IICA To Tackle Challenges Facing Agriculture

SAN JOSE, March 13 2015 – The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) has set up five high-level technical committees that will underpin the efforts of the organisation and its member countries to promote agriculture and rural well-being.

The committees are comprised of members of the Institute’s own staff and internationally renowned external advisers specialising in areas that IICA regards as strategically important for meeting the challenges of agriculture in the Americas.

Based on its 2014-2018 Medium-term Plan (MTP), the Institute is tweaking its cooperation model to enable it to focus on the areas in which it has competitive advantages and that it is best equipped to tackle.

“Strengthening the Institute’s technical capabilities calls for changes, to enable us to evolve into an organisation better prepared to respond to the current challenges facing agriculture,” commented Víctor M. Villalobos, the Director General of IICA.

He listed the challenges in question: bridging the gaps in productivity and competitiveness, reducing vulnerability to climate change and the degradation of natural resources, promoting the inclusion of women, young people, indigenous groups and people living in extreme poverty, achieving food and nutrition security, and tapping the opportunities for innovation in each country.