In Honduras, IICA’s Director General meets with Secretary of the Presidency and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, receives award of recognition from the Zamorano Pan-American Agricultural School and concludes visit with accountability report

Primera — *Manuel Otero, IICA Director General; Laura Suazo, Secretary of Agriculture and Livestock of Honduras; Santiago Vélez, IICA Representative in Honduras.*

Segunda — *Manuel Otero, IICA Director General and Eduardo Enrique Reina, Honduran Minister of Foreign Affairs.*

Tegucigalpa, 6 May 2024 (IICA) – The Private Secretary of the President of Honduras, Héctor Zelaya Castro, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Honduras, Eduardo Enrique Reina, met with the Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Manuel Otero, in a visit to the country in which IICA’s commitments of support for the Secretariat of Agriculture and Livestock led by Secretary Laura Suazo were redoubled, focusing on strengthening local food production for food security and added value.

Otero also delivered a lecture to the students and faculty of the prestigious Zamorano Pan-American Agricultural School, whose Dean, Sergio Rodríguez Royo, presented him with the Dean’s Medal. Alongside the country’s Secretary of Agriculture and Livestock, Laura Suazo, and the IICA Representative in Honduras, Santiago Vélez, Otero headed a meeting to present the Institute’s accountability report in Honduras.

The IICA Director General also participated in Secretary Suazo’s presentation of the 2023-2043 State Policy for the Agrifood Sector (PESAH), a roadmap for the development of a key sector in the country, and received an award of recognition for IICA’s support in formulating this State Policy.

The 2023-2043 PESAH gives the Honduran agrifood sector a strategic, systemic vision to guarantee its development, with an approach that recognizes the fundamental role of food production for the economy, food security, territorial development and Honduran society as a whole.

The PESAH aims to strengthen the country’s food and nutrition security, combat poverty in rural areas, improve farmers’ marketing and organization conditions, and increase and diversify agricultural production.

“The most important conclusion from this visit is that I see an IICA that is very well positioned in Honduras, making a substantial contribution to the process of agricultural and rural development in the country, where the Institute’s technical capacity is placed at the service of government priorities and institutions through Secretary Suazo”, said Otero at the end of his visit, during which he also met with the IICA Delegation team in the country.

IICA Representative Santiago Vélez commented: “This week we had many discussions with different national authorities, farmers’ organizations, training centers and other partners regarding IICA’s contribution to Honduras’s outstanding achievements in the agrifood sector. We are proud of IICA’s contributions and at the same time we reaffirm our commitment to double-down on our efforts and support in the years to come. Agriculture is part of the solution and if we are united by agriculture we can progress”.

At the Zamorano Pan-American Agricultural School, where Otero delivered a lecture on the “Transformation of Agrifood Systems—A Vision from Latin America and the Caribbean”, the IICA Director General spoke with Dean Rodríguez Royo about strengthening cooperation between the two institutions, including the creation of internships at IICA for outstanding students of the School.

Tercera — Héctor Zelaya Castro, Private Secretary of the Honduran President, greeted the IICA Director General, Manuel Otero, at a meeting with Laura Suazo, Secretary of Agriculture and Livestock of Honduras; Santiago Velez, IICA Representative in Honduras; and Amanda Fernández, President of the IICA Community Outreach Association.

The accountability report was presented to stakeholders in local agricultural chains and the accredited diplomatic corps in Honduras. Also in attendance at the presentation were Secretary Suazo and all her cabinet, and the Undersecretary for International Cooperation and Promotion of the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs, Cindy Larissa Rodríguez.

In the report, IICA showed all its contributions to local development, including policymaking, the construction of biofactories, its training activities in the preparation of biofertilizers, production of bioinputs, entrepreneurship for women and youth, agro-silvopastoral systems and beekeeping, provision of irrigation systems and support for reforestation processes.

“IICA presents this great accountability report of its work, and its support is fundamental. In 27 months, we have formulated the 2023-2043 State Policy for the Agrifood Sector, and we will continue to enter into more agreements and partnerships to achieve even more”, said Secretary Suazo.

Cuarta — *IICA Director General Manuel Otero with staff members from the IICA Delegation in Honduras.*

Héctor Zelaya, Private Secretary of the Honduran President, informed the IICA Director General of the ambitious project to build the Inter-Oceanic Railroad.
Furthermore, in the meeting held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Honduras, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Mr. Otero spoke about the impacts of IICA’s technical cooperation on rural territories and the connection between productive developments and rural retention.

More information:
Institutional Communication Division.
comunicacion.institucional@iica.int