year
of the Child and the Adolescent and the goals adopted at the
1990 World Summit for Children; and recognizing the vital
contribution of the Convention of the Rights of the Child
in the promotion and protection of children's rights, and the
work undertaken by the Inter-American Children’s Institute (IACI):
Implement and support the commitments
contained in the Agenda for War-Affected Children
agreed to by 132 states at the International Conference on
War-Affected Children held in Winnipeg, Canada, in
September 2000, including fostering the active
participation of children and adolescents in policy,
dialogue and programming for children and adolescents
affected by armed conflict and also encouraging the
establishment of a network for them; consider additional
ways to monitor, report on and advocate the protection,
rights and welfare of children affected by armed conflict
in the Hemisphere in conjunction with the IACHR's
Rapporteur for Children's Rights;
Promote actions to establish,
strengthen and implement public policies to ensure the
well-being and integral development of children and
adolescents, and promote the convening of conferences,
seminars and other national or multilateral activities
dedicated to children and adolescents, especially
throughout 2001 in the context of the Inter-American Year
of the Child and the Adolescent;
Ensure that every child in conflict
with the law is treated in a manner consistent with
his/her best interests, in accordance with our obligations
under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and
other relevant international human rights instruments,
including the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights; bear in mind the
United Nations
Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile
Justice; and provide training opportunities, as
appropriate, including gender-sensitivity and human rights
instruction, to those involved in the administration of
justice;
Identify, share and promote best
practices and approaches, particularly community-based
approaches aimed at supporting families, meeting the needs
of children and adolescents at risk and protecting them
from physical or mental abuse, injury or violence,
discrimination, neglect, maltreatment, and exploitation,
including sexual abuse, commercial exploitation and the
worst forms of child labor as expressed in ILO
Convention
182; in accordance with national legislation, develop
national policies and models for rehabilitation or
judicial systems for minors, incorporating initiatives for
crime prevention, safeguarding the due process of law, and
allowing access to institutions and programs for
rehabilitation and reintegration of child and adolescent
offenders into society and their families;
Endorse and seek cooperative means to
advance the recommendations contained in the
Kingston
Consensus of the Fifth Ministerial Meeting on Children
and Social Policy, held in Jamaica in October 2000, which
represents the region's contribution to the
UN Special
Session for Children to be held in September 2001;
Encourage cooperation to reduce cases
of international abduction of children by one of their
parents; consider signing and ratifying, ratifying, or
acceding to, as soon as possible and as the case may be,
The
Hague Convention of 25 October 1980 on Civil Aspects of
International Child Abduction, The Hague Convention
of 29 May 1993 on Protection of Children and Co-operation
in respect of Inter-country Adoption, and the 1989
Inter-American Convention on the International Return of
Children; and comply with their obligations under
these Conventions in order to prevent and remedy cases of
international parental child abduction;
In order to protect and promote
children's rights, develop and implement inter-sectoral
policies and programs, which may include the promotion of
civil registration of all children, and allocate
appropriate resources to undertake these tasks; establish
and support cooperation amongst states as well as with
civil society and young people to ensure effective
implementation and monitoring of children's rights,
including country-appropriate indicators of the health,
development, and well-being of children, and through
sharing best practices on reporting through national
reports by States Parties to the
Convention on the
Rights of the Child;
Promote consultation, participation and
representation of young people in all matters affecting
them by providing access to reliable information and
opportunities for them to express their views and
contribute to discussions in local, national, regional and
international fora and events;
Reinforce the role of PAHO, the IACI,
and the IACHR as technical advisors to the SIRG, on all
aspects of children's issues, and recognize the importance
of these institutions in follow-up of relevant Summit
recommendations.
Follow Up to the Plan of Action
On the occasion of our third meeting, in
Quebec City, we underscore the need to deepen and broaden our
cooperation to meet the needs and provide for the aspirations
of citizens. To achieve these objectives, it is fundamental
that we effectively implement the commitments we have made. To
this end:
We recognize the primary role of
governments in the implementation of the Plan of Action.
We welcome and encourage the extensive
sectoral cooperation that exists at the ministerial level in
various sectors, which form the building blocks of hemispheric
cooperation. We direct our respective Ministers to continue to
support the implementation of the mandates contained within
this Plan of Action and to report on progress.
Summit Management
We continue to support the SIRG as the
primary body, accountable through Foreign Ministers, for the
monitoring of implementation of Summit mandates.
