Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture

Territorial Development and Family Farming

The program will focus on collaboration with governments and social, economic and entrepreneurial family farming (FF) cooperatives, with a view to promoting the design and application of public policies aimed at fostering systemic competitiveness in rural areas, mid-sized cities, production units and businesses. The program will also seek to integrate various concepts into cooperation activities, such as the notion of institutional quality, public investment policies and the promotion of private investment and associative efforts.

To this end, the program will continue to contribute to the design and implementation of policies, programs and projects to facilitate the inclusion of FF production in agrifood systems, as well the development of a new generation of public policies. There will be a focus on associative strategies that facilitate agricultural competitiveness, ecosystem sustainability, mitigation of and adaptation to climate change, the reduction of depopulation and migration, and coordination and investment in public and private enterprises in rural areas. The program will work with countries to:

  • Promote and support the development of a new generation of public FF policies that drive the development of rural territories and agrifood systems. The aim is to ensure the inclusion of family farming production units and to increase their supply and demand capacity, through their promotion and inclusion in effective and efficient cooperative enterprises, by way of public-private partnerships.
  • Facilitate the social and economic inclusion of FF in agrifood systems, through technical cooperation activities.
  • Contribute to enhancing FF competitiveness in rural areas and agrifood systems, by developing associative capacities, with a focus on promoting cooperative efforts.
  • Spearhead actions to strengthen the capacities of regional policy integration organizations and institutions to stimulate discourse on territorial development- and FF-related public policies.

Specialist

Program Manager

 

Technical team

 

Advisory team

  • Álvaro Ramos, Uruguay
  • José Emilio Guerrero, Spain

Contact us

Mario León Frutos

Program manager

mario.leon@iica.int

Technical Cooperation Direction

dct@iica.int

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Multimedia

Explore our videos and discover IICA’s impact on agriculture and rural development throughout the region.

Headquarters, Sede Central

November 26, 2025

COP30. Day 10. Block 3

Headquarters, Sede Central

November 26, 2025

COP30. Day 10. Block 2

San Salvador de Jujuy, Argentina

December 3, 2025

The Argentine province of Jujuy presented its strategic plan for productive development for the next ten years, which was drafted with the participation of IICA

The “Jujuy Agrodiversa 2025–2035” Strategic Productive Plana roadmap that will guide the rural and agro-industrial growth of the province over the next decadewas presented in the capital of Jujuy by Governor Carlos Sadir, together with IICA’s Representative in Argentina, Fernando Camargo.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins

Buenos Aires

December 3, 2025

AAPRESID, a global leader in science and innovation and a strategic partner of IICA, invites farmers to learn about Argentine agriculture

It is currently organizing its next Agronomic Technical Tour, scheduled for March 2026, which will explore how innovation and soil care are practiced in establishments with the latest technologies and generate contacts with farmers in a country that is one of the world’s most important food producers.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins

Canadá

November 28, 2025

Mackenzie Fingerhut, a young Canadian farmer who grows grains, invests in the future and cares for the environment, recognized by IICA as a Leader of Rurality of the Americas

In addition to producing grains, Mackenzie Fingerhut’s work is aimed at preserving and improving soil through crop rotation, direct seeding, biological inputs and continuous analysis to determine water infiltration levels, biological activity and carbon content.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins