At the meeting of IICA’s Executive Committee in Mexico, the Director General presented a report on his administration, which assumed office in 2010.
Mexico City, June 18, 2013 (IICA). The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) is currently implementing around 450 technical assistance projects designed to improve the productivity, competitiveness and sustainability of agriculture in the hemisphere, guarantee food security for the region’s inhabitants, and ensure well-being in rural territories, according to a report by the organization’s Director General, Víctor M. Villalobos.
At the meeting of IICA’s Executive Committee, held in Mexico from June 17-18, Villalobos presented his annual report to delegations from 12 countries in the hemisphere, seven observer countries, and Spain, which is an Associate Member of the Institute.
“The more complete our understanding of the situation in each country, the better our members are able to take advantage of the services we offer,” the Director General observed. He explained that IICA’s country strategies had made it possible to implement cooperation actions, despite the limited financial resources available, because the strategies adopted ensured that IICA’s technical assistance dovetailed with the specific needs of the Member States.
“We believe confidence in the Institute and its work has grown, and that is an invaluable asset,” added Villalobos, who has served as Director General since 2010 and whom Mexico has nominated for a second term, from 2014 to 2018.
The next Director General will be elected by the Ministers of Agriculture of the Americas at a meeting of the Inter-American Board of Agriculture (IABA) in September.
After hearing the Director General’s report, the delegations thanked IICA for its leadership and specific actions aimed at strengthening agriculture in the hemisphere.
Results
In the area of agricultural innovation, Villalobos highlighted El Salvador’s Family Agriculture Plan (PAF), under which IICA has assisted the Ministry of Agriculture with efforts to enhance the expertise of more than 16,000 smallholders and enable them to implement innovations designed to increase their access to markets, a model that other countries could adapt to their own conditions.
The Institute had also worked to link farmers to markets and promote agribusiness development. Agricultural information systems were being modernized in 32 countries of the Americas, and risk management and agricultural insurance needs had been identified in 17 nations, to enable them to develop institutional frameworks and policies for risk reduction and management.
IICA had collaborated with the Central American countries in the efforts to combat coffee rust, with the Andean nations to tackle the snail infestations affecting rice and vegetables, with Guyana for the early detection of the Carambola Fruit Fly, and with the Caribbean countries to control Black Sigatoka. “Addressing agricultural health and food safety emergencies is a priority for the countries and IICA therefore responded immediately,” Villalobos observed.
Under projects spearheaded by IICA, several nations had implemented the area-based approach to rural development, including the Central American Strategy for Rural Area-based Development (ECADERT) and other initiatives in Brazil, Mexico and Argentina.
Another ongoing action was the creation of institutional hubs for formulating policies for the adaptation of agriculture to climate change, specifically in Mexico, Dominican Republic, Colombia, Ecuador and Central America.
“As part of efficient integrated natural resource management, we must ensure that at the next Meeting of Ministers the Institute is given a clear mandate on the issue of water in agriculture,” the IICA Director General added.
Finally, Villalobos gave details of the results achieved by the Competitive Fund for Technical Cooperation (FonTC), which since 2011, had channeled USD2.7 million into 33 multinational projects that had benefited 32 countries in the hemisphere.
Reaction of the delegations
“IICA deserves to be recognized for investing in training young professionals, people who have so much to offer in the technical and political spheres,” remarked Ricardo Aguilar, the Under Secretary for Food and Competitiveness of Mexico’s SAGARPA.
Leslie Ramsammy, Minister of Agriculture of Guyana, and Carlos Anzueto, Deputy Minister of Agriculture of Guatemala, both noted that IICA possessed the leadership necessary to coordinate the regional efforts to achieve food and nutrition security, making it an attainable goal.
“The Institute has a huge role to play in the task of eradicating hunger,” remarked Bryce Quick, Chief Operating Officer of the Department of Agriculture of the United States.
“We must learn to make rational use of goods that are already in short supply, such as water. The Director General’s report suggests that we are well placed to meet that goal,” noted Patricia García, Assistant Deputy Secretary for Administration of the Ministry of Agriculture of Argentina.
For more information, contact:
evangelina.beltran@iica.int
