in opening doors to new and more opportunities for small farmers. Also discussed was the critical value of the bioeconomy within the framework of the new knowledge frontier. IICA stands to make relevant contributions in all of these areas.
On the other hand, in speaking with Minister Waldez Goes – who heads the Integration and Regional Development portfolio, which is one with which IICA has a long-standing cooperation relationship – Otero discussed increased collaboration, in particular in relation to water resources, specifically in the Amazon, the northeast region and in border areas. Meeting with Deputy Ministers Otero also met with the Executive Secretary (Deputy Minister) of the Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change, Joao Paulo Capobianco, and the General Secretary (Deputy Minister) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, MarÃ-a Laura Da Rocha.
Otero briefed Capobianco on Living Soils of the Americas – an international coalition that is tackling the degradation of this resource, which is fundamental to health and life. The program is co-led by the Carbon Management and Sequestration Center (CMASC), headed by decorated scientist and 2020 World Food Prize laureate, Rattan Lal.
The meeting also discussed IICA’s wholehearted support for efforts to curb deforestation in the Amazon and to search for new development alternatives in a region that houses the world’s largest tropical forest. Here again, emphasis was placed on the importance of the bioeconomy.
Moreover, the IICA Director General informed Capobianco that IICA fully endorsed the candidacy of the Amazonian city, Belem, to be the venue of COP30, slated to take place in 2025. Otero also explained IICA’s work in the recent COP27 meeting – where the Institute, its Member States and international partners ensured that the voice of Sustainable Agriculture was heard, demonstrating how agriculture in the hemisphere is resilient to climate change and can provide other agrifood systems throughout the world with examples of mitigation and adaptation.
With the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Otero spoke of IICA’s commitments to regional integration. He also invited the Secretary General of Itamaraty to be a speaker at the upcoming Forum of Female Ministers, Deputy Ministers and High-level Officials of Agriculture of the Americas, which is a forum to discuss the region’s priorities and policies on agrifood systems, with a gender focus.
