Sub regional Medium Term Priority Framework for FAO s Technical Assistance in the Caribbean

Transcription

1 Sub regional Medium Term Priority Framework for FAO s Technical Assistance in the Caribbean Food and Agriculture Organization United Nations December,

2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Trends in Caribbean policy positions on agriculture are indicating a new urgency to pursue actions for greater contributions of the sector to self sufficiency in food and nutrition security for the sub region, in mainstreaming disaster risk management into strategies for sustainable agriculture and natural resources and in the creation of functional food safety and sanitary and phytosanitary systems that reduce risks and facilitates intra regional markets and external export markets. These policy positions in Caribbean agriculture fit well within the Sub regional Medium Term Priorities for the Latin American and Caribbean region as agreed to by the FAO Regional Conference of Ministers of Agriculture in These same policy positions are also reflected in the cooperative actions between the sub region and the wider Caribbean as well as in the strategic actions at the level of bilateral cooperation between the respective Governments of the sub region and the FAO. Against this background the SMPTF for the Caribbean has selected for adoption the Medium Term Priorities of the Conference that address climate change and climate variability, food and nutrition security and plant and animal health and food safety for FAO technical assistance during the next four years. In line with the above the SMPTF presents a program of cooperation which is expected to strengthen national data management and information capacities to share knowledge and implement disaster risk management strategies and other effective measures for adaptation and mitigation of the impact of climate change and climate variability on the ecological stability of land for agriculture, watersheds and the marine fisheries. A similar approach is adopted for data collection, management, knowledge sharing and actions for improved food and nutrition security and is expected to bring greater intra regional coordination and coherence to national policy formulation, strategy and monitoring with positive impacts on household food security and on the sub regional food importation bill. The results of other strategic actions are expected to provide updated information to generate a sub regional dialogue and funding support for a proposed sub regional project to re engage farming/fishing/forestry communities in modern productive agri food chains for income generation and food security. The SMPTF recognizes the unique inter relations in the sub region brought about by the economic blocs within the common geographic space over which the sixteen countries under the FAO/SLC are spread. The view conveyed in the SMPTF is that this provides the opportunity for the FAO/SLC to add value to the Caribbean program by supporting those actions that realize stronger alliances and collaborative partnership with the relevant agendas in the four blocs through cooperative arrangements that result in a sound Caribbean agriculture program and a set of Organizational results that reflect Caribbean participation 2

3 and contribution to the hemispheric and global objectives of FAO. In this respect the SMPTF identifies with the several programs on the CARICOM Agenda in which opportunities exist for FAO to collaborate, the CARICOM/SICA discussions on strengthened trade and strategies for disaster management, the ACS priorities that affect sustainable agriculture, especially the Agenda of Special Committee on Disaster Risk Reduction and the OECS Economic Union Treaty on Agriculture. The SMPTF will be managed by the Sub regional Coordinator for the Caribbean who will be supported by a Task Force comprising the key collaborators and beneficiaries and an efficient Work plan will provide the tool for monitoring and evaluation. The FAO/SLC will report to the CARICOM/ COTED which represents fourteen of the sixteen countries and will facilitate a process which provides the opportunity for CARICOM /SICA discussions on progress in relevant issues in respect of Belize and the Dominican Republic as well as FAOs role in strengthened collaborations and cooperation between the two sub regions. This framework document foresees the need for extra budgetary funds to supplement the resources available under the FAO Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) and the TCP Facility. To address these issues in a timely manner the document proposes early presentations on the priorities and collaborative actions foreseen to prospective partners and the preparation of a Negotiating Strategy for Resource Mobilization as the basis for discussions with the major development and financing agencies with interest in Caribbean agriculture. A discreet companion paper should be prepared and offered to the OECS, CARICOM and SICA to be used in their negotiations on funding for Caribbean agriculture at the multi lateral level. The process should also promote FAO/MDT not only as a technical resource to be accessed under the TCP but also as service providers in major development projects and programs. 3

4 Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Acronyms 4 1. Introduction 6 2. Trends and perspectives in the Caribbean Macro economic Environment Agriculture and food environment Regional trends National trends Subsectors performance Economic Integration Networks and regional institutions FAO cooperation in the Sub region Main challenges and opportunities in FAO area Of competence Priorities for FAO Technical Assistance Strategic Frameworks influencing the SMPTF Priorities Climate change and sustainable agriculture Food and Nutrition Security Plant and animal health and food safety Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation Resource Mobilization 21 4

5 MATRICES Acronyms ACS ALBA CABA CFNI CAFAN CAP CAHFSA CARICOM CARDI CCCCC CCRF CBD CDB CDM CDEMA CEHI CFNI CNFO CIDA CISWG Association of Caribbean States Bolivarian Alliance for Peolpes of the Americas Caribbean Agri business Association Caribbean Food and Nutrition Institute Caribbean Farmers Network Community Agriculture Policy Caribbean Agriculture Health and Food Safety Agency Caribbean Community Caribbean Agriculture Research and development Institute Caribbean Community Climate Change Centre Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries Convention on Bio diversity Caribbean Development bank Comprehensive Disaster Management Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency Caribbean Environment Health Agency Caribbean Food and Nutrition Institute Caribbean Network of Fisherfolk Organizations Canadian International Development Agency Caribbean Invasive Species Working Group 5

