International experts will meet in Costa Rica to discuss ways to enhance the contribution of science, technology and innovation to the sustainability and competitiveness of agrifood systems of the Americas

San Jose, 3 May 2023 (IICA) - The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), CGIAR and the World Bank will bring together more than 100 international authorities and experts in Costa Rica to discuss the role of science, technology and innovation in modernizing and strengthening agrifood systems in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), their role in light of current challenges and opportunities, and financing prospects.
 
The meeting will take place within the framework of the Regional Dialogue on Science, Technology and Innovation in Agrifood Systems of Latin America and the Caribbean, which will be held on May 4 and 5 in a hybrid modality at IICA Headquarters in San Jose.
 
The purpose of the dialogue will be to put strategic issues related to the strengthening and transformation of innovation systems back on the international agenda, as well as to identify potential areas of joint work based on national and regional priorities in the Americas.
 
Among the participants will be authorities from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), CGIAR (a global research partnership for a food-secure future dedicated to transforming food, land, and water systems in a climate crisis), the World Bank and IICA.
 
The speakers will include Rubén Echeverria, Senior Advisor for Agricultural Development at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Juan Lucas Restrepo, Director General of the Bioversity International – International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) Alliance and CGIAR Global Director of Partnerships and Advocacy; Joaquín Lozano, CGIAR Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean; and Diego Arias, World Bank Agriculture and Food program manager for Latin America and the Caribbean.
 
Also in attendance will be Martín Piñeiro, Director General Emeritus of IICA with extensive knowledge of agricultural innovation; Eduardo Trigo, international consultant on agricultural development issues at IICA; and Manuel Otero, Director General of the Institute.
 
Participants will include members of the scientific community and executive secretaries of cooperation mechanisms for science, technology and innovation in agrifood systems of the Americas, such as the Cooperative Program in Agricultural Research and Technology for the Northern Region (PROCINORTE), the Cooperative Program for Agrifood and Agroindustrial Technology Development in the Southern Cone (PROCISUR), the Forum of the Americas for Agricultural Research and Technological Development (FORAGRO), the Regional Fund for Agricultural Technology (FONTAGRO) and the Regional Cooperative Program for the Technological Development and Modernization of Coffee Production (PROMECAFE).
 
Also taking part in the event will be authorities from national agricultural research and technology institutes of countries of the Americas and representatives of farmers’ organizations that play an active role in innovation systems, including Argentina’s Regional Consortia for Agricultural Experimentation (CREA) and the Argentinian Association of Direct Seeding Farmers (AAPRESID).
 
“Now more than ever, the region’s agrifood system is facing new opportunities and challenges. The new frontiers of science allow for increasing efficiency and environmental sustainability in production and value adding; at the same time, however, the economic, environmental and social crises pose considerable challenges that agrifood systems must overcome. Consequently, strengthening innovation systems and the participation of the private sector is crucial”, explained IICA Director General Manuel Otero.
 
“We partnered up with IICA and the World Bank to convene this crucial and timely dialogue amongst the key actors in our region to update, strengthen and modernize the institutional and public policies systems related to scientific and technological development in agrifood systems. The conclusions we develop will be powerful inputs for decision making”, remarked Joaquín Lozano, CGIAR Regional Director.
 
“Resetting the food system is urgent. The World Bank supports the transformation of agrifood innovation systems in the region to benefit the economy, the environment and the nutritional health of poor and vulnerable populations,” said Diego Arias, World Bank Agriculture and Food program manager for Latin America and the Caribbean. “The World Bank is supporting this agenda and calling for governments, development partners, universities, agribusinesses, and other civil society organizations to work together to prioritize and scale technology investments to make the food system more efficient, equitable and environmentally sustainable,” he added.
 
The dialogue will seek to foster innovation networks and the alignment of public policies; the creation of strategic research and development agendas; the strengthening of institutional and human capacities, support services and incentives; and changes in the regulations and funding of national and regional innovation systems, among other actions.

More information:
Hugo Chavarría, Manager of IICA’s Innovation and Bioeconomy Program.
hugo.chavarria@iica.int