Consultations with Civil Society

Sarah Fountain-Smith, Director of the Brazil, Southern Cone and Inter-American Relations Division at the Department Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) invites you to an exchange and information session in advance of the 36th General Assembly (GA) of the Organization of American States (OAS), to be held in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, from June 4 to 6, 2006.

Annual sessions of the General Assembly enable OAS Member States to review the implementation of past mandates, establish priorities and guide the Organization’s future action. This year, the GA will be held under the theme of “Good Governance and Development in the Knowledge-Based Society”.

The exchange and information session at DFAIT will provide an opportunity for participants to:

• receive an update on the preparations leading to the 36th OAS GA and an overview of Canada’s priorities;
• convey their views on the draft GA declaration, available on the GA website;
• share information about their own hemispheric priorities and activities with other participants.

Please confirm your participation with Louis-Félix Binette, desk officer – OAS and hemispheric relations, by telephone, at (613) 944-5972, or by e-mail, at louis-felix.binette@international.gc.ca

If you are unable to travel to Ottawa but still wish to take part in the discussion, you are welcome to attend by conference call. Conference call access numbers will be communicated later this week.

For more information on the Organisation of American States, visit www.oas.org.