The Organization of American States is the world's oldest regional organization that was established in 1948. The organization's goal is to achieve among its thirty-five member states “an order of peace and justice, to promote their solidarity, to strengthen their collaboration, and to defend their sovereignty, their territorial integrity, and their independence.”
The Organization of American States has eight “essential purposes,” listed in Article 2 of the organization's charter.
1. To strengthen the peace and security of the continent.
2. To promote and consolidate representative democracy, with due respect for the principle of nonintervention.
3. To prevent possible causes of difficulties and to ensure the pacific settlement of disputes that may arise among the Member States.
4. To provide for common action on the part of those States in the event of aggression.
5. To seek the solution of political, juridicial, and economic problems that may arise among them.
6. To promote, by cooperative action, their economic, social and cultural development.
7. To eradicate extreme poverty, which constitutes an obstacle to the full democratic development of the peoples of the hemisphere.
8. And lastly, to achieve an effective limitation of conventional weapons that will make it possible to devote the largest amount of resources to the economic and social development of the Member States.
This website tells the history of the organization, including when and why it was established, as well as its significance today. This site is ideal for those who enjoy fast, concise reading. History.com: Organization of American States established