6 CIMH COSHOD COTED CPA CPHDF CPDN CPF CRISIS CSM CSME CTV CGPC FAO/SLC GEF CRFM IMF IPPC LACFC MDG OECS POPs PIC PCE SMPTF SPS SICA TMAC Caribbean Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology Council on Social, Health and Development Council on Trade and Economic Development Caribbean Poultry Association Caribbean Plant Health Directors Forum Caribbean Plant Diagnostic Network Country Program Framework Caribbean Region Invasive Species Strategy CARICOM Single Market CARICOM Single Market and Economy Citrus Tristeza Virus Caribbean Group of Pesticides Control Boards Food and Agriculture Organization/Sub regional Office Gulf Environment Fund Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism International Monetary Fund International Plant Protection Commission Latin America and Caribbean Forestry Commission Millennium Development Goals Organization of Eastern Caribbean States Persistent Organic Pollutants Prior Informed Consent Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation Sub regional Medium Term Priority Framework Sanitary and Phytosanitary Integrated System of Central America Technical Management Advisory Committee 6

7 TMAC/ASSC UNCCD WECAFC WTO Agriculture Disaster Sector Committee United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification Western and Central Atlantic Fishery Commission World Trade Organization 7

8 Sub Regional Medium Term Priority Framework for the Caribbean I. Introduction The Sub Regional Medium Term Priority Framework (SMTPF) is an overarching document prepared with the participation of the FAO/SLC Multidisciplinary team, and represents the FAO program of technical assistance in support of the endorsed policy and program frameworks for Caribbean agriculture for the next four years ( ). These policy and program positions are influenced by a number of frameworks impacting Caribbean agriculture and include primarily the following: (a) Frameworks of the CARICOM as expressed in the Regional Transformation Program for Agriculture (RTPA), the Jagdeo Initiative (2005) which describes a strategy for removing key constraints to the development of Community Agriculture, the Liliendaal Declaration on Agriculture and Food and Nutrition Security and on Climate Change (2009), the Community Agriculture Policy (2010) and the Regional Food and nutrition Security Policy (b) Caribbean program priorities and strategic actions in support of hemispheric and global mechanisms that embrace all of the sixteen countries under the FAO/SLC. These programs derive from the frameworks relative to CARICOM/CARIFORUM, the Greater Caribbean cooperation under the Association of Caribbean States (ACS), the Caribbean Animal Health Network (CaribVet), the Caribbean Plant Health Directors Forum (CPHDF), and selected Commissions, namely, the Commission on Livestock Development for Latin America and the Caribbean (CODEGALAC), the Latin American and Caribbean Forestry Commission (LACFC), and Western Central Atlantic Commission (WECAFC). Considerations were also given to the Caribbean sub programs and or Sub groups of United Nations System Frameworks of direct relevance to Caribbean agriculture and food security and include the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the MDGs for reduction of poverty and food insecurity and for environmental sustainability. In respect of the latter the Outcomes of the various Caribbean UNDAF Frameworks ( ), with the potential to impact sustainable agriculture and food and nutrition security were integrated into the strategic actions. (c) The strategic actions identified for FAO technical assistance in the respective Country Program Frameworks. In this regard, those national strategic actions which by a majority presented the main challenges and constraints in agriculture were adopted for consideration. Collectively these actions emerged as four broad priority areas: sustainable agriculture and natural resource management, climate change and climate variability in food and agriculture production systems, food and nutrition security and improvements in plant and animal health systems and food safety. 8

9 Based on the above, the CPF priorities fit well with the policy and program frameworks affecting agriculture in the Caribbean sub region and with the Sub regional Medium Term Priorities for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) coming out of the FAO Regional Conference (2010). It is therefore expected that the SMPTF will facilitate a process which allows the Caribbean Organizational Outputs to merge into those of LAC as foreseen in the Medium Term Plan , without loss of integrity of the respective CPFs. The SMPTF may therefore be viewed as a solid framework for satisfying the concept of decentralization of Organizational priorities as there is no loss of sight of the goals of the Organization. 2.0 Trends and Sub regional Perspectives 2.1 Macro economic environment in Caribbean Sub region: FAO countries in the Caribbean are mostly characterized by low to negative growth rates, high inflation rates and with public debts varying from 50% to 135% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In general pubic debts in most of the smaller economies vary from 80% 135%. As a result, in recent times, some of these countries have found it necessary to operationalize Standby Agreements with the IMF, in order to satisfy external and internal obligations. Persistent increases in the cost of food and fuel coupled with changes in market arrangements for traditional agriculture exports to the European Union and the fallout from the global financial crisis have all contributed to the intensification of socio economic changes particularly in the smaller economies. Hence while nearly all the countries concerned have achieved the MDGs with significant improvements in standards of living, sub regionally there are pockets of unacceptably high poverty levels. For example a couple of countries are reporting more than 50% poor and vulnerable to poverty with one country as high as 61%. In addition the evidence of climate variability is clear in the sub region and as a result many Governments are preoccupied with the uncertainties in sustainable development in important social and economic sectors including agriculture, tourism and health and housing. Rural development is challenged by the large numbers of income poor, as well as weak capacities to apply technology and to use information for rural livelihoods. Other challenges in rural development of relevance to the SMTPF derive from the persistent disengagement of rural people from agriculture for more promising income generation options in the services sector. There are also the risks to life and livelihoods from frequent devastation caused from natural disasters, especially the increasing intensities of hurricanes, the variability in rainfall intensities and pattern, micro climatic changes and the potential impact on incidence of agriculture pests and diseases and the scourge of praedial larceny. 2.2 The agriculture and food environment Sub regional trends: The impact of the spike in food prices in coupled with creeping food prices up to the present time has served to galvanize attention on agriculture and food and nutrition security in the sub region. This is evidenced in several actions in the sub region including Caribbean endorsement for the FAO World Food Summit on Food Security in 2008 and the 9

