From:TheBahamasWeekly.com
Ministers of Culture of the Americas Issue Call to Recognize Contributions of Culture to Countries' Economic Growth
By OAS
Nov 10, 2011 - 8:49:09 PM
Alfonso Quiñónez, OAS Secretary for External Relations Photo: Patricia Leiva/OAS
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The
Ministers of Culture and Highest Authorities convened by the
Organization of American States (OAS) today made a call to the
Member States to recognize the contributions of culture to the
economic growth of countries, and particularly to the "creation of
new employment in non-traditional areas and the acquisition of new
skills." Also, in a joint
communiqué, they encouraged governments in the region to
"consider increased funding for culture, and to strengthen efforts
to quantify the impact of culture on economic growth."
The
Fifth Inter-American Meeting of Ministers of Culture and Highest
Appropriate Authorities was held yesterday and today at OAS
headquarters in Washington, DC, with the participation of Secretary
General José Miguel Insulza; the Chair of the Permanent Council of
the Organization and Representative of Guyana, Ambassador Bayney
Karran; the Chair of the Permanent Executive Committee of the
Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CEPCIDI) and
Representative of St. Kitts and Nevis to the OAS, Ambassador Jacinth
Henry-Martin; the Coordinator of the Sixth Summit of the Americas,
to be held in Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, in April 2012,
Ambassador Juan Jaime Girón; as well as the highest authorities on
culture from countries of the region.
Under the theme of
"Culture, common denominator for integral development," the event,
part of the celebrations of 2011 as the Inter-American Year of
Culture, was an opportunity to establish new strategies to promote
this sector and its important function in the economic, social and
human development of the countries of the region. In this sense, the
ministers asserted that culture is "a common denominator for the
integral development of the peoples of the Americas," and that "it
offers rich opportunities for cooperation and exchange aimed at
promoting peaceful coexistence, understanding, civic engagement and
mutual respect."
Furthermore, they renewed their call to
"strengthen synergies with the education, tourism, labor, economic
and financial sectors, among others, in order to maximize the
contribution of culture to integral development," and encouraged
"the integration of cultural components, with an emphasis on
intercultural dialogue and youth participation, in programs and
projects aimed at preventing violence and promoting a democratic
citizenry."
The representatives of the Member States also
made a commitment to present a report on the results and conclusions
of their deliberations at the next meeting of the Summits
Implementation Review Group (SIRG), to be analyzed in relation to
the thematic areas of the Sixth Summit of the Americas, with the
possibility of being included among the documents to be signed at
that meeting. The SIRG is the executive body of the Summits Process,
composed of the Member States and currently presided by Colombia as
host country of the next Summit. The Group is responsible for
negotiating the texts of the documents to be agreed upon by the
Heads of States and Government of the hemisphere when they meet in
Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, in April 2012 under the theme of
"Connecting the Americas: Partnerships for Prosperity."
The
Chair of the OAS Permanent Council and Representative of Guyana,
Bayney Karran, said during the closing session of the ministerial
meeting that the deliberations held on this occasion "will have a
direct bearing on many of the ideals and the pressing objectives of
our Member States, notably improving the quality of life of our
peoples." A greater emphasis on the transformative power of culture,
added Ambassador Karran, will contribute in his judgment to
confronting some of the principal challenges facing the region,
among which he named the reduction of social and economic
inequalities and the fight against poverty, as well as unemployment,
crime and violence, maintaining safe environments, the strengthening
of democratic processes, and the preservation of norms and
values.
"As we go forward we ought to be ever mindful that
public policies are the key tools to help integrate cultural
components into government development programs and projects
oriented towards the creation of sustainable and inclusive
communities, strengthening the social fabric and social networks,
fostering feelings of belonging and social identity, and preventing
violence and building safe environments," he said.
The
Interim OAS Executive Secretary for Integral Development, Jorge
Saggiante, reiterated the commitment expressed by Secretary General
Insulza to "provide you with all our support so this dialogue not
only continues but is strengthened as a true priority in our work."
Also, he offered the support of the Secretariat he heads "with your
efforts towards integrating culture with development, such as we
understand it, that is, development based on quality of life and
coexistence with others, with social equality and total respect for
the cultural, and of course political, diversity of our
peoples."
Ambassador Juan Jaime Girón, for his part, said
that "culture has always been present in the Summits of the
Americas," and recalled the "primordial role it plays in the
reduction of poverty," in the "development of our nations," and in
the "creation of decent work," among other things.
The
Colombian representative and the OAS Executive Secretary for
Summits, Sherry Tross, extended an invitation to the Ministers and
High-Level Authorities on Culture present to share their
recommendations and conclusions at the next SIRG meeting and to do
it also through the Summits Virtual
Community (SVC)."The issue of culture and cultural heritage is
clearly an important cross-cutting theme that touches on all areas
of the Sixth Summit," said Secretary Tross.
The meeting also
addressed the progress and outcomes of 2011 as the Inter-American
Year of Culture and the role culture plays in promoting prosperous
communities and peaceful coexistence, as well as economic
empowerment and social inclusion, and citizen participation for the
strengthening of democracies. Other topics of debate were the
achievements and challenges of the Inter-American Committee on
Culture (CIC) 2008-2011 and the outlines for 2013, as well as
perspectives on the ministerial process and the Sixth Summit of the
Americas. The ten plenary sessions were moderated by the different
authorities on culture of the Member States on the subjects of the
meeting.
For
more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.
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