The activities were held during the 7th Caribbean Week of Agriculture (CWA), which took place from 8 to 13 October, in Jamaica. The theme of the event was “Agriculture - harvesting wealth through tourism.”

The CWA included a series of workshops, forums and official meetings on subjects such as agrotourism, agribusiness, risk management and opportunities for the hospitality sector.

Involved in the discussions were representatives of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Organization of American States (OAS), the Council for Trade and Economic Development (COTED) and the Caribbean Agricultural Forum of Youth (CAFY).

IICA devised the Caribbean Week of Agriculture to raise the profile of agriculture and rural life, so that decision makers recognize their importance in the economy, in the social infrastructure and in the stability of the environment.

IICA sent an important delegation to the event headed by the Institute’s Director General, Chelston Brathwaite, who was accompanied by the Director of Operations for the Caribbean, Trevor Murray, and the IICA Representative in Jamaica, Cynthia Currie.

In one of her presentations, Currie emphasized that efforts should be made to ensure that farmers and rural communities are the beneficiaries of a “total” regional agriculture and tourism effort.

Irwin LaRocque, Assistant Secretary-General for Regional Trade and Economic Integration of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) explained that the focus was currently on promoting the transformation of agriculture so it could be a market leader and internationally competitive.

LaRocque also reiterated that although the Caribbean had to rely on the assistance of donors, such resources should be viewed as complementing others from outside and within the region.

Strengthening ties

During the CWA, IICA strengthened its cooperation and work links by signing agreements with the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) and the Technical Center for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA), designed to contribute to the modernization of the rural sector, the promotion of the food industry and the development of sustainable agriculture in the Americas.

CARDI’s brief is to improve the socioeconomic wellbeing of people in the Caribbean through research aimed at enhancing the competitiveness and sustainability of agriculture in the region.

The purpose of the cooperation agreement with this entity is to coordinate its work programs with IICA’s and create synergies for the implementation of the Jagdeo Initiative, a framework designed to ensure the development of sustainable agriculture in the region.

Specifically, the agreement charts a course of action for addressing ten key issues and supporting the work plan of the Alliance for the Sustainable Development of Agriculture and the Rural Milieu (The Alliance) and its national chapters, which include the National Coordinating Committees for Agricultural Research and Development (NCCARD).

The cooperation between IICA and CARDI is also intended to promote cooperation and linkages with hemispheric institutions and organizations such as the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE) and the Regional Fund for Agricultural Technology (FONTAGRO).

To extend cooperation with another institution, the Director of Operations for the Caribbean Region, Trevor Murray, signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the CTA on IICA’s behalf. The two institutions will work together to contribute to the sustainable development of agriculture in the Caribbean.

This memorandum is designed to create the synergies required for implementing the AGRO 2003-2015 Plan and the Jagdeo Initiative, and support the Alliance’s work plan throughout the Caribbean, with the aim of forging a logical, cohesive framework for agricultural and rural development in the region.

This partnership will also promote linkages and the transfer of information, technology and skills between IICA and the CTA’s Member States in Africa, the Pacific and Europe, and between the CTA and IICA’s Member States in the Northern, Southern, Central American and Caribbean regions.

The focal areas include agricultural development and management, trade and policy, agribusiness, technological innovation (in relation to agroenergy), agrotourism, biotechnology, greenhouse technologies, organic agriculture and rural development with emphasis on women and youth and organizations of agricultural stakeholders and companies.