The Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Enterprise in collaboration with the Food & Agriculture Organization signed today the Country Programming Framework (CPF) 2022 – 2026.

This strategic document presents the Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) key areas of technical cooperation, and medium-term country-level programming in support of the Government of Belize. The document was developed within the framework of the United Nations programming processes, including the UN-Common Country Analysis and the United Nations Multi-Country Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework for the Caribbean and the global Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

The CPF also reflects on the country’s Plan Belize, and COVID-19 Economy Recovery Strategy along with other national and strategic documents related to agriculture, food and nutritional security and rural development. The CPF 2022 – 2026 sets out the lines of cooperation that FAO will provide over the next four years and is aimed at advancing Belize’s national development priorities with in three strategic areas of work.

These strategic areas include:

i. inclusive food systems for eradication of malnutrition and food insecurity towards providing healthy diets for all

ii. sustainable and inclusive agri-food systems and agricultural value chains to achieve prosperous and inclusive rural societies

iii. and resilience to climate and economic shocks through sustainable natural resources management.

The intended changes will be realized by strengthening the capacity of government stakeholders such as extension officers to support farmers to supply local markets and social protection programs such as the school feeding program. The focus will be placed on developing and implementing policy frameworks and accountability mechanisms to enable access by all to safe and nutritious foods, end hunger and all forms of malnutrition as well as Improving institutional capacities to enhance nutrition awareness to reduce the incidence of Non communicable diseases.

The Strategic Areas of Work as identified in CPF 2022 – 2026 will benefit from best practices developed by FAO at the national and regional levels as well as international technical standards promoted by FAO in its member countries. FAO will maximize its comparative advantage, leverage synergies, and increase effectiveness in collaboration with other United Nations agencies.

Present at the signing was Minister of Agriculture the Hon. Jose Abelardo Mai, FAO Representative for Jamaica, the Bahamas, and Belize Dr. Crispim Morreira, Birgit Gerstenberg UN Resident Coordinator in Belize, Tracey Hutchinson Strategic Planning officer and the Republic of El Salvador, and other Senior Agricultural staff.

Today the Minister of Agriculture, Hon. Jose Mai, along with the FAO Representative for Jamaica, the Bahamas, and Belize, Dr. Crispin Moreira and Chief Education Officer Ms. Yolanda Gongora visited the Guinea Grass Roman Catholic School to get a firsthand look at the feeding program implemented in the school.

This feeding program comes through the collaboration of the Governments of Belize and Mexico and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), as part of a program where 488 primary school students are receiving a free, healthy meal daily.

As a part of the initiative, six schools in Belize received infrastructure upgrades to existing kitchens or conversion of spaces into kitchens and outfitting with new appliances such as refrigerators, freezers, stoves, and utensils like pans, pots, serving tools and baking materials. In addition, the Ministry of Education is providing ongoing funding for the purchasing of provisions for the feeding program. Schools benefiting from these upgrades include Biscayne Government School, Chan Chen Government School, Guinea Grass RC, Lucky Strike Government School, Santa Martha Government School and San Joaquin RC.

Present at the visit was also Chief Agriculture Officer Dr. Victoriano Pascual; National School Feeding Project Coordinator Mrs. Kathleen Juan, and other technical officers from the Ministry of Agriculture.

The second project will focus on the Digital Agriculture Services for a Sustainable & Inclusive Agri-food System and Value Chain. The purpose of this project is for sustainable, efficient and inclusive agri-food systems and agricultural value chains to achieve prosperous rural societies.

Present at the launching was Minister Hon. Jose Mai, FAO Representative for Jamaica, the Bahamas and Belize Dr. Crispim Morreira, Chief Executive Officer Servulo Baeza, Chief Agriculture Officer Dr. Victoriano Pascual and other Senior Agricultural staff.

The Agroclimatic Technical Tables (MTA) was established for decision-making based on real technical information oriented to exchange agroclimatic data, dissemination of the results obtained and the use of methods and tools to manage risks and losses due to climate change.

The discussion focused on how this climate information becomes bulletins for producers to mitigate risks, create an early warning system, generate capacities and promote participation of more people in the sector.

In the experience of the SICA General Secretariat region, there are 37 Agroclimatic Technical Tables that are generating agroclimatic information for decision-making by producers of these, 13 are in Honduras, 19 in Guatemala and 5 in Panama, and it is expected that in the medium term they can be implemented in the other countries.

CEO Servulo Baeza is in Egypt as part of a delegation of Ministers and Vice-Ministers of the Consejo Agropecuario Centroamericano (CAC-Central American Agricultural Council) attending COP27.  The Central American leaders will discuss issues such as sustainable agriculture and effects of climate change.

The delegates will participate in at least 15 high level panel discussions, round table discussions, and conversations. These meetings will serve to present and discuss challenges and situations faced by member nations of SICA/CAC in developing sustainable and efficient agricultural systems.

This is the first time a high-level delegation of agriculture ministers and officials of this region participates in COP discussions, and Central American nations hope they can sensitize the rest of the world to the fact that while the area is not a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions, it is an important producer of food to sustain the vulnerable population of the area and year after year has to deal with the increasing effects of climate change that threaten livelihoods.

