What is the AGRO 2003-2015 Plan?
	The AGRO 2003-2015 Plan is the shared long-term agenda for promoting the sustainable development of agriculture and the rural milieu. The Plan was adopted at the Second Ministerial Meeting “Agriculture and Rural Life in the Americas” (Panama 2003), following a broad-based process of dialogue and negotiation aimed at reaching consensus on national proposals. This process was conducted under the responsibility of the Ministers of Agriculture and their Ministerial Delegates. The Plan provides a framework for bringing about the changes required to achieve the Shared Vision 2015, and is implemented and updated by the countries through
the strategic actions contained in the biennial hemispheric agendas, and the measures for their implementation and follow-up agreed during the hemispheric meeting of Ministerial Delegates (GRICA) and defined by the Ministers in their Ministerial Meetings. In the Plan, the Ministers and Secretaries of Agriculture: - Took into consideration for its preparation a wide approach of viewing agriculture and rural life, which is the conceptual framework of the AGRO 2003-2015 Plan. The AGRO-Matrix synthesizes this new concept of agriculture and rural life.  - Adopted the Shared Vision 2015 for agriculture and rural life. The vision is a characterization of the desired future vis-à-vis the national and international context, rural territories and agricultural production-trade chains. - Reiterated the commitments with the Strategic Objectives of Rural Prosperity, Food Security, the International and Regional Integration of Agriculture, Agricultural Health and Food Safety, and the Sustainable Development of Agriculture and the Rural Milieu. - Pledged to promote, with the stakeholders in agriculture and others involved in the development of agriculture and rural life, the strategic actions of the 2003-2005 Hemispheric Agenda, to make progress toward achievement of the Strategic Objectives. This Hemispheric Agenda is the first of six biennial agendas. - Stated that the AGRO 2003-2015 Plan reflects the member countries’ intention of working to achieve the shared vision, acknowledging that the national governments have primary responsibility for implementing the Plan pursuant to their international commitments and agreements. In that sense, they decided on a number of measures for Implementation and Follow-up of the Plan. The AGRO 2003-2015 Plan has been updated as a result of the Hemispheric Ministerial Agreements adopted at the Third, Fourth and Fifth Ministerial Meetings (Guayaquil 2005, Guatemala 2007 and Jamaica 2009).