10 urgency with which policy positions expressed in the CARICOM were endorsed over the period to support food and nutrition security. These CARICOM policy positions were quickly followed by the articulation of agriculture in several initiatives including Comprehensive Disaster Management Strategy ( ) (CDM), the establishment of the Caribbean Agriculture Health and Food Safety Agency (2010) and endorsement of a Caribbean Community Common Fisheries Policy (2011). The threats and uncertainties of climate change and climate variability on the sustainability of food and agriculture have also served to influence trends in the sector. There is the marked evidence of an increasing movement towards Caribbean cooperation including a coordinated response from the level of the countries. The changes are reflected in partnerships such as those under the Strategic Action Plans for Sustainable Land Management/UNCCD, specifically the Caribbean sub region 1 PISLM which focuses heavily on land degradation and water resources management and the Work plans ( ) of the Caribbean Sub regional group under the LACFC, in particular those on aspects of governance for watershed and land use planning. In further support of actions towards disaster risk management the Natural Disaster Programs under the Association of Caribbean States (ACS) 2 are currently focused on fostering cooperation and institutional strengthening of ACS regional bodies responsible for disaster planning and the strengthening of national organizations in prevention and mitigation of natural disasters, with a view to reducing the adverse consequences on bio diversity, among others. Trends in Caribbean sub regional cooperation in food production and agriculture within the Caribbean and between the CARICOM and the greater Caribbean are also evidenced in regional mechanisms such as CPHDF established to support the countries in the development of IPSMs, a measure necessary to facilitate sustainable production and harmonization of systems and legislation for increased intra regional trade in agriculture, the Caribbean Plant Diagnostic Network (CPDN) and the Caribbean Invasive Species Working Group National trends: The rise in food prices and the increasing impact of climate change and climate variability on agriculture and food production has also affected attitudes of the stakeholders at the national level Impact of food price rises: Prior to 2007, there was much emphasis on national policies to drive agriculture diversification for employment as traditional exports declined due to changes in agricultural markets in the EU and perhaps what could be described as complacency with the state of food security. The latter could be due to the fact that Caribbean food insecurity largely results 1 The PISLM membership includes all the countries under the FAO/SLC. 2 The ACS also includes all the countries under the FAO/SLC 3 The membership of CISWG includes Caribbean region, hemispheric and international agriculture organizations including FAO, and in this manner facilitates access to all the FAO Caribbean countries to the products and services of CISWG. 10

11 from weak household access and poor food consumption patterns rather than availability. That is until the food price hike when prices of food and agri food inputs tripled in some of the countries, affecting the national and regional food importation budgets and threatening social disturbances. Creeping food prices is still the experience of many of the countries with one country reporting a 25% increase in the first quarter of The gap between food production and consumption continues to widen resulting in some countries importing as much as 80% of food needs, with meat and meat preparations, fish and fishery products, dairy, cereals and vegetables making up the larger portion and in that order. Consumption patterns and lifestyles are also of major concern with levels of NCDs including diabetes in children on the rise. The situation has promoted actions at country level which are of relevance to the development of the SMTPF and include preparation of discreet draft food security policies with time bound production targets. A useful observation is that of the three draft policy documents prepared, two were prepared in line with the OECS Agriculture Policy and Action Plan (2004) and the third in line with the RFNSP (2011). With the OECS sub group having established itself as an Economic Union (2009), but with the FAO countries still being equal beneficiaries in the CSME there are implications for FAO resource allocation, coordination in mobilization of resources and the efficient use of these resources as well as how negotiations for external funding and technical assistance will be conducted within the context of an OECS bloc and the CARICOM/CSME Climate change and climate variability and national trends: More than half the countries of the sub region have documented developmental plans or project proposals for sustainable contribution of the marine fisheries, considered to be under threat from the impact of climate change and climate variability. The primary cause is pollution and silting from poorly executed land based activities in coastal zones. These practices combine with increasingly high rainfall intensities and unusually long periods of drought and are creating the ideal situation for landslides, flooding and general devastation of lands and forested areas with debris finding its way to the marine fisheries sites. The fundamental issue is the poor implementation of land use policies, weak compliance to legislation where they do exist and the delays in establishing agro ecological zoning as recommended in many of the National Land Use Policies. These threats from climate variability are being exacerbated by overexploitation of many of the commercially important fish stocks. In respect of rural development and especially farming/fishing communities, there are many proposals and on going activities to enhance community resilience to prevent and mitigate the adverse effects of natural disasters on rural sustainable livelihoods. Other proposals have been formulated to seek technical assistance for value chain development in crop/livestock production and marketing systems for higher levels of productivity and for rural employment creation. There is growing interest in revitalization of the livestock industry and actions to strengthen plant quarantine services to counter the incidences of alien invasive species with potential to become serious constraints to production and trade. 11

