IICA’s Director General Visits Belize

Belize, February 5, 2011 (IICA). Victor M. Villalobos, the Director General for the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation Agriculture (IICA), visited Belize from the 2nd to the 4th of February, 2011. The purpose of the visit was to strengthen technical cooperation in line with one of the institutions’ mandate of promoting trade and agribusiness.

Villalobos was accompanied by a Mexican businessman, Jose Athie Canavatti to explore the possibilities of such cooperation between Belize and Mexico. The delegation visited northern and southern Belize exploring possible investments in the production and processing of coconut into various byproducts including coconut oil in the southern districts and palm oil in the Northern districts.

Villalobos and Canavatti also participated in a field visit to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries Coconut Hybridization Program located at Central Farm. Technical staff from Central Farm Research and Development Station demonstrated pollination practices used to produce Maypan hybrids, which is a cross between the Panama tall and the Malaysian dwarf and is resistant to the devastating Lethal Yellowing disease.

The delegation also met with the Deputy Prime Minister, Gaspar Vega, Minister of Economic Development, Commerce, Industry and Consumer Protection, Erwin Contreras, and Rene Montero, Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries.

Trade, investments and technical cooperation between the two countries were discussed. A meeting was also held with BELTRAIDE, where the institution gave a presentation on the incentives that Belize affords for these types of investments and how it will impact future investments in Belize.

For more information, contact 
maximiliano.ortega@iica.int