IICA was the only international organization participating in the summit of experts, who met to analyze the future of agriculture. The second edition of “Warriors – Rural Women Around the World” was launched in parallel with the presentation of the World Food Prize.
San Jose, October 18 ,2019 (IICA) – The Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Manuel Otero, participated in the World Food Prize award ceremony in Des Moines, Iowa, where he was a guest at the summit of experts organized by Corteva Agriscience and where he launched the second edition of the book Warriors – Rural Woman around the World.
The summit—where Otero met with Corteva Agriscience CEO, Jim Collins—brought together experts from the United States and the world to address issues related to the future of agriculture and the impact of climate change. Participants included senior Corteva executives and representatives from U.S. universities and agricultural producer associations.
According to Otero, “The discussions were immensely rich and productive and the working sessions saw the presence of 30 leaders at the highest level from agriculture-related fields – representatives from academia, major U.S. universities, organizations involved in corn and pork production, as well as senior executives from Corteva Agriscience”.
In parallel with the World Food Prize award ceremony in Iowa, Collins and Otero launched the second edition of Warriors – Rural Women around the World: the product of a growing partnership between Corteva Agriscience and IICA.
This new expanded and corrected edition of a publication that has become a benchmark and permanent source of reference on the status of women in rural areas and strategies to improve their living conditions, features articles from Melinda Gates, the Co-Chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; and the Ministers of Agriculture of Germany and Brazil, Julia Klöckner and Tereza Cristina Corrêa da Costa Dias.
The book contains photographs from renowned Brazilian photojournalist Sebastião Salgado and the previously unpublished articles and original perspectives break down the data and statistics, based on the professional and personal experiences of the authors, who explain the urgency of creating opportunities to empower rural dwellers.
As part of his agenda and in keeping with the issues of partnerships, institutional frameworks, communication and policy incentives, which were addressed during the meeting with the CEO of Corteva, Otero held separate meetings with the former Secretary of Agriculture of the United States and former Governor of Iowa, Tom Vilsack, who is the current President of the U.S. Dairy Export Council, and with Ambassador Kenneth Quinn, President of the World Food Prize Foundation.
Deputy Director General of IICA, Lloyd Day, attended parallel meetings at the State University of Iowa, which is a benchmark institution in agricultural issues, with which IICA has established an agreement focusing on technological innovation in the areas of seeds, food security and veterinary medicine.
Day explained that, “These meetings with senior authorities of the State University of Iowa are consistent with IICA’s aim to serve as a conduit to share the expertise of this prestigious institution of learning with its member countries”.
More information:
Institutional Communication Division, IICA
