The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture and the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Disaster and Humanitarian Response agreed to pursue regional coordination on farm resilience and food supplies, prioritizing New World Screwworm control and El Niño preparedness.
IICA said Senior Bureau Official Ryan Shrum visited its headquarters and met Director General Muhammad Ibrahim. The institute’s announcement, posted on its site Oct. 26, said the two agreed to work toward a concrete agenda.
The discussions looked beyond emergency relief to recovery of agricultural production. IICA said hurricanes, drought and El Niño can damage crops, livestock, irrigation and markets, and argued that restoring production quickly can help communities feed themselves and reduce reliance on outside assistance.
IICA said its presence in 34 Member States and its direct ties with each country’s agriculture minister could help the partners coordinate responses to El Niño and address animal and plant health threats that cross borders. The institute identified a DHR-funded New World Screwworm response spanning eight countries in Mexico and Central America as an example of their cooperation, saying it is intended to contain the pest at its source and protect producers in the region and the United States.
The announcement did not disclose a new funding amount, a timetable for completing the agenda or a signed agreement. It said further coordination on El Niño was needed.
