The theme of the activity was “Institutional innovations for agriculture with knowledge in the Americas for the 21st century.” The meeting attracted around 200 participants from 35 countries, plus over 100 leading experts who guided the hemispheric dialogue. The meeting was organized by Uruguay’s National Agricultural Research Institute (INIA) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) - which operates the Forum’s Technical Secretariat -, with assistance from other agriculture-related institutions and organizations.
The participants in the event decided that the countries should make the following actions priorities on their agendas:
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the design of policies and organizational changes to ensure that public goods generated by research and innovation processes are protected or appropriated
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the management of information, communication and collaborative learning among actors for agricultural technology innovation
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adaptation to climate change, with emphasis on soils and water
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support for family agriculture to contribute to food security
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the conservation of genetic resources
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the development and safe use of new agricultural biotechnologies
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higher production, but based on the conservation of resources
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the development of agro-energy without undermining food security
The participants also agreed to work to consolidate FORAGRO as the hemispheric mechanism for dialogue and coordination among the sectors involved in agricultural technology innovation. Furthermore, they said it was necessary to strengthen the Regional Fund for Agricultural Technology (FONTAGRO), to encourage new members to join.
Another important action identified at the meeting was the need to boost investment in technology research and innovation and devise policies that encourage the development of human resources. “Young people need to fall in love with science because without scientists there can be no technological innovation,” IICA Director of Technology and Innovation, Enrique Alarcon, said.
The Executive Committee of FORAGRO is expected to formulate an action plan that takes these suggestions into account. The General Directorate of IICA will also be asked to submit the recommendations to the Ministerial Meeting, the Inter-American Board of Agriculture and the Summit of the Americas, all of which are scheduled to be held in 2009.
Interagency partnerships
Today’s global challenges include climate change, raising the production of quality food using environmentally friendly systems and generating productive linkages. Alarcon said that no single institution was capable of tackling them; hence the need for partnerships.
“Meeting today’s challenges calls for technology innovation and transfer, but also for coordinated work by the public, private, academic and productive sectors. That, in turn, requires institutional transformation, which was the focus of the meeting”, the official explained.
Such transformation ranges from the micro level, within national institutions linked to agricultural research and innovation, to the macro level of national and regional policies designed to create an enabling environment for technology to be used for agricultural production and rural development.
The region also needs to consolidate its links with the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR) and FORAGRO’s “sister” forums; and reposition itself on the agenda of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).
Alarcon said that during the meeting the participants had assessed and legitimated FORAGRO. Furthermore, “Uruguay’s involvement, through its Ministry of Agriculture and the INIA, in organizing this meeting and others held this week made Montevideo the technological capital of Latin America.”
The IICA Representative in Uruguay, Manuel Otero, said, “Once again, it was demonstrated that when we work in a coordinated way at the hemispheric, regional and national levels, we significantly enhance the impact of our actions.”
For more information, contact
enrique.alarcon@iica.int
Declaration of Montevideo
Event Web page