INTER-AMERICAN COMMISSION OF WOMEN
THIRTY SIXTH ASSEMBLY OF DELEGATES OEA/Ser.L/II.2.36
OF THE INTER-AMERICAN COMMISSION OF WOMEN CIM/CD/doc.7/12 Rev.1
October 29th to 30th 2012 September 19th 2012
San Jose, Costa Rica Original: Spanish
INFORMATIVE BULLETIN
(Informative Document)
1.
Venue and Date of the Meeting
The Thirty Sixth Assembly of Delegates of the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM) will be held from October 29th to 30th 2012 at the Real Intercontinental Hotel, located at Escazú, San José, Costa Rica. For more information, participants may check CIM’s website at: http://www.oas.org/en/cim/assembly.asp.
The draft agenda and draft calendar of activities for the meeting were sent out with the invitations. More information can be found at: http://www.oas.org/en/cim/assembly.asp by contacting the Coordinators below.
2. General Coordination
The CIM/OAS Coordinating Office will be managed by:
Maria Celina Conte
Specialist
Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM)
Organization of American States (OAS)
1889 F Street NW
Washington, DC 20006 USA
Telephone: 1 (202) 458-3120
Fax: 1 (202) 458-6094
E-mail:
The National Coordinating Office will be managed by:
Juanita Grant RojasAdministrative Director
National Women's Institute (INAMU)
100 meters East of the Wabe Workshop, North Granadilla of Curridabat
San José, Costa Rica
Telephone: (506) 2527 8400
Fax: (506) 2253 6368
Email: / Vera Aguilar Cruz
Unit of International Relations and Cooperation
National Women's Institute (INAMU)
100 meters East of the Wabe Workshop, North Granadilla of Curridabat
San José, Costa Rica
Telephone: (506) 2527 8412
Fax: (506) 2283 0157
Email:
The DGCR/OEA Logistics Coordination will be managed by:
Aida Magaly Rothe
Specialist
Department of Conferences and Meetings Management (DCMM)
1889 F Street NW
Washington, DC 20006 USA
Telephone: 1 (202) 458-3035,
Fax: 1 (202 458-3335),
e-mail: .
The INAMU Logistics Coordination will be managed by:
Ingrid Villalta Valladares
Technical and Logistical Support
Unit of International Relations and Cooperation
National Women's Institute (INAMU)
100 meters East of the Wabe Workshop, North Granadilla of Curridabat
San José, Costa Rica
Telephone: (506) 2527 8412
Fax: (506) 2283 0157
Email:
3. Lodging
To facilitate the booking of hotel rooms, INAMU has requested preferential rates for participants at the Real Intercontinental Hotel and at the Real Quality San Jose Hotel. For more information, please refer to the table below.
Participants are reminded that all reservations, without exception, must be made individually and directly with the hotel before October 15, 2012. Upon making their reservations participants are kindly asked to indicate that they will be attending the Thirty Sixth Assembly of Delegates of the Inter-American Committee of Women (CIM/OAS). Reservations will follow the usual procedures established by the hotels. Cancellations will be subject to the policy in effect at the hotel.
The hotel bill must be paid directly by each participant at the end of his/her stay.
Host Hotel / Rates / Webpage /Hotel Real Intercontinental
Próspero Fernández Highway, facing the Mall Multiplaza, Escazú,
San Jose, Costa Rica
Tel.: (506) 2208-2110
Fax: (506) 2208-2248
Contact: Denis Segura
E-mail: / Unit price/day (Rates don’t include 13% of IVA nor 5% of the tourism tax)
· Single Room $169.00 (breakfast and internet access included) / http://realhotelsandresorts.com/
http://intercontinental.com
Hotel Real Quality San José
Facing the Forum 1, Lindora, Santa Ana, located at 5 minutes from the Conference Venue.
San José, Costa Rica
Tel.: (506) 2208-2110
Fax: (506) 2208-2248
Contact: Denis Segura / Unit price/day (Rates don’t include 13% of IVA nor 5% of the tourism tax)
Single or Double Room $89.00 (breakfast, internet access, local calls, use of the Business Center, transportation to the Hotel Real Intercontinental according to the defined schedules are included) / http://www.realhotelsandresorts.com/rhr/info/en/QualSanJose.aspx
4. Meals
The Government of Costa Rica offers the lunch at the Real Intercontinental Hotel for the Representatives of the Delegations attending the Assembly.
