During a visit to Trinidad and Tobago, IICA Director General Chelston Brathwaite advocated developing and implementing a Food Security Plan in the Caribbean, linked to the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (SCME) administered by the Secretariat of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). He explained that the plan would call for a regional transportation and agricultural insurance program, agricultural storage facilities and a regional food security council. He also suggested that the ministries of agriculture be made ministries of food, agriculture and rural development. They would then be responsible for food imports and production, and food security, not only for the local population but also for foreign tourists. The Director General visited Trinidad and Tobago during the first week of December, where he gave a presentation entitled “The challenge of food security in the Caribbean” at the International Congress on Tropical Agriculture. During the congress, an activity took place to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the University of West Indies, Brathwaite’s alma mater. The Director General took advantage of the visit to meet with the country’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Agriculture, Lands and Marine Resources, Paula Gopee-Scoon and Arnold Piggot, respectively, and with the national coordinator of the Fifth Summit of the Americas and the Meeting of Heads of Government of the Commonwealth of Nations, Luis Rodríguez. Brathwaite’s visit coincided with the 30th anniversary of IICA’s Office in Trinidad and Tobago, where he served as the Representative between 1983 and 1988.

Financial prudence and transparency will be priorities for IICA during 2009, Director General Chelston Brathwaite has announced. Brathwaite, a citizen of Barbados who has been at the helm of the Institute since 2002, said strict controls will be instituted in view of the world financial crisis and to ensure the next Administration, which will be elected in October of next year, has enough resources to begin work efficiently in January 2010.

The Director General congratulated the new Minister of Agricultural Development of Panama, Olmedo Espino, and the recently appointed Minister of Agriculture of Peru, Carlos Federico Leyton, and offered them the Institute’s services as a strategic partner in determining and implementing a technical cooperation agenda tailored to their countries’ priorities. In his letters to the ministers, Brathwaite said, “We want to share the experience we have acquired in providing support to the agricultural sector for the last 65 years.” He also invited the ministers to take part in the “Forum for Leaders in Agriculture,” to discuss the challenges facing the sector in the 21st century.

IICA’s Center for Leadership in Agriculture organized the First Meeting of Young Leaders of Agriculture and Rural Life in Venezuela, and the First Forum for Young Rural Leaders in Costa Rica. The first of these activities took place on 17 October, with the participation of 20 young people from the Venezuelan states of Portuguesa, Bolivar, Aragua and Maracaibo. The second was carried out 2-4 December at the Institute’s Headquarters, with the participation of 33 young people from various parts of Costa Rica. The forums were held with support from the Northeast San Jose Rotary Club (Costa Rica) and the Government of the State of Portuguesa (Venezuela). The activities were designed to train young people to tackle the new challenges facing the agricultural sector.

With a global meeting slated for Mexico next year, IICA hosted the Hemispheric Technical Preparatory Meeting on Article 27 of the Biosafety Protocol on 19-20 November. Biosafety is a new and growing field of work that addresses biotechnology concerns. A meeting of the International Forum of the Cartagena Protocol (COP-MOP 4) took place last May in Bonn, Germany. During the event, the 147 countries set up a Working Group of the Friends of the Co-Chairs to provide follow-up to Article 27 of the Cartagena Protocol. This group will be meeting in February 2009 in Mexico to negotiate international standards and procedures in the area of Responsibility and Compensation (R&C) under the Protocol. The Institute, which is promoting dialogue among the countries in this field and endeavoring to improve implementation of the international agreements, hosted the Technical Preparatory Meeting, in which delegations from ten countries in the hemisphere took part.

IICA concluded the design of the project for the “Global Program: Linking farmers to markets.” The initiative was presented and approved by the Steering Committee of the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR), which met 26 November in Maputo, Mozambique. The Institute is a member of the Programme Committee, which was set up in 2006 in Cairo.

During the Fourteenth Meeting of the Joint Commission of the Republic of China (Taiwan) and the countries of the Central American Isthmus, held in Honduras on 18 November, the participants agreed to fund the regional project “Support for increased food productivity and better quality to contribute to food security in Central America.” This plan was prepared by the Executive Secretary of the Central American Agricultural Council (CAC), operated by IICA.

A group of eight small-scale producers from Belize was trained in organic agriculture and leadership during a visit to Costa Rica from 2-6 December. IICA and Armonía Natural, a Costa Rican company dedicated to nature-friendly environmental, social and economic development, hosted the activity. The farmers learned about the development of La Esperanza organic farm, a leader in the management and cultivation of chemical-free crops. On the last day of the training, the participants visited the Institute’s Headquarters, where they met with the staff of the Center for Leadership in Agriculture.

IICA and the Rural Tourism Development Institute of the State of Mato Grosso del Sur (IDESTUR) of Brazil signed an agreement on rural incentives. The agreement was signed by the Institute’s Representative in Brazil, Carlos Vasco, and provides for reciprocal support in organizing and implementing development programs, in areas with potential for rural tourism and where the demand for tourism products could be high.