Delegation in Headquarters

IICA and FARA, Africa’s principal agricultural research forum, signed an agreement on joint work that will foster closer links between the agricultural authorities of that continent and Latin America and the Caribbean.

At the meeting, the leaders had numerous opportunities to talk about their everyday work environment and pinpoint common aspects shared with fellow honorees.

This proposal was made by the former Minister of Agriculture of Brazil Roberto Rodrigues, one of the leading experts in cooperativism, who addressed more than 40 authorities from 21 countries of all regions of the Americas, as part of the First Meeting of Leaders of Rurality of the Americas convened by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).

The head of IFAD, an institution with 45 years of experience whose mandate is the eradication of rural poverty and the mobilization of funds to guarantee food security and ensure that rural dwellers generate sufficient income, also pointed out that his agency had carried out nearly 200 projects in 28 countries, with a particular focus on women, youth and indigenous peoples, investing more than USD 24 billion in partnership with governments and with the involvement of the private sector.

At the meeting, the participants decided to create a network, with technical support from IICA, which will seek to promote actions to strengthen and empower rural territories and their stakeholders, and prioritize their role as guarantors of food and nutrition security and guardians of the planet’s biodiversity.