GEORGETOWN, Guyana – The Guyana-based Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat Monday said it has signed a cooperation agreement with the Central American Agricultural Council (CAC) to improve agricultural development in the 15-member grouping.
CARICOM Secretary General Dr. Carla Barnett (left) signing agreement with CAC executive secretary Lucrecia Rodríguez Peñalba, (CARICOM Secretariat photo)It said that the agreement will also allow for strengthening agriculture trade ties between CARICOM and the Central American Integration System (SICA).
CARICOM Secretary-General, Dr. Carla Barnett and CAC’s executive secretary, Lucrecia Rodríguez Peñalba, signed the agreement “which entered into force immediately (and) stemmed from the CARICOM-SICA Plan of Action which Foreign Ministers of the two regions signed in Belize on 2 March 2022”.
The Secretariat said that the agreement marks a milestone in the relationship between CARICOM and the CAC and focuses on promoting programmes, projects, and mechanisms that drive agricultural and rural development in SICA and CARICOM.
The agreement covers key areas such as climate-adapted sustainable agriculture, food security, agricultural productivity, digitalisation in agriculture, and regional agricultural trade. It is expected that this agreement will also promote the reduction of tariffs, improve infrastructure and logistical capacities, foster public-private partnerships, strengthen sub-regional value chains, and enhance food security in both regions.
“The signing of this agreement demonstrates our shared commitment to working together to address the common challenges we face in the agricultural and trade sectors,’ said Barnett, while Peñalba said the accord “represents a significant step towards improving our food systems, adapting to climate change, and strengthening family farming in our regions”.
The Secretariat said that the agreement “reflects the commitment of both organisations to work together to achieve sustainable agricultural and rural development in Central America and the Caribbean”.
