OEA - CP - Resolución CP INF 10895

OEA/Ser.G CP/INF.10895/26 30 March 2026

Original: Spanish

NOTE FROM THE SECRETARY GENERAL

CONVEYING TO THE PERMANENT COUNCIL

A COMMUNICATION FROM THE SECRETARY GENERAL

OF THE PAN AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF GEOGRAPHY AND HISTORY

REGARDING THE INSTITUTE’S CURRENT FINANCIAL SITUATION

PERMANENT COUNCIL17th St. Constitution Avenue N.W. Washington D.C. 20006 Estados Unidos - T +1 (202) 370.5000 - www.oas.org OSG/116-26 March 27, 2026 His Excellency Ambassador Luis Ernesto Vargas Permanent Representative of Colombia Organization of American States Chair of the Permanent Council Washington, D.C.

Excellency: I have the honor to address Your Excellency and to report that on Monday, March 23 of this year, I met with Mr. Antonio Campuzano Rosales, Secretary General of the Pan American Institute of Geography and History (PAIGH), who expressed his concern about that organization’s current financial situation.

In that context, he kindly sent me a communication detailing the challenges faced by the PAIGH, which I would appreciate your good offices in conveying to the members of the Permanent Council to take the steps they deem pertinent. The PAIGH, created in 1928, was incorporated into the inter-American system as a specialized organization of the OAS under an agreement signed in 1949, whereby it consolidated its position as one of the earliest and most enduring agencies for hemispheric technical cooperation. As its hundredth anniversary approaches, it is vital that we address its situation, recognizing its contributions not only to the scientific community, but also at the territorial level, including the Adjacency Zone between Belize and Guatemala, the development of geospatial information, and capacity-building and cooperation in geodesy in the Americas, which continues to be essential for regional connectivity. I take the opportunity to reassure Your Excellency of my highest and most distinguished consideration. Albert R. Ramdin Secretary General Organization of American States

capacity-building and cooperation in geodesy in the Americas, which continues to be essential for regional connectivity. I take the opportunity to reassure Your Excellency of my highest and most distinguished consideration. Albert R. Ramdin Secretary General Organization of American States Enclosures: 1. Letter from Mr. Antonio Campuzano Rosales, PAIGH Secretary General

2. Report on Activities of the PAIGH

3. Report on the financial crisis in the PAIGH and Action Plan to address it3

Pan American Institute of Geography and History Specialized Organization of the Organization of American States General Secretariat Toward the Centenary of the PAIGH

SG/RE/OEA-2/61/26

Mexico City, March 23, 2026 His Excellency Albert Ramdin Secretary General Organization of American States Washington, D.C. Most Excellent Secretary General Ramdin, Please accept my most respectful greetings and best wishes for the fulfillment of your important duties. The purpose of this letter is to inform you of the serious financial situation facing the Pan American Institute of Geography and History (PAIGH), as a consequence of the non-payment of quotas by a number of PAIGH member states, for both 2025 and, as regards certain countries, for periods of several years. The most significant case is that of the United States, whose contribution to support this organization amounts to 49.9% of its total budget. In fiscal year 2025, the PAIGH closed with an alarming financial deficit, caused by the nonpayment of quotas by the United States and Argentina, along with other countries. That deficit had to be covered by our institution’s Endowment Fund (savings), which had been built up over two decades, and which has been reduced by more than 40% in recent months. With the announcement by the White House on January 7, 2026, regarding the withdrawal of the United States from 66 international organizations, including the PAIGH, the existence and continuity of this noble and practically century-old institution was put in imminent jeopardy. Having provided a brief overview of the current financial situation facing the PAIGH, I

With the announcement by the White House on January 7, 2026, regarding the withdrawal of the United States from 66 international organizations, including the PAIGH, the existence and continuity of this noble and practically century-old institution was put in imminent jeopardy. Having provided a brief overview of the current financial situation facing the PAIGH, I respectfully and attentively request your moral, institutional, and financial support to help sustain and continue this organization. As you are aware, the PAIGH has always served the scientific and academic community of its member states, which ultimately translates into benefits for the sustainable development of the nations of the Americas, thereby contributing to peace in the region. Attached hereto, I hereby submit the most recent Report on Activities of the PAIGH, covering the 2025 period, as well as the Report on the serious financial situation and the Action Plan to address the situation in the short term , which were presented to the PAIGH authorities at a special meeting last March 4.4 I am deeply grateful to you for receiving me in your office and giving me the opportunity to set out my concerns regarding the grave situation affecting the inter-American system’s oldest agency. I avail myself of this opportunity to reassure you of my distinguished consideration. Respectfully, “Science in the Service of Peace” Antonio Campuzano Rosales, M.A. Secretary General5 ANNEX 2 – Report on Activities of the PAIGH ANNEX 3 – Report on the financial crisis in the PAIGH and Action Plan to address it