About the OAS

• Who We Are
• What We Do
• Our Structure
  • General Assembly
  • Meetings of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs
  • Councils
  • Inter-American Juridical Committee
  • Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
  • General Secretariat
    • Secretary General
    • Assistant Secretary General
    • Secretariats
    • Other Autonomous and/or Decentralized Organs, Agencies, Entities, and Dependencies
  • Specialized Conferences
  • Specialized Organizations
• Our Locations
• Contact Us
• Offices in the Member States
• Our History
• Logo
• Authorities

Secretariats

The work of the General Secretariat of the Organization of American States is carried out through seven Secretariats, which include: the Secretariat for Strengthening Democracy, the Executive Secretariat for Integral Development, the Secretariat for Multidimensional Security, the Secretariat for Administration and Finance, the Secretariat for Legal Affairs, the Secretariat for Access to Rights and Equity, and the Secretariat for Hemispheric Affairs.

• Secretariat for Strengthening Democracy (SSD)
  The mission is to help to strengthen political processes in the member states, in particular to support democracy as the best option for ensuring peace, security, and development. It focuses on strengthening the role of the Organization as the primary political forum in the inter-American system and on actively helping to maintain democracy in the member states.
• Executive Secretariat for Integral Development (SEDI)
  The mission of the Executive Secretariat for Integral Development (SEDI) is to assist the member states with their efforts to reduce poverty and achieve greater economic and social development. It does this by implementing programs, projects, and activities in partnership and by supporting dialogue at the highest levels to define policies and set priorities in the areas of action established in the Strategic Plan for Partnership for Integral Development 2006-2009 (hereinafter the “Strategic Plan”): Social development and the creation of productive employment; Education; Economic diversification and integration, Trade liberalization and market access; Scientific development and exchange and transfer of technology; Strengthening of democratic institutions; Sustainable development of tourism; Sustainable development and environment; and Culture.
• Secretariat for Multidimensional Security (SMS)
  The mission of the Secretariat for Multidimensional Security (SMS) is to coordinate cooperation among the member states to fight threats to national and citizen security, and to work to mitigate the harmful effects of those threats on the health and well-being of citizens and societies in the member states and to prevent the abuse of psychotropic substances, crime, and violence; capacity-building; legal and legislative assistance; and the promotion of health and education.
• Secretariat for Administration and Finance (SAF)
  The mission of the Secretariat for Administration and Finance (SAF) is to provide leadership and guidance on administrative support activities, including budgetary and financial management, the information services structure of the General Secretariat, program planning and operational follow-up, general services management, and procurement and contracting of goods and services, as well as personnel management, in accordance with established principles of professional management.
• Secretariat for Legal Affairs (SLA)
  The Secretariat for Legal Affairs (SLA) develops, promotes, and implements the Inter-American Program for the Development of International Law; provides advisory services concerning international law and the development and codification of inter-American law; supports the follow-up mechanisms for certain inter-American conventions; serves as a depository and source of information for inter-American treaties and the agreements of the OAS and its organs; disseminates information on the legal instruments of the OAS and its legal programs; and provides other services related to inter-American legal cooperation.
  
• Secretariat for Access to Rights and Equity (SARE)
  The mission of the Secretariat for Access to Rights and Equity (SARE) is to promote the Equity Agenda in the region; to support member states in their efforts to monitor regional juridical instruments on human rights; to implement policies and programs that facilitate the enjoyment of those rights, as well as a greater inclusion and equity. Overall, SARE seeks to promote and facilitate the full enjoyment of the rights of the citizens of the Americas as a crosscutting priority to other OAS pillars: democracy strengthening, multidimensional security, and integral development. SARE prioritizes efforts with equity as a goal, social inclusion as the process to reach that goal, and the promotion of the full exercise of human rights as the key strategy for equity in the region.
• Secretariat for Hemispheric Affairs (SHA)
  The mission of this new Secretariat is to promote initiatives of the Secretary General as well as ideas stemming from the dialogue among member states in order to implement inter-sectoral programs; to foster the strengthening of public institutions so they can be more transparent, effective, and participatory; to provide support to member states through all phases of the Summits’ process while encouraging the broad participation in it of strategic partners; and through enhanced cultural and public diplomacy, to develop a strong, shared organizational narrative and to strengthen the branding of the OAS. In this regard, the SHA is responsible for supervising and promoting the Art Museum of the Americas (AMA) and the Columbus Memorial Library, which are key institutions in the OAS cultural diplomacy.