Ir Arriba

Director General of IICA strengthens relations with Brazil

Brasilia, March 30, 2011 (IICA). During a meeting with a number of Brazilian ministers to discuss agricultural cooperation, the Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Victor M. Villalobos, said “Brazil is interested in transferring knowledge to other countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, and IICA can help in this effort.”

Villalobos met with the Minister of Agriculture, Wagner Rossi; the Minister of Environment, Izabella Teixeira; the Minister of Agricultural Development, Alfonso Florence; the Minister of Foreign Relations, Antonio de Aguiar Patriota; the Executive Secretary of the Ministry of Mines and Energy, Marcio Zimmermann; the Minister of the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC), Marco Farani; the Director General of EMBRAPA, Pedro Arraes; and the Executive Secretary of the Ministry of National Integration, Alejandro Garcia Navarro.

Upon departing Brazil, the Director General stated that he was confident that Brazil would be a strong ally at the next meeting of the Inter-American Board of Agriculture.

The objective of the visit, held from March 28-30, was to strengthen relations between IICA and a nation in which great priority is attached to agriculture, and to discuss the developmental challenges the countries of the Americas face.

Upon departing Brazil, the Director General stated that he was confident that Brazil would be a strong ally at the next meeting of the Inter-American Board of Agriculture (IABA), which will take place in October in Costa Rica, adding that Brazil has been an active partner in promoting agricultural development in the Americas.

The challenges

According to Mr. Villalobos, “Agriculture must generate more income for both countries and people, be a reliable source for food security and contribute to mitigating the impact of climate change: it must be more productive, more inclusive and more sustainable.”

The Brazilian Minister of Agriculture expressed interest in developing technical cooperation projects in the area of biofuels and agricultural health.

According to Mr. Rossi, “We must transfer our experience, for example, in combating foot-and-mouth disease to our neighbors. We will only be free of this disease when all of Latin America is free of it.” He added that cooperation with IICA is strategically important and should be expanded. “Our priority is abroad,” he said.

The Director General of EMBRAPA concurred and stated his interest in implementing joint projects in the Caribbean, declaring that “The Institute could be EMBARAPA’s doorway to the Caribbean.”

The Minster of the ABC, Marco Farani, underscored the important role played by IICA in technical cooperation projects in Haiti. To date, the results of this collaboration have been positive, and we look forward to undertaking similar initiatives in the future,” he stated. For his part, the Minister of Foreign Relation stated that IICA was a key partner in undertaking joint initiatives in Bolivia, Guyana, and Suriname, and drew attention to the work being done by IICA and Brazil in Haiti.

In his talks with Alfonso Florence, the Director General discussed joint projects and the need for Brazil to strengthen ties with the other member states of MERCOSUR (Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay) to promote family agriculture via cooperation.

At the Ministry of Mines and Energy, Messers Zimmerman and Villalobos addressed the topic of bioenergy. The minister underscored the importance of cooperation in this field, notably with respect to hydroelectric energy.

The Executive Secretary of the Ministry of National Integration asked that special attention be paid to existing technical cooperation projects being carried out with IICA in the area of rural development.

Minister Teixeira focused on the importance of technical cooperation in the area of agricultural biodiversity and climate change.

“The trip was highly satisfactory. I believe I accomplished my goal and have high expectations for the future. I appreciate the excellent job being done by our Representative in Brazil, Manuel Otero,” Villalobos declared.

In addition to meeting with Brazilian authorities, Mr. Villalobos was welcomed by the Latin American and Caribbean Group (GRULAC) at the residence of the Mexican ambassador to Brazil, Alejandro de la Peña. While there, the Director General outlined a number of challenges facing agriculture and invited all those present to attend the next IABA meeting.

For more information, contact 
manuel.otero@iica.int