Relations with Strategic Partners

Relations with Strategic Partners in 2009

During 2009 the Directorate of Strategic Partnership (DSP) has made significant progress in working more effectively with a host of new and existing partners. We advanced on a series of new and ongoing actions driven by initiatives in Washington, Spain and from many IICA Representatives and officials in IICA’s Costa Rican headquarters. The combined efforts produced significant results in some key areas. The table below shows a cross section of results and products involving, among others, Non-Government Organizations, Organization of American States (OAS), American universities, the Spanish Government, the European Union, the Clinton Foundation and the World Food Programme.

List of Memorandum of Understanding and Letter of Agreement signed

Partner	Goal
World Food Programme (WFP)	To implement the Purchase for Progress Program (P4P) in four countries in Central America with a focus of more effectively connecting small farmers to agricultural markets.
Latin American Association for the Development of Agricultural Insurance (ALASA)	To share information, provide training and design projects to secure resources for the development of agricultural insurance.
North American Plant Protection Organization (NAPPO)	To promote agriculture health and food safety in North America and the Western Hemisphere. The Agreement will serve as a framework to facilitate the dissemination of key information on plant protection and increase technical cooperation in that area, with a view to encourage countries of the Americas to adopt and implement international phytosanitary standards.
Iowa State University Seed Science Center (ISUSSC)	To contribute to promote joint actions for the sustainable development of the agricultural sector and rural communities. The two institutions plan on implementing research, training and technical assistance programs that will strengthen the seed sector in LAC.
Trade Facilitation Organization of Canada (TFO Canada)	The cooperation program focuses on the following: A program on access to the agro-food Canadian market; an export packaging technical training and sourcing support; trade missions to Canada for Guyanese exporters and vice versa; and seminars in trading and identifying packaging materials.

New avenues for cooperation with USAID, the United Nations Global Task Force on Food Security and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) were developed on topics of food security, through participation in various consultations and joint planning meetings.

Also, in collaboration with the OAS, IICA continued to play a leading role in agricultural and rural development through the ‘Friends of Haiti’ initiative. Several presentations highlighting IICA’s activity in Haiti were made and the planning of joint initiatives, including project databases, were developed. Led by the OAS Assistant Secretary General’s office, the ‘Friends; of Haiti’ initiative representing member countries and observers to the hemispheric body, reviews ongoing projects and new initiatives with that country.

One such initiative was IICA’s participation in a Special Inter-American Mission to Haiti, led by the OAS Assistant Secretary General, in which the IICA Haiti ‘Pro-Huerta’ project was selected as an example of a successful food security program aimed at improving the local availability of food, and thus lives of the people of rural communities. The Office was also presented the opportunity to inform select Members of Congress and their staff of IICA’s work in Haiti and efforts in addressing food security. This strategic move also called the attention for IICA’s various partners to strengthen support with regards to food security issues. They included Mexico, Canada, US, Colombia, Peru, Chile and the Clinton Foundation, among others.

Other relationships strengthened with key strategic partners included: Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), Board for International Food and Agriculture Development (BIFAD), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Inter-American Development Bank, International Development Research Centre (IDRC), International Food Information Council (IFIC), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), University of California-Berkeley, University of California-Davis, University of Nebraska, and the World Bank.

Relations with Strategic Partners in 2008

During 2008, the Directorate for Strategic Partnerships (DSP) advanced on a series of ongoing actions. It enhanced relationships with existing as well as with new partners by means of comprehensive dialogues on critical issues such as food security, climate change, poverty reduction, Agro-tourism, agricultural insurance and risk management, technology transfer and knowledge management.

Among the new partnerships implementing actions, IICA facilitated the signing of an Agreement between IDB and CACHE. The US$400,000 grant from the IDB’s Regional PGP aims to enhance the capacity of the Caribbean labor force to improve competitiveness of the agriculture sector. As a result, Barbados, the Dominican Republic, Guyana, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago have joined forces to collectively develop a regional strategic plan that will include a tool box with public policy guidelines, an information sharing system and a set of pilot training events.

IICA signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the University of California in June and has delegated a number of intentions with the College of Natural Resources to promote two-way learning, scientific exchange and innovation in the field of Sustainable Agriculture, Rural development, Environmental Management and collaborative leadership.

IICA will also be collaborating with Cornell University and the University of California, Berkeley in the preparation of case studies in agriculture as part of the Agriculture Bridge Program financed by the USDA.

The Institute led the development of a promising partnership with the WFP. The Directorate of Strategic Partnerships met with WFP senior officials in Rome and Panama City which resulted in the preparation of a MOU that identifies IICA as the technical advisor on agriculture in the Western Hemisphere. The first major project under this MOU is the execution of the Purchase for Progress (P4P) program in four Central American countries that is funded by the Howard Buffet Foundation. The signing of the MOU and approval of the Action Plan for the P4P program are expected in early 2009.

Also, IICA succeeded in the development of a joint collaboration role with senior World Bank officials from the Agriculture and Rural Development unit for Latin America and the Caribbean to move forward on agriculture insurance initiative for the Latin America and Caribbean region.

Other exploratory sessions included meetings with senior officials from organizations such as IFAD, PAHO, OAS, IFPRI and Technoserve.

IICA and the Alberta Association of Colleges and Technical Institute Institutes agreed on several initiatives for 2009. These discussions took place after IICA participation in a conference organized by the Canadian Young Farmers Forum.

IICA signed an Agreement with the governments of Brazil and Argentina and with Oxfam Quebec to develop and execute projects in Haiti where strategic partnership is welcomed for food security advancement.

Finally, IICA held substantive high level discussions with FAO officials in Rome, Chile and the United States to develop a more constructive model of collaboration. These meetings resulted in a series of proposed actions for 2009 that were approved by IICA’s Director General, and then presented to FAO for their approval.

Relations with Strategtic Partners in 2007
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