With the objective of strengthening
hemispheric inclusion in the Summit of the Americas process,
we agree to the formation of a regionally representative
Executive Council of the SIRG, with a permanent Steering
Committee composed of past, current and future Summit hosts.
The Executive Council shall serve:
- to assess, strengthen and support
follow-up of Summit initiatives, with the OAS serving as
the technical secretariat and institutional memory of the
Summit process;
- to maximize coherence between the
Summit of the Americas process and mandates and
subregional Summit processes;
- to deepen partnerships and
coordination between the Summit of the Americas process
and its partner institutions (OAS, PAHO, IICA, IDB, ECLAC,
and the World Bank), including examination of the
suitability of new relationships with subregional MDBs;
and
- to advance greater engagement and
partnerships with subregional foundations, and with civil
society groups, including business and the voluntary
sector, in the support of Summit mandates.
The Steering Committee shall assist the
Summit Chair in preparing for future Summits, including
preparations for SIRG meetings.
Implementation and Financing
We underscore the need for ongoing dialogue
and coordination in the inter-American system to ensure the
effective and efficient implementation of Summit mandates. We
welcome the engagement of the institutional partners (OAS,
PAHO, IICA, IDB, ECLAC and the World Bank) in all stages of
the Summit of the Americas process and endorse:
- regular dialogue between the SIRG and
the partner institutions to ensure coordination in the
planning, financing and implementation of Summit mandates;
- participation of the Heads of the
partner institutions at future ministerial-level meetings
of the SIRG; and
- the strengthening of collaboration
and greater exchanges of information and expertise among
MDBs, inter-American organizations and national agencies,
with a view to encouraging effective use of their
resources, optimizing effectiveness of program delivery,
avoiding unnecessary overlap and duplication in existing
mandates, maximizing funding opportunities for
beneficiaries and ensuring consistency in the
implementation of the Summit initiatives aimed at
advancing greater social equity.
We recognize the essential role of the MDBs
and funding agencies in mobilizing expertise and resources in
support of the social and economic goals of the Plan of
Action. We direct our Ministers, working with the SIRG, to
explore with the partner institutions, the ongoing financial
support of initiatives, and encourage:
- our national representatives on the
Boards of these institutions to promote the development of
programs supportive of the Summit’s social and economic
goals;
- efforts of the IDB and the World Bank
to provide expertise and mobilize resources for
initiatives consistent with priority areas of programming;
- active pursuit of improved
communication and coordination between National
Coordinators and Executive Directors of the IDB and the
World Bank, including a meeting between the SIRG and
Executive Directors to discuss implementation of Summit
mandates;
- the strengthening of relationships at
the national level among government ministries and
agencies responsible for the implementation of Summit
mandates, the IDB and the World Bank, to ensure greater
exchange in the planning and implementation of Summit
mandates;
- Western Hemisphere Finance Ministers
to increase their engagement in and support of the overall
Summit of the Americas agenda, both with respect to their
position as Finance Ministers, and as applicable, as
Governors of the MDBs; we instruct our Finance Ministers
to give consideration to the establishment of financial
mechanisms to support the Summit initiatives; and
- Efforts of the Inter-American Agency
for Cooperation and Development (IACD) to secure financing
from both traditional and new sources, including new
partnerships with the private sector, and its efforts to
have the goals of the Summit inform the development of its
Strategic Plan 2002-2005.
We recognize the central role of the OAS in
supporting the Summit of the Americas process and the function
that the OAS Special Committee on Inter-American Summits
Management (CEGCI) fulfills in coordinating the efforts of the
OAS in this regard and in serving as a forum for civil society
to contribute to the Summit of the Americas process.
We instruct Foreign Ministers at the next
General Assembly of the OAS in San Jose, Costa Rica, to
strengthen and reform, where appropriate, the institutional
mechanisms and financial capacity of the General Secretariat
of the Organization to support the Summit of the Americas
process, as technical secretariat, and to provide support to
ministerial and sectoral meetings relevant to the OAS. In
addition, we instruct the creation of a specific fund to
finance the activities to support the SIRG.
We further support consideration by the
OAS, other inter-American organizations and national
governments, of ways in which civil society can contribute to
the monitoring and implementation of Summit mandates, for
recommendation to the SIRG as well as further development of
mechanisms and information systems to ensure the dissemination
of information on the Summit of the Americas process and the
commitments assumed by governments.
|