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XXXVII Meeting of the Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG)
Dear Civil Society Organization:
The Summits of the Americas Secretariat would like to take this opportunity to invite you to take part in the XXXVII Meeting of the Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG) to be held on March 9-10, 2005 at the Palacio San Martin, headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade of Argentina (Attached).
The SIRG, composed of national coordinators from countries participants of the Summit Process, is responsible to coordinate and follow up on the implementation of the mandates emanating from the Summits of the Americas. The SIRG is now preparing for the Fourth Summit of the Americas, “Creating Employment to Confront Poverty and Strengthen Democratic Governance”, to be held in Mar del Plata, Argentina in November of 2005.
The XXXVII Meeting of the SIRG will consist of three plenary sessions, a consultation with civil society and an inaugural session. The inaugural session will be opened by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Argentina and the Minister of Labor, regarding the theme of the Fourth Summit, and the participation of the Secretary General of the OAS.
The first plenary session, entitled “Following the Commitments: Social Development”, will consist of presentations from the Economic Commission of Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), and the Inter-American Institute for Agricultural Cooperation (IICA). The Second Session will focus on the discussions the Member States will hold regarding the challenges of the implementation of the mandates related with the theme of the Fourth Summit and its preparation. Both sessions are considered private and only governmental representatives will participate.
The consultations with civil society will be held on the March 10th. The consultations will be held following an opening address by Ambassador Jorge Taiana, Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Argentina and the Secretary General of the OAS. The Dialogue with civil society will last approximately three hours and will constitute a valuable opportunity for the representatives of civil society to make a short presentation and express, directly to the Member States, their vision regarding the Fourth Summit of the Americas.
The Member States and civil society have, as a base document for discussion, the Summary of Recommendations from the Roundtable with Civil Society and Special Session of the Inter-American Committee on Summit Management and Civil Society Participation of the OAS Permanent Council (CISC) held on January 24-25, 2005. If you want to have access to this document please visit: www.civil-society.oas.org.
Likewise, civil society organizations can present the recommendations emanating from the dialogue on March 9th in the facilities of the Institute for the Integration of Latin America and the Caribbean (INTAL) of the Inter-American Development Bank. This Dialogue will be coordinated by the Inter-American Democracy Network, the government of Argentina and the Summits of the Americas Secretariat of the OAS.
The third plenary session will be held after a lunch offered by the government of Argentina and will continue the discussion among the Member States regarding the Declaration Project and the guidelines for the Plan of Action of the Fourth Summit of the Americas as well as future Meetings.
The Summits of the Americas Secretariat would like to extend an invitation to civil society to all of the preparatory meetings of the Fourth Summit of the Americas in 2005. In the event that you would like to participate in the XXXVII Meeting of the SIRG, please fill out the attached form. We look forward to your positive and constructive input in the XXVII XXXVII Meeting of the Summit Implementation Review Group.
For more information and/or questions, please contact this Secretariat or Jorge Sanin, Civil Society Coordinator at: 202-458-3127, fax 202-458-3665 or [email protected].
Best regards,
Summits of the Americas Secretariat Organization of American
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