Rep’s Corner

The second quarter of any year tends to be a chockful of activities for most organizations.  This proved to be the case for the IICA Delegation in Canada.  We had several significant events, all focussed on delivering tangible results on our Country Strategy. 

Furthermore, being mindful that 2017 is a landmark year for Canada, the Delegation made special efforts to heighten the scope and intensity of all undertakings, as well as include flexibility for celebratory activities.  One such spontaneous event was the Delegation’s participation in the Ottawa Diplomatic Association’s tribute to the 150th anniversary of Confederation. The activity was both symbolic as well as enlightening for the general public, who received information about IICA’s work.  

On the project front, the communication plan of the FonTC project came alive with the production of several information products as well as the hosting of a promotional activity: “Cacao in the Americas – A rewarding path to trade and development”.  A joint initiative with the Embassy of Peru, the well-received affair attracted Government & non-governmental stakeholders as well as Canadian buyers and Peruvian cacao producers. Just as successful were project activities relating to the recently approved project supported by the Public Health Agency of Canada. Providing logistic and administrative support to the Agricultural Health and Food Safety team at Headquarters, our local team members were pleased with the outcome of both the Technical Meeting of Caribbean Codex Focal Points as well as the joint colloquium involving other regions.

During the period, the local team was pleased to welcome 3 executives from our HQ in Costa Rica, each of whom was able to underscore IICA’s technical competencies while encouraging strengthened cooperation with Canadian counterparts. 

Considering that knowledge sharing is an integral component of the IICA Country Strategy in Canada, information sharing sessions for constituents throughout the Americas have become standard, with a steady pipeline of webinars and in-house fora. The acid test however requires that information shared be demand-driven, or provides technical solutions and win-win opportunities. This was evident in the 3 sessions hosted during the quarter.  Notwithstanding this, the highlight of our knowledge sharing events was the Delegation’s Annual Accountability Seminar.  It featured results achieved in 2016 by the Canadian Delegation as well as by corporate IICA. Importantly, we also used the occasion to restate the alignment of the Americas in the global food challenge. The excellent case made by Dr. Margaret Zeigler, ED of the Global Harvest Initiative, served to underscore the role of IICA and was well received by the multi-stakeholder group in attendance.

Now that the Government Canada’s international assistance policy is public, with the performance record and improved visibility of IICA, it is anticipated that the Institute is well positioned to be a partner of choice for implementing projects in the Americas.

Audia Barnet – IICA Representative in Canada