12 Notwithstanding the efforts at national levels agriculture now ranks third and fourth in contribution to GDP throughout the economies, except for the Commonwealth of Dominica and the Republic of Guyana where the sector continues to hold firm as the main contributor to employment and income generation, foreign exchange earnings, food and nutrition security and rural livelihoods. In this respect it is important to note the critical areas of strengths and weaknesses in agriculture observed in the CPFs and which are of relevance to the Caribbean program Subsector performance: The marine fisheries sector is the most organized but the marine resources are overexploited and many of the important commercially exploited fish stocks could be facing depletion. The livestock sector is in general not well developed. Breeds are of poor genetic quality and there are serious challenges to the development of efficient feed production systems. While the Caribbean Poultry Association (CPA) is a success story of a modern cooperative approach, current membership is limited to only nine countries in the sub region, and the industry relies heavily on imported inputs. A proposal for a Caribbean Regional Livestock Association in the context of costeffective strategies including DNA printing, to mitigate the high risk due to praedial larceny has not been developed. In view of the high meat content of imported foods into the sub region, the proposal for a Caribbean Regional Livestock Association is worth further consideration as if realized such a body could also facilitate and promote investment in livestock development activities within the Caribbean and among the countries of the Greater Caribbean. The crop subsector is the major contributor to agriculture GDP by virtue of the wide range of crops grown and the many small farmers involved. Production and productivity are in general low due to inadequate application of technology and low investment. While there are commercial operations using modern production and marketing technologies, the level of competitiveness achieved has not been sufficient to narrow the gaps created by declines in traditional export crops. The performance in subsectors reflects limitations and constraints and the complexities in managing some of these constraints as they are not contained in the agriculture sector. These are best listed as follows: (a) Weak land administration in land for agriculture and delays in agriculture zoning coupled with competition for land for development other than agriculture have resulted in serious declines in land for agriculture, shrinking of forests and increase competition for water for agriculture (b) On average less than 50% and as low as 5% of available lands are in active production including irrigated agriculture lands (c) In most of the countries less that 25% of the rural population is actively engaged in food production (d) Land use policies are ineffective in addressing poor land use practices and this is increasing the threats of climate change and climate variability to agro ecological systems including freshwater ecosystems (e) Public goods and services, such as irrigation, rural roads, quality assurance systems including food safety standards, research and technology and market information are not always available. In addition reliable data and information associated with risk management (praedial larceny, pests and disease control, labour, credit and weather related natural disaster) are insufficient to build the level of confidence required by private investors and financing institutions. 12

13 2.3 Economic integration: The geographic space occupied by the 16 countries coordinated by FAO/SLC creates a complex situation relative to economic integration. Effectively there are four economic blocs represented in this space, with some countries sharing the economic space of more than one bloc. The economic bloc representing SICA 4 is not included in the Chart below. Economic integration in the geographic space occupied by Caribbean countries covered by FAO/SLC. However, Belize is a member of SICA and the Dominican Republic an Associate member. Furthermore under a SICA/CARICOM arrangement the two Secretariats meet every two years in Belize to discuss matters related to expanding trade in the two hemispheric sub regions, as well as matters related to the environment and disaster mitigation and to poverty eradication. CARICOM and Central America are both threatened by natural disasters and climate change requiring increase cooperation among the two blocs in several areas including environment and disaster mitigation and poverty eradication. The CSME is the second largest bloc comprising 14 of the sixteen countries in the SMPTF. These include six of the countries in the OECS economic space. Within the CSM agriculture has been selected as the lead on production integration. However the success from efforts to facilitate a CSM policy environment that supports intra regional trade and production integration has been less than expected. The challenges include insufficient attention to SPS compliance by all the countries especially those related to border protection and assurances of documentation and traceability, completion of arrangements for the free movement of labour and finance/credit, equity in farm wages, market 4 Integrated System for Central America 13

