2009 Trinidad & Tobago Summit
(Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago; 2009)

The Fifth Summit of the Americas is scheduled to take place in Trinidad & Tobago in 2009. On June 6, 2007, at a ministerial-level meeting of the Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG) the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS) Jose Miguel Insulza launched a publication entitled: Towards the Fifth Summit of the Americas: Regional Challenges, which highlights the contributions made by the 12 inter-American institutions that form the Joint Summit Working Group.
More information on the Trinidad & Tobago Summit can be found in the Fifth Summit of the Americas’ website.

2005 Mar del Plata Summit
(Mar del Plata, Argentina; November 4-5, 2005)

The holding of the Fourth Summit of the Americas in Mar del Plata, Argentina, in November of
2005, reflects the importance of the Summit Process. The Summit Process offers a unique opportunity for the Heads of State and Government of the 34 democratic countries in the Western Hemisphere to share the same forum and exchange ideas and opinions on the region''s political, economic and social situation, with the purpose of seeking common solutions to the problems identified and to jointly confront the challenges faced in the Hemisphere.
The Plan of Action developed in Mar del Plata focused on these major areas:

Creating decent work
Growth with employment
Social development
Strengthening democratic governance
More information on the Mar del Plata Summit and its initiatives can be found in our AmericasNet Archives as well as at the Mar del Plata Summit Section of the Summit of the Americas website. SOAC’s AmericasNet contains the Declaration and the Plan of Action in their entirety.

2004 Monterrey Special Summit
(Monterrey, Mexico; January 12-13, 2004)

The heads of state from the 34 countries participating in the Summit process met with a renewed and strengthened vision of cooperation, solidarity, and integration, to confront the continuing and growing challenges in the hemisphere.
This gathering was inspired by the numerous changes of presidents, prime ministers and heads of government since the 2001 Quebec Summit and by the shared sense of the importance to the region that these new leaders have the chance to meet one another and deliberate together before the next regularly scheduled Summit in 2005.
In the "Declaration of Nuevo Leon," named for the Mexican state where the Special Summit was held, the leaders of the hemisphere''s democracies laid out a broad agenda for improving the lives of the region''s 800 million people. The numerous subjects covered in the document, which was issued January 13, include the fact that overcoming poverty, hunger, and social inequality are major challenges facing many countries of the hemisphere in the 21st century. They focused on the achievement of three interdependent objectives:

Economic growth with equity to reduce poverty
Social development
Democratic governance
More information on the Monterrey Summit and its initiatives can be found in our the AmericasNet Archives as well as at the Monterrey Summit Section of the OAS Summit of the Americas website.  SOAC’s AmericasNet contains the Declaration its entirety and Special Coverage on the Monterrey Special Summit.

2001 Quebec City Summit
(Quebec City, Canada; April 20-22, 2001)

The Quebec City Declaration set several important precedents, including the agreement on a Democracy Clause establishing respect for democracy as a prerequisite for participation in the Summit Process. This was the precursor for the Inter- American Democratic Charter signed by the Foreign Ministers of the region that commits governments to promote and defend democracy. The Quebec Summit also realized the important role of established international institutions in the future development of the region and sought to bring them formally into the process. The Plan of Action developed in Quebec City focused on these major areas:
Commitment to democracy, social justice and human potential
Inclusion of civil society in the Summit process
Connecting the Americas and the Institute for Connectivity in the Americas

Creation of greater prosperity
More information on the Quebec City Summit and its initiatives can be found in our AmericasNet Archives as well as at the Quebec City Summit Section of the Summit of the Americas website. SOAC’s AmericasNet contains the Declaration and the Plan of Action in their entirety

1998 Santiago Summit
(Santiago, Chile; April 18-19, 1998)

During the preparation stage of the Second Summit of the Americas, which was held in Santiago, Chile in 1998, the participating countries cooperated on the content, organization and implementation of the Summit agenda. The Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG) hosted and lead discussions about the Declaration and Plan of Action, which resulted in a program containing 27 different initiatives grouped into the following four major areas:

- Education
- Preserving and strengthening democracy, justice and human rights
- Economic integration and free trade
- Eradication of poverty and discrimination
More information on the Santiago Summit and its initiatives can be found in our AmericasNet Archives as well as at the Santiago Summit Section of the OAS Summit of the Americas website. SOAC’s AmericasNet contains the Declaration and the Plan of Action in their entiret

1996 Santa Cruz Summit on Sustainable Development
(Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia; December 7-8, 1996)

Although sustainable development was one of the four main initiatives at the Miami Summit, it was not a priority for the 1998 Santiago Summit. Instead, it was considered separately at the Santa Cruz Summit of the Americas on Sustainable Development held in Bolivia in December 1996. The summit was attended by representatives from all 34 countries participating in the Summit process and resulted in a Plan of Action that reaffirmed the goal of sustainable development and implementation of the commitments already set forth at the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 and the Miami Summit in 1994. The Plan of Action included such issues as health and education, sustainable agriculture and forestry, sustainable cities and communities, water resources and coastal areas, and energy and minerals.
These initiatives were detailed in 65 action items, to be implemented by the governments of the region with support and funding from organizations such as the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Organization of Americas States.
More information on the Santa Cruz Summit and its initiatives can be found in our AmericasNet Archives as well as at the Santa Cruz Summit Section of the OAS Summit of the Americas website.  SOAC’s AmericasNet contains the Declaration and the Plan of Action in their entirety

1994 Miami Summit
(Miami, Florida; December 9-11, 1994)

The first Summit of the Americas took place in Miami, Florida in December 1994. In the Declaration of Principles, which was signed by all 34 government representatives, the heads of state pledged to unite their efforts to achieve the goal of hemispheric cooperation: "Although faced with differing development challenges, the Americas are united in pursuing prosperity through open markets, hemispheric integration, and sustainable development".
Four major objectives were identified, each of which included numerous outlined initiatives:

- To preserve and strengthen the community of democracies of the Americas
- To promote prosperity through economic integration and free trade
- To eradicate poverty and discrimination in our hemisphere
- To guarantee sustainable development and conserve our natural environment for future generations