The CAC delegation will be returning November 16 from Egypt.

Technical officers from the Ministry of Agriculture are currently attending a three-day workshop in Belize City from the 9th to 11th of November 2022, on “Generating Climate Change and Disaster Indicators for Policy Decision-making in Belize”. The event is being hosted by the Ministry of Sustainable Development, Climate Change & Disaster Risk Management (MSDCCDRM) and the Statistical Institute of Belize (SIB) in partnership with the Statistics Division and the Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC).

The goals and scope of the workshop are to:

1) Train the participants to build selected environment, climate change and disaster indicators and its metadata.

2) Identify data and capacity gaps to develop an Environmental Information System (EIS) and build a regional resilience platform.

3) Have a better understanding of how geospatial data can enhance the use of environment, climate change and disaster indicators for effective decision making.

Other participants include technical staff of national statistical offices, relevant line ministries and other institutions that produce or use environment, climate change, and disasters statistics.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Enterprise (MAFSE), in collaboration with the Taiwan ICDF Breeding Sheep and Goat Production and Guidance System Enhancement Project (Sheep Project Phase II), held an “Inauguration Ceremony of the Newly Completed Sheep Barn”, at the National Sheep and Goat Breeding Center in Central Farm, Cayo District on November 10th, 2022. Present was guest speaker Hon. José Abelardo Mai, Minister of Agriculture, Food Security and Enterprise, and H.E. David Kuan-Chou Chien, Ambassador of the Republic of China (Taiwan).

In his remarks, Minister Mai spoke about the growth of the sheep and goat livestock sub-sector and said the Taiwan Breeding Sheep and goat program has been successful so far with increases in the quality of lamb and goat meats available for consumption due to better breeds and higher local production. He said there is much more to achieve as Belize keeps an eye on export market opportunities, and asked Ambassador Chien to convey thanks to the people and government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) for their generosity in helping agriculture grow in Belize.

The facility will improve the function of the National Sheep & Goat Breeding Center by increasing the capacity of barn infrastructure from 400 sheep to 650 sheep. In addition, the related components of the new sheep barn, such as the gutter system (also known as a water harvesting system), will also enhance the management and sustainability of water utilization. It is one of the main achievements so far of the Sheep Project Phase II.

The ceremony not only marked a historical milestone of the Breeding Sheep & Goat Project in Belize but also gives evidence to the strong ties between Taiwan and Belize. The Governments of Belize and the Republic of China (Taiwan) are committed to working closely together to strengthen the sheep and goat industry of Belize by further bilateral cooperation in agriculture which will enhance the welfare of the Belizean people.

Approximately 50 people were in attendance at the ceremony, including representatives from the Belize Livestock Producers Association, OIRSA, CARDI, IICA, the University of Belize, BAHA and the Pesticides Control Board.

Minister of Agriculture, Food Security and Enterprise Hon. Jose Abelardo Mai, and His Excellency the Ambassador of the Republic of China (Taiwan), David Kuan-Chou Chien, today signed the Belize Cooperation Agreement for the execution of the “Regional Project for the Prevention and Control of Fusarium Tropical Race 4 of Banana in Central America”. The event took place at the Taiwan Technical Mission headquarters at Central Farm, Cayo District.

An investment of more than BZE 6 million dollars during the period of the project in the participating countries of Guatemala, Belize and Honduras is being invested by the International Cooperation Development Fund (ICDF) Taiwan , the International Regional Organization for Plant and Animal Health (OIRSA) and participant countries to enable capacity building, procurement of laboratory supplies and reagents, provision of sentinel farms with satellite image monitoring and introduction of varieties resistant to Foc TR4.

The project benefits the Central American countries of Guatemala, Honduras and Belize. Since September 2021, the Taiwan Mission has carried out the joint pilot project stage with OIRSA and the authorities of the three participating countries to advance studies and activities with the objective of preventing and dealing with the Foc TR4 disease of bananas, which includes international virtual forums with experts from Taiwan; face-to-face national fora; technical training sessions for the 3 countries and strengthening capacities in symptomatology and biosecurity measures. The Taiwan Space Center also cooperates with satellite monitoring of the disease through the establishment of nine sentinel points in Central America.

The cultivation of bananas and plaintains has great potential for agriculture in Central America. Fusarium Tropical Race 4 is a quarantine pest that can survive for more than 30 years in the soil and so far, no cure has been found. This plague puts at risk the food security and the economy of the productive sector of the region with an export value of more than US $ 1,500 million in 2020.

Guaranteeing food security is an objective of all countries, so the Taiwan Technical Mission in cooperation with OIRSA and the agricultural authorities in Guatemala, Belize, and Honduras is pleased through this project to share the successful experiences of Taiwan in dealing with Foc TR4.

Also participating in the signing event were Mr. Fermin Blanco, OIRSA Country Representative and Mrs. Zoe Zetina, Belize Agricultural Health Authority Managing Director.