The Organization of American States (OAS) concluded its 55th General Assembly today, held this week in St. John's, Antigua and Barbuda, under the theme "Building Resilient and Inclusive Economies in the Americas." It was the first General Assembly since Secretary General Albert Ramdin assumed office, becoming the first person from the Caribbean to lead the Organization.
Member states discussed the central theme—proposed by Antigua and Barbuda—seeking to promote economic resilience in the face of challenges such as health emergencies, financial crises, or natural disasters, while fostering a type of growth that benefits all population groups across the continent.
Member states also focused on other issues such as the crisis in Haiti and mental health in the Americas.
The Assembly approved the resolution "Calling for Concrete Solutions to be brought to bear as a Matter of Urgency to Resolve the Grave Security and Institutional Crisis in Haiti", urging effective coordination of inter-American and international cooperation to "respond coherently and sustainably to the major challenges facing the Haitian people." It also calls on member states to urgently increase efforts to implement concrete and effective solutions to Haiti's security, political, and humanitarian crisis, and to support efforts led by Haitian authorities to restore public order, facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid, and create conditions for free and fair elections.
The OAS urged member states "to commit to strengthening the operational and institutional capacity of the Haitian national security forces through material and in-kind contributions, via existing mechanisms, including the Security Efforts and Comprehensive Unified Response for a Resilient Society in Haiti (SECURE-Haiti) program."
The resolution instructs the OAS Secretary General to prepare, within 45 days, "a consolidated Action Plan concerning the support by the OAS to Haitian authorities in matters of multidimensional security, humanitarian assistance, building political consensus and holding free and fair elections, detailing available structures, existing mandates, timetables, funding requirements, performance indicators, and priority development strategies addressing the root causes of poverty, inequality, unemployment, and crime in Haiti."
Separately, through the resolution "Addressing the Critical Mental Health Crisis in the Americas," countries committed to increasing investment in mental health using a patient-centered, rights-based approach. The resolution proposes coordinating with PAHO and interested member states to explore establishing a regional mental health partnership to promote community-based mental health initiatives in the Americas.
The OAS also created an inter-American working group open to all member states to draft a regional action plan guiding the regional mental health partnership, aligned with PAHO's Strategy for Improving Mental Health and Suicide Prevention in the Region of the Americas. To gather necessary funding, the OAS will explore the establishment of a fund open to collaboration with regional partners such as PAHO, the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF), the Caribbean Development Bank, and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
Finally, the resolution proclaims the second week of October each year as Inter-American Mental Health Week.
Regarding the Malvinas Islands, the Assembly adopted a declaration welcoming Argentina's reaffirmed willingness to continue exploring peaceful solutions and its constructive attitude toward the island's inhabitants. It reaffirmed the need for Argentina and the United Kingdom to resume negotiations on the sovereignty dispute to find a peaceful resolution.
Regarding elections held, those elected will assume office on January 1, 2026. The results were:
Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR):
Elected for a four-year term:
• Marion Bethel (Bahamas)
• Rosa María Payá Acevedo (United States)
A third seat will be decided by the Permanent Council on Friday, July 11, between José Luis Caballero Ochoa (Mexico) and Fábio de Sá e Silva (Brazil).
Inter-American Juridical Committee (CJI):
Elected by acclamation for a four-year term:
• Cecilia Fresnedo de Aguirre (Uruguay)
• Martha Luna Véliz (Panama)
• Vogly Pognon (Haiti)
Administrative Tribunal:
• Pablo Sandonato de León (Uruguay), elected by acclamation for a six-year term.
Audit Committee:
• Jorge Isaac Escobar (Panama)
Justice Studies Center of the Americas (JSCA):
Elected by acclamation for a three-year term:
• Catalina Fernández Carter (Chile)
• Lise Hilda Christelle St-Natus Cavé (Haiti)
The Assembly also adopted the following resolutions:
• Commemorating the Bicentennial of the Amphictyonic Congress of Panama
• Hemispheric Commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence of the United States of America
• Commemoration of the Bicentennial of the Independence of Bolivia
• Commemoration of the Bicentennial of the Independence of the Eastern Republic of Uruguay: The Liberating Crusade and The Declaration of Independence of the Eastern Province
• Celebration of Spanish Language Week at the OAS
• Recognition of the Contributions of Pope Francis to Inter-American Values
• Advancing Hemispheric Initiatives on Integral Development
• Establishment of a Credentials Committee for the Organization of American States
• Reaffirmation of Mandates and Establishment of a Mandate Management Mechanism
• Financing of the Organization's Program-Budget for 2026 and Convening a Special Session of the General Assembly to Consider and Approve the Program-Budget for 2026
• Amendment to Article 32.1 of the Statute of the Inter-American Defense Board Regarding Its Headquarters
The texts of all resolutions will be published here shortly.
Reference: E-035/25
