OEA - CP - Resolución CAAP GT RVPP 580

PERMANENT COUNCIL OF THE OEA/Ser.G

ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES CAAP/GT/RVPP-580/26 18 March 2026

COMMITTEE ON ADMINISTRATIVE Original: English AND BUDGETARY AFFAIRS Working Group on the Review of OAS Programs REPORT BY THE CHAIR OF THE WORKING GROUP ON THE REVIEW OF OAS PROGRAMS TO THE COMMITTEE ON ADMINISTRATIVE AND BUDGETARY AFFAIRS CREATION OF A DEPARTMENT OF RELATIONS WITH CIVIL SOCIETY TO REPLACE THE SECTION AND THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THE MERGE OF ALL CIVIL SOCIETY UNDER THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY GENERAL The Chair of the Working Group on the Review of OAS Programs (Working Group) is pleased to submit the following report to the Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Affairs (CAAP) regarding the consideration of the possible creation of a Department of Relations with Civil Society within the General Secretariat, as well as the effective date of the merger of civil society functions under the Assistant Secretary General. The Permanent Council entrusted the CAAP with the consideration of the creation, within the General Secretariat, of a Department of Relations with Civil Society, intended to replace the then Section of Relations with Civil Society. The purpose of this proposal was to strengthen the design and implementation of mechanisms to facilitate the meaningful participation of civil society organizations in activities across all Secretariats of the Organization. The note from the Chair of the Permanent Council was circulated as document CP/CAAP4131/25. The Working Group considered this topic at its meetings held on February 17 and March 17,

2026. During these deliberations, delegations raised a number of questions, particularly regarding the potential financial implications of the creation of a department.

In this context, the Assistant Secretary General, Ambassador Laura Gil, underscored that no additional resources would be requested from her Office in order to implement the mandate of the

Member States, should a decision be made to move forward with the creation of the department. At its most recent meeting, held on March 17, 2026, the Assistant Secretary General provided further remarks and clarifications. In her intervention, she reiterated her commitment to ensuring the effective management of relations with civil society within existing resources, regardless of the decision adopted by Member States.- 2In light of these remarks, the Working Group agreed to report to the CAAP on its deliberations and to recommend that the Committee inform the Permanent Council that, following its analysis, delegations concluded that the current organizational structure approved by the General Assembly should be maintained, keeping relations with civil society at the level of an Office. In this regard, it was understood that no additional resources would be required and that the current structure would remain unchanged. With regard to the merger, there was general consensus that it should become effective as soon as possible, taking into account that it had been mandated by the Permanent Council and ratified by the General Assembly through resolution AG/RES.1 (LVIII-E/25), “Program-Budget of the Organization for 2026.” The Working Group further decided that the Chair would work with the Department of Legal Services to present, within the following two days, a draft resolution for the consideration of the CAAP, with a view to its transmission to the Permanent Council. The draft resolution would include: a) making the merger effective immediately; and b) requesting the General Secretariat to report to Member States on the progress made in the consolidation of relations with civil society under the leadership of the Assistant Secretary General. In compliance with this decision, the Chair presented a proposal which was distributed as:

CAAP/GT/RVPP-579/26: IMPLEMENTATION OF THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

MANDATE ON THE MERGER FOR THE OFFICE OF

RELATIONS WITH CIVIL SOCIETY AND THE CIVIL SOCIETY COMPONENT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF SUMMITS The Chair wishes to express appreciation to the General Secretariat and to all members of the Working Group for their constructive engagement and contributions to this matter. Eric Luguya Alternate Representative of Canada Chair of the Working Group on the Review of OAS Programs