14 transaction cost and incentives. Currently there is just about 20% of movement in agriculture trade within the CSM with a significant percentage of the outflow coming from one country. A major area of concern for Caribbean agriculture is that intra regional trade in the sub region involves levels of agreements, those which benefit from bilateral agreements and those which fall within the regional agreements in the CSM including the between the CSM and the wider Caribbean. As yet there is no evidence that the pattern of intra regional trade has shifted in favor of providing opportunities for countries with low endowment quantitatively and or qualitatively. Furthermore not all the countries have bought into the priority commodities under the CARICOM/RTPA, which would have been the basis for production integration and increased marketing arrangements for foods to reduce food insecurity within CARICOM. While in a limited way innovative arrangements have been growing between some countries in the OECS sub group and the wider Caribbean, the challenges to compete with preferences of supermarket chains and hotels for imported fruits, vegetables and condiments is frustrating producers in the sub region. The ACS is the largest economic bloc and embraces twenty five countries of the Greater Caribbean occupying a common geographic space. The cooperation in the ACS includes joint actions in trade, sustainable tourism, transport and natural disasters. Of special interest to the SMPTF is the Special Committee on Disaster Risk Reduction, which focuses mainly on fostering cooperation between bodies responsible for disaster planning and response in the common geographic space. The ACS is the only economic bloc that embraces all 16 countries under the FAO/SLC. SICA and CARICOM are founding members of the ACS. In this regard the SICA/CARICOM Agreement and the joint actions being pursued might be of interest to the consolidation and efficient coordination of selected actions in particular the common interests on natural disaster management. 2.4 Caribbean Networks and sub regional institutions: The main Caribbean institutions of relevance to agriculture are the COTED and COSHOD under CARICOM and the Environment Agency of SICA in the case of Belize and the Dominican Republic. These are policy setting institutions. In respect of policy programming and implementation the most important organs in the implementation of the FAO sub regional strategic actions include the CDEMA, CARDI, CDB, CEHI, CAHFSA, CROSQ, CFNI, CCCCC, CIMH, CRFM and CRNM. There are also some subregional mechanisms and groupings of relevance to the SMPTF. These include the Special Committee on Disaster Risk Reduction in the ACS, the Caribbean Group of Pesticide Control Boards (CGPC), the Caribbean Invasive Species Working Group (CISWG), the Partnership Initiative on Sustainable Land Management (PISLM), the Regional Consortium on Water and the Technical Management Advisory Committees (TMAC) of the Jagdeo Initiative and the Agriculture Committee for Disaster Management (TMAC/ASSC) and the Integrated Watershed and Coastal Management (IWCAM). In the case of SICA the work of the Environment Agency of the Secretariat would be of interest as Belize seeks to strengthen participation in the regional cooperation programs and address issues relating to Climate change in the System. 14

15 The programs undertaken by this network of agencies provide the overarching framework for a coordinated and coherent approach to achieve sustainable agriculture and food security, the management of risks from natural and manmade disasters, agriculture health and food safety, the protection and conservation of freshwater resources, research and development needs of the sector and the financing of sub regional actions from external resources. These sub regional agencies work closely with Caribbean private sector associations and bodies in agribusiness (CABA), commodities (CPA), water association (CWWA) and umbrella farmers associations (CAFAN and WINFA). Collectively they provide many ways in which external partners and technical assistance agencies such as FAO /SLC can interface with Caribbean agriculture in recognized and endorsed partnerships. 2.5 FAOs cooperation in the Sub region: FAO/SLC is an important partner in the process to achieve development and competitiveness in Caribbean agriculture sector. The best results have been realized in collaboration in the areas of food and nutrition security, agriculture health and food safety, sustainable land and water issues including forest and watershed planning and in emergencies usually following hurricanes. Other partnerships critical to the development of Caribbean agriculture have been in initiatives to improve risk management focusing heavily on natural disasters, and praedial larceny, as well as efforts to increase production, productivity and marketing in food production systems through technology application and the development of value chains. Key international partners outside of the UN System include those which fall under the FAO Cooperative Agreements with the Governments of Italy, Cuba, China and the European Union. Other partners include IFAD, the Netherlands, and CIDA. FAOs main role is the identification and provision of technical expertise and facilitation of processes to mobilize resources for development including access to FAO technical services on behalf of countries or the sub region. The Caribbean subregion has also benefited from FAO programs that foster participation in the benefits of many of the Conventions including the CBD, UNCCD, POPs, PIC, CCRF, WECAFC, IPPC, LACFC and ISPS. 2.6 Main challenges and opportunities in FAOs area of competence: The main challenges to Caribbean agriculture in FAO s area of competence are (a) production and marketing constraints that hamper the achievement of self sufficiency in food production and nutrition security coupled with household food insecurity resulting from income poverty, (b) risks associated with frequent passage of hurricanes causing serious damage to agriculture lands, crops, livestock, fisheries, biodiversity, agro ecological systems and agriculture infrastructure coupled with the increasing evidence of threats of water scarcity from climate change and climate variability, (c) the frequent incidence of invasive alien species, and (d) the use of incentives which have not been sufficient to encourage application of modern production, business and information technology in public/private sector partnerships in agri food enterprises. In addition data 15