5. Air Transportation
It is recommended to delegates, observers and representatives of international organizations and other stakeholders to make reservations for their flights to and from as soon as possible, directly with their travel agents or airlines of their choice.
Several airlines operate direct routes to the City of San Jose, Costa Rica, like most U.S. airlines as Delta, United, American and America West, as well as by many other international airlines such as Virgin Atlantic, KLM, Iberia, Mexicana, TACA, Air Canada, among others.
The departure tax for ordinary passports Costa Rica is U.S. $ 28.00 (U.S. Dollars) on all international flights out of the country. Diplomatic passports are exempted from the payment
6. Requirements for Entering and Leaving the Country
Delegates shall be responsible for complying with the visa requirements established by the Government of Costa Rica. Attached, please find a list of those requirements (Appendix I).
It is recommended to delegates, permanent observers and representatives of the international organizations and other participants to request with time to the embassies or consulates of Costa Rica in their countries about the particular requirements for their country visa to enter Costa Rica. If you require any support from INAMU you can contact Ms. Ingrid Villalta Valladares at or . For more information see the website http://www.migracion.go.cr/.
The Government of Costa Rica requires a passport be valid for at least six months, and a copy of round-trip ticket.
If you will be traveling to Costa Rica from South America and / or sub-Saharan Africa need the YELLOW FEVER VACCINE. The affected countries are: Angola, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Congo, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Guyana and Venezuela.
You may travel to Costa Rica ten days after the vaccine has been administered. EXCEPTIONS.
Please note that it is strictly mandatory to carry the vaccination certificate with you upon entry into the country. In the case of foreigners from countries at high risk, migration authorities will request the International Vaccination Certificate against Yellow Fever. You will not be granted entry into the country if you do not have this valid and current certificate with you.
Foreigners from countries at high risk with counter-indications to the yellow fever vaccine will need to bring with them a valid medical certificate indicating the specific condition that prevents them from obtaining the vaccine.
7. Arrival at the Airport
The Government of Costa Rica will arrange for transportation of Ministers, Highest-Ranking Authorities and delegates from the airport to their hotels, and vice versa after the meeting. Delegates are, therefore, requested to forward in advance all information regarding their hotel and flights, using the attached form (Appendix III), and to send it by e-mail to the Inter-American Commission of Women, attention: with copy to María Eugenia Villavicencio, , telephone: 1 (202) 458 3010, Fax: 1 (202) 458 6094; and to the INAMU, attention: Ingrid Villalta, Email: or , tel.: (506) 2527 8412 / (506) 8817 6941, Fax: (506) 2283 0157.
This form should be submitted before October 19th 2012.
8. Registration and Accreditation of Participants
The attached registration form (Appendix II) should be filled in and sent to the CIM/OAS before October 19th 2012.
Registration and accreditation of participants will begin on Sunday, October 28th at the Hotel Real Intercontinental, between 2:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. Registration will continue on Monday, October 29th from 7:30 a.m. until 10:00 a.m. Delegates will receive a badge that, for security reasons, they should wear during all conference activities. Delegations are kindly asked to provide a copy of their official credentials when registering.
Delegates are reminded that in addition to submitting this form, they must be accredited by their governments to the CIM and to the Assembly.
Members of delegations, observers, and special guests are asked to send their letters of accreditation and all other Conference-related correspondence to the OAS General Secretariat, at the following address:
General Secretariat of the Organization of American States
Inter-American Commission of Women
1889 F Street NW,
Washington, D.C. 20006
Telephone: 1 (202) 458 6084
Fax: 1 (202) 458 6094
with copy to and
9. Working Languages and Documents
The sessions of the Thirty-Sixth Assembly of Delegates of the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM) will be conducted in the official languages of the OAS: Spanish, English, French and Portuguese, simultaneous interpretation will be provided in those languages.
Delegations are kindly urged to download all the documents of the meeting from the OAS website: Thirty-Sixth Assembly of Delegates of the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM). Only those that are strictly necessary documents will be printed respecting the policy of "Print on demand" to reduce the use of paper. The meeting room will have Internet access.
