Think Tanks engage with Colombia in preparation for the Sixth Summit

The Summit of the Americas is an important venue for our hemisphere's leaders to address shared concerns and an opportunity to search for cooperative solutions. In preparation for the 2012 summit in Colombia, several think tanks are working in consultation with the Colombian Government and the Organization of American States (OAS), to analyze possible approaches for developing the agenda and establishing an appropriate format in the interest of maintaining and enhancing the relevance of the Summit process.

The think tank group, led by FEDESARROLLO, Inter-American Dialogue (IAD) and Canadian Foundation for the Americas (FOCAL), continues to contemplate ways to assist the Colombian Government to enhance the quality and reach of its consultations with other governments, multilateral organizations, civil society and the private sector.

Drawing on experience in the preparations for the 2009 Summit in Trinidad and Tobago, the think tank group met in Bogota on October 15th 2009 with representatives of the Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (including Foreign Minister Jaime Bermudez), the OAS, the Inter-American Development Bank (including President Luis Alberto Moreno via video conference), and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). Also participating were officials from several governments and political and economic analysts from several countries. For more information about this event please visit www.focal.ca

One innovative conclusion that the group decided to pursue was the contribution that data and information from public opinion surveys might make to the process. At a second meeting in December 2009 (with participants in Bogotá and Washington linked by video) the idea of using polling data was further explored. Participants discussed the value of public opinion polling as a way to identify issues of hemispheric concern that could assist with Summit theme selection, to engage the general public on the main summit themes, and to raise awareness of the summit itself.

This article was written by the think tank group and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of either the OAS or the Government of Colombia.

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