16 management, monitoring and evaluation systems are not generating and communicating the quality of information to influence strategies or to take corrective actions to during policy implementation. Against this background good opportunities exist for FAO/SLC to bring to bear its competences and experiences in food production and nutrition security, mainstreaming of best practices in disaster risk reduction specifically in the situation of hurricanes; sustainable management of land, water and biodiversity and improved responses to climate change and climate variability; measures to establish and improve SPS systems; capacity building in systems for data management, information generation and knowledge management for articulating policy, strategic options and advice. Advocacy and communication, strengthened partnerships and alliances are also areas where FAO can assist. 3. Priorities of FAO Technical Assistance The priorities of the FAO technical assistance in the SMTPF are influenced by the trends in Caribbean agriculture, especially the strategic actions observed in the CPFs, Caribbean sub region cooperation on areas affecting sustainable agriculture and intra regional trade, and the related subregional priorities and associated organizational results identified in the FAO Medium Term Plan for the Latin America and the Caribbean Strategic Frameworks influencing the SMPTF Priorities: The point of departure for shaping the SMPTF was the Medium Term Plan and Programme of Work and Budget endorsed by the FAO Conference. To differentiate the Caribbean strategic actions and priorities consideration was given to Caribbean policy positions emerging from 5CARICOM, the OECS Economic Union and the 6Treaty on Agriculture, the priorities of the ACS and the work of the Special Committee on Disaster Risk Reduction and the recognition given to cooperation on trade, and the CARICOM/SICA discussions (2007) to expand trade between the two hemispheric regions and increase further cooperation on environment and disaster mitigation. The SMPTF also takes into consideration the priorities of the sub region that emerged from the reviews of the CPFs. A summary of the actions and results provided by ten of the countries in the sub region (Annex 1) reveal the priorities to be in three broad areas: 5 Jagdeo Initiative (2005) which describes a strategy for removing the key constraints to the development of Caribbean agriculture, the Liliendaal Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security and on Climate Change (2009), the Community Agriculture Policy (CAP 2010) and the Regional Food and Nutrition Security Policy (RFNSP 2011). 6 Modernization of all aspects of agriculture development to include value added and primary products of soil, livestock and fisheries under broad areas of policy, natural resources management, incentives, production and product development 16

17 (a) climate change (mitigation and adaptation), sustainable agriculture and natural resources management in two inter related areas; capacity building in response to the CCRF with emphasis on ecological sustainability and strategies to reduce the negative impact of variability in rainfall intensity and pattern, on land, water and biodiversity, also with emphasis on ecological stability. In respect of the fisheries the specific request of the countries is for the introduction or improvement of strategies to conserve, rehabilitate and sustain coastal and marine zones and livelihoods from the impact of climate change and pollution from land based activities and to reduce the pressure on fisheries through value addition, the upgrade of quality assurance systems and legislation to facilitate higher levels of productivity. It is important to note the inter relatedness between rainfall intensities, land use activities and pollution and silting in coastal and marine zones reported in many of the documents. (b) Food and nutrition security with emphasis in two areas; actions to increase production and productivity in livestock development with a focus on small ruminants and capacity building in the Ministries of Agriculture and selected farmer associations in policy analysis, strategic planning and monitoring as well as access to reliable food and nutrition security data. Value chains development was another area selected by some countries in the CPFs. During the participatory discussions contributing to the preparation of the SMPTF it was agreed that the emphasis should be on productive activities in mini, micro and small agri processing industries for rural employment and food security. (c) Improvements in measures to satisfy sanitary and phytosanitary standards. Specifically to upgrade and strengthen quarantine services including pest risk analysis, enhance emergency response, monitoring and early warning for alien invasive species, IPM and the promotion of grades and standards for food safety Priorities and overall objective: Based on the foregoing the SMPTF has adopted the three priorities described above as collectively they represent the most urgent policy positions on the agriculture agenda for the Caribbean (climate change, food and nutrition security and the removal of constraints to cooperation on trade by improving measures to fully satisfy sanitary and phytosanitary requirements in all of the countries). The overall objective of the technical assistance to be provided is to facilitate improvements to (i) strengthen disaster risk reduction strategies (mitigation and adaptation) to address climate change and climate variability and the sustainable development of agriculture and natural resources (including biodiversity) focusing on the fisheries and on sustainable land and water ecosystem, (ii) improve the state of Caribbean food and nutrition security through actions to enhance capacities in policy analysis and formulation and the preparation of strategic actions for food and nutrition security and with better access to quality data for updates and monitoring of the state of food security in the sub region, (iii) build Caribbean capacity to increase livestock productivity and production over the longer term through technology application and cooperation between Caribbean and the rest of Latin America, and (iv) achieve greater compliance in the agriculture health and food safety standards with a focus on ISPS 17

