On 15 January 2026, PROCINORTE, with the support of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), hosted the One-Day Workshop on African and Classical Swine Fever in the Caribbean in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago. Held in a hybrid format, the workshop focused on strengthening technical cooperation and regional coordination to prevent and respond to African swine fever (ASF) and classical swine fever (CSF).
The event brought together 68 participants from 15 Caribbean countries and entities, as well as Canada and Costa Rica, including senior officials and technical specialists working on animal health and risk management. Discussions and presentations addressed surveillance, early detection, preparedness planning, and response measures for transboundary animal diseases, with a shared emphasis on timely information exchange and coordinated action across borders.
Speaking during the workshop, Senator the Honourable Ravi Ratiram, Minister of Agriculture of Trinidad and Tobago, highlighted the broader stakes of animal health for the region: “Animal health is inseparable from food security, economic resilience, and national development.”
and Fisheries of Trinidad and Tobago.
The workshop is part of a series of PROCINORTE activities aimed at advancing technical cooperation in the Caribbean and Central America as a core pillar of its work to strengthen regional preparedness. IICA Canada hosts PROCINORTE’s Executive Secretariat, supporting coordination among members and partners across the hemisphere.
