From Caribbean360

IICA said that the programme, in which 10 people from each CARICOM country will take part, will focus on the areas of protected agriculture, small ruminants (sheep and goats), agrotourism, technological innovation, horticulture, and water management.

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica, CMC – Producers and technical officers from 14 Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries participate in a new training programme designed to transfer successful experiences in improving productivity.

The programme has been created by the Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA) in Mexico and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).

IICA said that the programme, in which 10 people from each CARICOM country will take part, will focus on the areas of protected agriculture, small ruminants (sheep and goats), agrotourism, technological innovation, horticulture, and water management.

IICA said 140 agricultural producers and officials from the Caribbean countries will spend three months receiving training in Mexico.

The agreement creating the programme was signed on January 15 in San Jose by the Secretary of the SAGARPA, Enrique Martínez y Martínez, and IICA Director General Víctor M. Villalobos.

IICA said  Mexico’s Secretariat of Foreign Affairs, through the Mexican Agency for International Development Cooperation (AMEXCID), will support the implementation of the program.

“The infrastructure, outstanding professional expertise, experience and supply of technological training offered by Mexico’s universities and agricultural research centers are a unique resource in the hemisphere that will make it possible to have an effective and lasting impact on the development of agriculture and rural areas in CARICOM,” said Villalobos.

During their 12-week stay in Mexico, the Caribbean producers and professionals will visit educational and agribusiness organizations to see first-hand the technological innovation processes carried out in the country that have made it possible to increase agricultural productivity.

“The persons trained will then return to their respective countries to conduct field demonstrations of the new techniques learned and good agricultural practices. At least 700 Caribbean producers are expected to take part in this knowledge transfer exercise,” IICA said, noting that the training programme will cost an estimated US$1.2 million.

It said implementation in the Caribbean will be supervised by Mexican specialists who will spend three weeks providing direct technical assistance in the CARICOM countries and evaluating the implementation and results of the field practices.

The final stage will involve the systematization of the programme and an assessment of the impact of the new knowledge and practices on agricultural productivity, in accordance with the conditions of each Caribbean nation.

The training for the CARICOM countries will complement the program of 100 scholarships that IICA and Mexico’s National Board of Science and Technology (CONACYT) award annually to Spanish-speaking professionals in the hemisphere.

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