18 measures that strengthen quarantine services, reduce the incidence of alien invasive species and encourage intra regional trade Sub regional Medium Term Priority 1: Climate change (mitigation and adaptation) and sustainable development of agriculture and natural resources (including biodiversity): The serious concerns on climate change within the Caribbean sub region are reflected in the commonalities of the approach adopted by the countries of the CARICOM and the broader program of the ACS and the FAO supported programs for LAC. Adaptation and mitigation strategies are the common approaches in all institutions. In this respect the strategic development agenda of the CCCCC/Special Committee on Disaster Risk Reduction with objective to mainstream climate change adaptation strategies into the sustainable development agendas of the CARICOM is of interest to the SMPTF. Of equal interest are the CARICOM/SICA discussions to cooperate on joint actions to reduce the impact of hurricanes, the PISLM/UNCCD Caribbean sub program to promote and develop strategic adaptation and mitigation actions for sustainable land management and water resources and the Work Plan of the Caribbean Subregional Group of the LACFC in the areas of governance for watershed land use planning and sustainable community forestry. The strategic actions above offer good opportunities for cooperation and partnerships as they can enhance the effectiveness of the FAO technical assistance towards the reduction of the impact of climate change and climate variability on loss of agro biodiversity and productive capacity in agroecological systems, marine resources and loss of lives and livelihoods in fishing/farming/forest communities. Similarly strategic actions mentioned in the document that can contribute to the removal of the threat of water scarcity in rain fed agriculture are of interest to this priority area. In formulating the FAO technical assistance it is important to note that in many of the countries of the Caribbean, agriculture shares much of the responsibility for creating pre conditions that cause the devastating impact of climate change and climate variability on land and marine resource base, by virtue of poor land use practices. There is good evidence that poor land use practices are contributing to loss of biodiversity, land movements in forested areas and runoff devastation in the coastal and marine ecosystems during the increasingly intense periods of rainfall attributed to climate variability. A major and common constraint to adherence to proper land use practices including in agriculture and forest, is the weakness in land tenure and administration. Weaknesses such as these can serve to reduce the effectiveness of legislation and objectivity in incentives to encourage good land use practices. Caribbean countries are also experiencing unusually long periods of droughts, with periods of intense rainfall often in the same growing season suggesting that there is a need to promote and develop production technologies and interventions to capture rainwater to mitigate the potential problem from water scarcity in the predominantly rain fed systems. 18

19 FAO/SLC experience in the Caribbean climate change: FAO/SLC has extensive experience in the sub region on sustainable natural resource and agriculture. FAO/SLC has also established successful collaborative and cooperative arrangements with regional organizations and mechanisms in climate change including the CCCCC, CDEMA, CARDI, and CEHI. Furthermore FAO/SLC is a partner in the Caribbean Disaster Management (CDM) Strategy including holding the position of Technical Chair of the Agriculture Disaster Risk Management Committee (TMAC/ASSC 7 ). In terms of sustainable land management and water resources FAO/SLC is an active partner the Regional Consortium for Water Management and Partnership Initiative on Sustainable Land Management 8, in which the Organization provide institutional support. In terms of fisheries FAO/SLC has worked closely with CFRM in marine fisheries policy and management and was among the lead partners in the establishment of aquaculture in the sub region. Also of interest to the SMTPF is the CRFM Strategic Action Plan and the Caribbean Community Common Fisheries Policy 2011 which pays due attention to actions in Resource Assessment and Management and to the use of precautionary and ecosystems approaches to conservation and resource management. It is important to note that the Caribbean Community Common Fisheries policy also addresses collaboration and cooperation with other national, regional and international agencies involved in fisheries, which are in the best interest of the Caribbean sub region. The FAO Western Central Atlantic Fishery Commission (WECAFC), of which most CARICOM members are also member, currently plays (and aims to do so in the future) an important role in supporting effective conservation, management and development of the living marine resources in the Caribbean region, in accordance with the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, and address common problems of fisheries management and development faced by countries in the region Objective of the technical assistance provided by the SMPTF: The objective of the FAO technical assistance will be to strengthen capacities and institutional frameworks to develop information systems to assist in decision making in DRM strategies to promote and develop sustainable land and water management in agro ecological zones, watersheds and in the fisheries. The specific objectives will be to (a) build capacity to manage data and map agro ecological zones with an emphasis on DRM strategies in order to mitigate potential for water scarcity due to rainfall variability and land degradation (b) to collect and manage data to prepare an Action Plan for Caribbean fisheries and the preparation of a project document to adopt DRM strategies in the implementation of the Action Plan and (c) the organization of a regional dialogue to strengthen the role of forestry in land use planning and the preparation and dissemination of a publication of an evaluation of community forestry in the Caribbean. The expected result would be an improved data management and information platform from which to establish a mechanism in the Caribbean to share knowledge in DRM and other effective 7 Agriculture Disaster Risk Management Committee. 8 Regional Consortium for Water Management and the Partnership for Integrated Sustainable Land Management are Caribbean programs under the UNCCD, and comprise membership of all the countries under the FAO/SLC. 19

