South-South and Triangular Cooperation, a vital element to strengthen food security in Latin America and the Caribbean

San José, 16 August 2021 (IICA). In the midst of the pandemic, South-South and Triangular cooperation among Ibero-American countries is essential for sustainable development. This was highlighted by an analysis carried out by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB).
 
Through interactive infographics entitled "South-South and Triangular Cooperation in the areas of agriculture and food security in the face of COVID-19", and from a technical perspective, these organizations described the challenges faced, the strategies applied and the actions taken by Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries to tackle the complex conditions of the current context.
 
This graphic report draws attention to the fact that, although agriculture has been one of the most resilient sectors and a major contributor to the gross domestic product, the incidence of food insecurity in 2020 reached 40.9% in LAC, nine percentage points, on average, above the previous year's estimate.
 
Faced with the health crisis, the governments of the region implemented different actions to guarantee food, especially for the most vulnerable populations in each country. Favoring production, maintaining commercialization and distribution, and strengthening food security were the main priorities of the measures that were taken.
 
 “This is a visual illustration of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the agricultural sector of the region, but especially on food security, and it allows us to understand the response of the countries of the Americas to this situation. The pandemic confronted us with a triple crisis: social, economic and climatic”, said SEGIB Secretary General, Rebeca Grynspan.
 
"Cooperation is essential in this unprecedented crisis; countries are already more mature and are seeking more horizontal cooperation. They no longer want welfare; instead, they wish to be the protagonists of these new times. That is why horizontal cooperation issues are gaining increasing relevance in our technical cooperation services”, stated the Director General of IICA, Manuel Otero.
 
The infographics also explain that between 2010 and 2019, 1,019 South-South cooperation projects were carried out in the areas of agriculture and food security in Ibero-America, especially focusing on production and transformation, consumption and food security. Distribution and trade were in third place, which constitutes an opportunity for new joint projects between the countries of the region.
 
These historic cooperation actions supported by IICA have produced many relevant outputs, including the Central American Program for the Comprehensive Management of Coffee Rust (PROCAGICA), the Integrated Management of the Mediterranean Fly through the MOSCAMED Program, ProHuerta in Haiti, and the Fair and Sustainable Cocoa Trade Program.
 
These experiences have systematized the knowledge acquired and represent an opportunity for technical and experiential learning to be further disseminated among the different countries of the region.

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