(Castries, Tuesday June 05, 2012) The OECS Authority met on Tuesday June 5th 2012 via video conference to discuss progress in respect of preparations for the inauguration of the OECS Assembly, one of the principal Organs of the OECS. The Authority agreed that the inauguration, which was originally scheduled for June 15, 2012, in St John’s Antigua, would be postponed by a few months.

The Revised Treaty of Basseterre (2010) makes provision for the establishment of the OECS Assembly as one of five principal Organs of the OECS. The other principal Organs are the Authority of Heads of Government of the Member States, the Council of Ministers, the Economic Affairs Council, and the OECS Commission.

The inauguration of the OECS Assembly is of tremendous historical significance to the OECS Community. Heads of Government are of the view that preparations across the OECS Economic Union will benefit from additional time to ensure that all arrangements are put in place so that the inauguration of this vital Organ is accorded the place of distinction which it will command in the history of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States. A new date will be announced following the 55^TH meeting of the Authority which will convene in St Vincent and the Grenadines on 10 – 13^TH June, 2012.