20 adaptation and mitigation strategies to reduce the impact of climate change and climate variability on the ecological sustainability of land and water for agriculture, forests and watersheds and the marine fisheries Sub regional Medium Term Priority 2. Food and Nutrition Security: Food and nutrition situation in the Caribbean Sub region is characterized primarily by a growing food import bill, unacceptable levels of household poverty in some countries, and high levels of NCDs, in particular diabetes (including diabetes in children) and cardiovascular diseases.the 2007/2008 food crisis highlighted the urgent need to maximize food production in the Caribbean to meet food security and nutrition needs, address poverty alleviation as well as income and employment generation. Since then a more coordinated framework in developing and implementing appropriate policies, programs and incentives in support of the sector s development has been pursued. New data to support the current situation is unavailable as the most recent sub regional studies on vulnerability to food security predate the food crisis. What is known is that except for Guyana and Belize all the countries of the sub region are net food importers with food importation as high as 75 80% in parts of the OECS sub group. Meat and meat products make up the bulk of the sub regional food importation bill. Food prices rise have proven to be persistent and creeping but can be significant at individual country level as at least one country recorded a 25% increase in the first quarter of Other worrying factors include a situation of shrinking of land for agriculture, and declines in the proportion of rural persons engaged in active agriculture and food production. In most cases just about 22% of rural population is engaged in active food production, on average land in active production vary from 5% to 62% of available land and there are cases where less than 50% of irrigated land is under active production. In this regard it may be said that the current actions to secure food selfsufficiency are not enough to mobilize Caribbean private sector resources for increased food production. Furthermore that cooperation at the sub regional level to reduce poverty and by extension household food insecurity may be experiencing more success in income generation and sustainable livelihoods outside of the food production sector and this is being reflected in growing food importation in the subregion. The declines in active participation of rural people in agriculture and the unacceptable levels of income would suggest there is an important gap to be filled through data collection and analyses that can provide the Governments of the Caribbean sub region with recommendations that allow them to incorporate food security into the poverty reduction strategies. The objective would be to reengage rural/farming populations or family farmers in productive activities based on primary production and initial processing. These activities are often attractive to women and youth and find significance in the fact that many of the recent Population Censuses are indicating rural poverty and higher levels among women and youth. An approach could be the organization of a sub regional forum that supports a policy position and strategy for increased capacities in small, mini and micro industries based on targeted agriculture, forestry and fisheries resources. In this respect the crops and livestock in the FBDGs developed by FAO and endorsed by several Governments and the food security basket of crops, livestock and fish proposed by other countries could form the basis for some of the commodities. Two important considerations must be that the commodities selected should have some economies of scale based on local/regional 20

21 production and that the process of capacity building assures growth of enterprises with considerations for sustainable livelihoods of rural communities. A major concern for the sub region is global competitiveness from imported processed and fresh food. In this regard the capacity building must also include facilities to assure quality standards as a marketing tool embracing health and packaging FAO/SLC experience in Caribbean food security: FAO/SLC has had a long history of collaboration in Caribbean food security. At the start of the food price crisis the Organization was already collaborating with several Caribbean sub regional organizations in the implementation of the first phase of a regional food security programme. FAO studies conducted in collaboration with CFNI using 2005 data are still the best assessment of the region s vulnerability to food insecurity prior to the food price hike. Another study 9 on the impact of food price rise indicated that all the countries would have been affected and in many situations there were threefold increase in the food and agri inputs prices. The Organization continues to work at the producers level focusing on increase production and productivity in small scale production systems (family farming), capacity building in value chains in selected commodities, strengthened market linkages and employment creation in rural areas. FBDGs have been endorsed, published and promoted in the majority of the countries and collaboration strengthened between the Ministries of Health and Nutrition and Education in efforts to change life styles and diets. The 2011 RFNSP and Action Plan prepared in collaboration with CARICOM has been endorsed as the unique framework document for the formulation of national FNSP and Action Plans in 14 of the Caribbean countries. However the Policy and Action Plan are is founded in the four dimensions of food security and are, therefore good instruments for dialogue on cooperation in all 16 countries under the FAO/SLC Objective of the technical assistance provided in the SMPTF: The objective of the FAO assistance will be to improve food and nutrition security through better data management and information, the establishment of a Caribbean Forum for knowledge sharing and to provide a technical resource base to assist countries in policy formulation, strategic planning and monitoring and the introduction of selected production technologies. Specifically the technical assistance will (a) establish a web based food and nutrition security information system for the Caribbean, (b) provide capacity building to create a team of technicians to provide the human resource base for the Forum, (c) build capacities in the livestock sector for subregional and hemispheric cooperation in livestock development including technology transfer with a view to increase sub regional production in meats and meat products in order to reduce the food import bill, and (d) document experiences in small, mini and micro agro industries in poverty reduction strategies and prepare a sub regional programme to re engage rural/farming communities (family farmers) in active productive chains in fish and fisheries products, forestry, livestock and crops. The expected result is a coordinated and comprehensive approach to Caribbean food and nutrition security embracing knowledge management and sharing for national policy formulation, 9 Impact of High Food Prices in the Caribbean 21