At the OAS, countries in the Americas supported IICA’s technical cooperation to tackle the pandemic and highlighted its leadership in preparation for the UN Food Systems Summit.

Washington, 22 September 2021 (IICA) – Ambassadors and Representatives of Member States of the Organization of American States (OAS) expressed their full support for the actions of the Director General of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Manuel Otero, who presented a report on the work of the specialized body in agricultural and rural development for the 2020 period, during which the region’s agriculture  showed resilience in the face of the impacts from Covid-19.

Otero made a virtual presentation of the 2020 Annual Report of IICA before the Permanent Council of the OAS during which he highlighted the strategic role of agriculture in the recovery and economic reactivation of the countries given that, last year, exports in the agriculture sector in Latin America and the Caribbean grew by 2.9% when compared with 2019, whereas total external sales fell by 9.1%.

In his remarks to the Ambassadors and Representatives to the Council, Otero underscored the support and facilitation for discussions that IICA provided to the countries of the region in the lead up to the UN Food Systems Summit, which will be held next week.

This process culminated in the consensus reached by the countries of the region with respect to the transformations that agrifood systems require, and which are already underway in order to become more sustainable and to consolidate the Americas as the bastion of food and nutrition security worldwide.

The 16 messages resulting from this hemispheric consensus were outlined in the document entitled On the road to the United Nations Food Systems Summit: key messages from the perspective of agriculture in the Americas.

Following the presentation by the Director General of IICA, Ambassadors and Representatives expressed their support for the work carried out in 2020, as well as the technical assistance provided for specific cooperation needs.

Felipe Sáez, alternate Representative of Chile to the Permanent Council of the OAS, stated that IICA’s actions “confirm the importance of having a modern and efficient institution that is capable of leveraging the knowledge that is available within the region to achieve agriculture that is competitive, inclusive and sustainable, and takes advantage of opportunities to contribute to economic growth and development,  and also promotes rural well-being and sustainable management of its natural capital”.

 “The Chilean mission to the OAS extends its congratulations and thanks you for your efforts at stimulating, promoting and supporting the efforts of the Member States to achieve agricultural and rural development through international technical cooperation of excellence”, said Mr. Sáez.

The Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Costa Rica, Alejandra Solano, stated that her country “reiterated the importance of effective implementation strategies for constructing an agriculture sector that is resilient, sustainable and with greater opportunities for rural communities, especially for women and youth involved in these activities, and to food security”.

Solano stated further that “we are delighted with the programs, projects and tools to strengthen capacities that have been shared by IICA to strengthen vital issues within the region such as bioeconomy, family farming and the promotion of digital agriculture 4.0”.

Marco Ponce, alternate Representative of Ecuador, affirmed that the pandemic had deepened the problems that exist with respect to agricultural development in the Americas, but recognized the efforts and leadership of the Institute to support its Member States in matters such as research and knowledge, gender and youth, family farming for food supply, cooperativism and technological innovation, associativity, response plans and sanitary protocols.

“Ecuador salutes the role played by IICA in strengthening capacities aimed at achieving sustainable, innovative, productive and resilient agriculture in order to eradicate malnutrition”, added Ponce.

The Acting Representative of El Salvador, Wendy Acevedo, highlighted the role of IICA in the context of the health crisis through the organization of virtual seminars and hemispheric dialogues as well as the preparation of technical documents “that have provided the agriculture sector with tools and recommendations for preventive measures in order to stop the spread of Covid-19 and ensure the continued availability of food to the population.

Acevedo added that “in a difficult year for agriculture in the region, and despite the enormous challenges, there was clear evidence of the capacity of the agricultural systems to contribute to the crisis, as well as their importance as engines for agricultural development and rural and regional well-being.

Other representatives of delegations who commented on the report presented by Otero included the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Canada to the OAS, Hugh Adsett, who underscored the work done by the Institute. “We would like to highlight the tremendous work of IICA in strengthening collaboration in the agricultural sector of the Americas”, he stated.

Adsett added further that “Canada attaches great value to the two hemispheric ministerial forums that were held during this period, coordinated by IICA. They were two important platforms for inter-regional dialogue that will allow us to manage the impact of the pandemic and reconstruct this new world with a better future”.

Rita Claverie de Sciolli, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Guatemala, praised the leadership of IICA with respect to the preparatory work for the UN Food Systems Summit, and pointed out that the Institute “was one of the first organizations to recognize and highlight the resilience of the agricultural and agroindustrial sectors in the Americas in the face of the crisis caused by Covid-19.

She expanded her remarks by stating that the report presented by Manuel Otero “reflects the important work that IICA is carrying out in terms of technical cooperation in order to strengthen knowledge management and provide innovative solutions to deal with the new challenges presented by the pandemic”.

Lastly, the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Honduras, Luis Fernando Cordero Montoya, expressed the appreciation of his country “for the key support provided when there was a need to respond to the impacts of the pandemic and the natural disasters Eta and Iota”.

He added that “among the joint initiatives we can highlight IICA’s cooperation with my Government to develop the Production Solidarity Bonus, the Coffee Bonus and Safe Harvest programs, which benefitted farmers in different regions. Additionally, the Institute provided support for the design of a national plan to address the emergency brought about by hurricanes and to contribute to the reactivation of the agriculture sector”.

During the close of the presentation of IICA’s 2020 Annual Report to the Permanent Council of the OAS, Otero urged the nations of the Americas to remain on the path of dialogue.

He stated: “I wish to underscore the need for active participation in coalitions and solutions for change. In the future, the hemisphere will be called upon to be the guarantor of food and nutrition security for the planet”.

More information:

Institutional Communication Division

comunicacion.institucional@iica.int