Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture

Agriculture

Director General of IICA implements joint work agenda with UN in New York

Tiempo de lectura: 3 mins.

Additionally, he expressed and listened to proposals from Latin American heads of mission to the United Nations.

Jorge Werthein and Manuel Otero of the IICA attended meetings with Jorge Chediek of the UN.

New York, 9 June 2018 (IICA). The Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Manuel Otero, lay the foundation for a joint work agenda with the United Nations Organization (UNO) that will be founded on south-south cooperation on behalf of the rural populations.

On Saturday, Otero concluded a week of work in the United States during which he attended meetings at the Headquarters of the UN with Jorge Chediek, Director of the United Nations Office for South-South Cooperation and Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary General on South-South Cooperation. He also met with Yannick Glemarec, Deputy Executive Director for Policy and Programme for UN Women, as well as with the Group of Latin American Ambassadors to the UN, whom he met with at the Mission of the Republic of Argentina in New York.

 “Very soon we are going to sign a framework agreement between the UN Office for South-South Cooperation and IICA to coordinate actions on different topics and in different regions,” stated Otero, in reference to the meeting with Chediek. He added “We have been invited to systematize all the good practices carried out by IICA with respect to agriculture in order to join forces with the UN in this regard”.

At the meeting with the Group of Latin American Ambassadors to the UN, which was attended by more than 20 countries, the Director general of the organization that promotes rural and agricultural development in the Americas outlined the challenges facing IICA in increasing its technical cooperation actions, and listened to the views of the other countries on this topic.

During the meeting with Yannick Glemarec, Otero held serious discussions for carrying out joint actions, given the areas of complementarity that exist between their organizations. “There was mutual receptivity. IICA is an institution within the Inter-American system whose actions project outward worldwide”, concluded Otero.

Prior to arriving in New York, Otero held meetings in Washington with the President of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Luis Alberto Moreno, and with other executives of credit organizations, as well as with the Under-Secretary for Agriculture of the United States, Ted McKinney.

He also participated in the 20th anniversary commemoration of the creation of FONTAGRO, a finance mechanism for innovation projects in family agriculture in Latin America. IICA and the IDB are co-sponsors of this initiative.

 

More information:

Pilar Sancho, specialist in strategic communication

pilar.sancho@iica.int

Share

Related news​

Kingston, Jamaica

May 5, 2026

With the mission of increasing productivity and improving the income of family farmers in the Caribbean, the World Bank launched the AgriConnect initiative in Jamaica, with support from IICA

Worldwide, the initiative aims to support up to 300 million smallholder farmers by 2030, promoting the transition from subsistence models to more productive agricultural enterprises.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins

Roseau, Dominica

May 5, 2026

Caribbean Webinar Series Inspires New Wave of Agri-Entrepreneurs Across the Region in a network promoted by IICA

Across the Caribbean, a wave of entrepreneurial energy and innovation was sparked as the Caribbean Climate-Resilient Agriculture Forum (CCRAF) successfully concluded its 2026 Edition, 3-Part Beginner-to-Business (B2B) Webinar Series. The webinars, which brought together farmers, entrepreneurs, youth, and development practitioners from across the Caribbean, Latin America, Asia, and Africa, equipped hundreds of participants with practical knowledge to launch and sustainably grow agricultural enterprises. Participation remained strong throughout the series, with more than 430 participants, representing over 30 countries in each webinar.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins

San José

April 30, 2026

IICA launches the fifth edition of Digital Agriculture Week and opens call for AgTech startups from the Americas

This edition’s main focus is to help accelerate the adoption of technological innovations in agriculture. In the preliminary phase, 15 startups will be selected to participate with all expenses covered in the event, which will take place in September 2026 in Costa Rica.

Tiempo de lectura: 3mins