10. Communications
Delegations may make local and international telephone calls from the hotel where the event will be held or from the hotel where they are staying, using collect calls or international phone cards, which may be purchased at commercial establishments close to the hotels.
The dialing code for international calls from Costa Rica is 001 (followed by the area code and the telephone number).
11. Security
The Government of Costa Rica will provide all necessary security during the Conference at the event hotel and at the hotels used by the various delegations.
12. Medical assistance
The hotel has contacts of general medical personnel that can handle emergencies in its facilities. In addition, they also have the contacts of the nearby hospitals, for ambulance transportation. Nevertheless, it is recommended that delegates have medical insurance with international coverage for medical expenses, to prevent any eventuality due to accident, illness, liability for damages to third parties, temporary or permanent disability or death, which might arise during the trip or stay in Costa Rica, the Costa Rican government thus being free from all liability relating to these risks. However, it will offer the support of the Red Cross 24 hours to meet any eventuality.
13. Other Items of Interest
a. Opening hours
In Costa Rica commercial establishments are open from 9:00 a.m. until 9.00 p.m. Lunch is usually taken between 12:00 p.m. and 2:00 p.m., while supper is generally served from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Banks are open Monday to Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (GMT-6) and on Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Government offices work from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
b. Currency
The legal currency is the Costa Rican Colon, whose value at September 13, 2012, the purchase ¢ 492.67 and sale ¢ 503.37 per U.S. dollar.
In Costa Rica, most of the International credit cards (Visa, MasterCard or American Express) are accepted at most hotels and businesses in general.
ATMs are available in commercial areas and banks; and they operate 24 hours a day.
c. Local Time
The official time in Costa Rica is six hours behind Greenwich Mean Time (GMT -6).
d. Weather
The weather in San Jose, Costa Rica varies little throughout the year. It rains frequently from May to October. Temperatures range between 21° and 27° C.
e. Electric Current
The electric current is 110 volts / 60 Hz.
f. Official Tourism Information
The electric current is 110 volts / 60 Hz. You can visit the website of the Costa Rican Institute of Tourism (ICT): http://www.visitcostarica.com, which details the relevant tourist information about Costa Rica in different languages.
APPENDIX I
ENTRY REQUIREMENTS TO COSTA RICA FOR OAS MEMBER STATES [1]
90 DAYS - VISA EXEMPTNo. / Country / Regular Passport / Diplomatic, Official, and Services Passport / Comments
1 / Argentina / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
2 / Brazil / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
3 / Canada / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
4 / United States / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
5 / Panama / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
6 / Paraguay / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
7 / Uruguay / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
8 / Trinidad & Tobago / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
9 / Argentina / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
1 / OAS
2 / UN
3 / European Commission
30 DAYS - VISA EXEMPT
No. / Country / Regular Passport / Diplomatic, Official, and Services Passport / Comments
1 / Antigua Barbuda / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
2 / Bahamas / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
3 / Barbados / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
4 / Belize / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
5 / Bolivia / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
6 / Chile / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
7 / Dominican Republic / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
8 / Mexico / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
RESTRICTED VISA AND CONSULTED WITH GENERAL DIRECTOR OF IMMIGRATION AND EXTRAJERÍA WITH A MAXIMUM STAY OF 30 DAYS
No. / Country / Regular Passport / Diplomatic, Official, and Services Passport / Comments
1 / El Salvador / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
2 / Guatemala / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
3 / Granada / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
4 / Guyana / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
5 / Honduras / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
6 / St. Lucia / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
7 / Suriname / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
8 / St. Vincent & the Grenadines / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
9 / Venezuela / Visa exempt / Visa exempt
APPENDIX II
THIRTY-SIXTH ASSEMBLY OF DELEGATES
OF THE INTER-AMERICAN COMMISSION OF WOMEN
REGISTRATION FORM / FORMULARIO DE INSCRIPCIÓN
October 29th to 30th 2012
San José, Costa Rica
Country or Organization /
País u Organización:
PRINCIPAL REPRESENTATIVE / REPRESENTANTE TITULAR
ALTERNATE REPRESENTATIVE / REPRESENTANTE SUPLENTE