Organization of American States Summits of the Americas
 
Follow-up and Implementation: Mandates
  

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AGRICULTURE: Agribusiness
 MANDATES

  1. To promote greater investment in, and access to, research, technological innovation, and capacity-building in order to strengthen and ensure a sustainable, comprehensive, inclusive, and competitive agro-food sector that would contribute to food security and the reduction of poverty and inequity, particularly in marginalized rural and urban areas. (Poverty, Inequality, and Inequity, Cartagena, 2012).

  1. We recognize that liberalization of trade of agricultural products constitutes, inter alia, an essential element for the development of agriculture in the countries of the Hemisphere. We therefore reaffirm our commitment to trade negotiations to promote effective access to markets (Declaration of Nuevo León, 2004).

  1. We commit to maintain a sustained effort to improve living conditions for inhabitants of rural areas, by promoting investment and creating a favorable environment to achieve sustainable improvements in agriculture that will contribute to social development, rural prosperity, and food security. In this context, we support the implementation of the AGRO 2003-2015 Plan of Action for Agriculture and Rural Life of the Americas, adopted at the Second Ministerial Meeting on Agriculture and Rural Life, held in Panama in November 2003, and we trust that the Global Forum on Biotechnology, which will take place in Chile in March 2004, will contribute to fighting hunger in the region (Declaration of Nuevo León, 2004).

  1. We commit ourselves to promote programs for the improvement of agriculture and rural life and agrobusiness as an essential contribution to poverty reduction and integral development (Declaration of Québec, 2001).

  1. Recognizing the fundamental importance of agriculture as a way of life for millions of rural families of the Hemisphere as well as the role it plays in the creation of prosperity as a strategic sector in our socio economic system and taking note of the importance of developing its potential in a manner compatible with sustainable development that would ensure adequate treatment and attention to the rural sector: (Plan of Action Québec, 2001).

  1. Support national efforts to strengthen rural enterprises, in particular small and medium sized enterprises and promote, where appropriate, a favorable environment for agri business; encourage, in a complementary manner, the training of small- and medium-sized rural entrepreneurs as well as the modernization of training institutions in this field; (Plan of Action Québec, 2001).

  1. Encourage the development of markets in the Hemisphere for goods obtained through the sustainable use of natural resources; (Plan of Action Québec, 2001).

  • II.2 Sustainable Agriculture and Forests Recognizing that the primary challenges to the attainment of sustainable development in this area include:

    • Adoption of policies aimed at promoting sustainable agriculture, conservation, and sustainable management of natural resources;

    • Development of a portfolio of agricultural production systems that seeks a lasting balance between their economic, social, and environmental components and enables farmers to enhance the value and productivity of their lands;

    • Exchange of information and experiences through formal and non-formal educational programs that emphasize the critical role of agriculture in sustainable development;

    • Development of baseline data on, and encouragement of access to, whole systems integrating research on economic, social, and environmental facets of sustainable agriculture;

    • Involvement of agricultural producers and rural communities in priority setting and program evaluation in research, education, and training and in policy development relevant to the sustainable development of agriculture;

    • Continuation, with renewed political commitment, of the international dialogue on forest issues initiated by the Intergovernmental Panel on Forests under the auspices of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development;

    • Establishment and implementation of national forest plans and programs, as appropriate to each country, as important tools for sustainable management of forests developed through participatory processes that include all interested parties and take into account the multiple environmental and socioeconomic benefits provided by forests;

    • Establishment of better forest assessment and management systems and of systems to facilitate monitoring of the sustainable management of forests so as to conserve biodiversity and maintain forest health, vitality, and productivity;

    • Promotion of intersectoral policies and land use plans, as appropriate to each country, that encourage sustainable forest management and review of existing incentives, including agricultural incentives, that may adversely affect forests;

    • Better definition, as appropriate to the legal system of each country and as necessary, of land tenure and property rights as a means to promote sustainable forest management;

    • Promotion of appropriate mechanisms for soil conservation;

    • Promotion of national forest management policies that respect and support the culture and needs of indigenous and local communities;

    • Establishment and strengthening of national systems of parks and protected areas;

    • Support for the generation of basic information on environmental criteria and indicators at all levels to evaluate progress toward sustainable management of biodiversity and the improvement of environmental statistics, in accordance with the processes which take place within the framework of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity; and

    • Conservation of biological diversity, the sustainable use of its components, and the fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources, in accordance with the provisions of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity, (Plan of Action Santa Cruz de la Sierra, 1996).

  • Initiative 10. Seek to establish, as appropriate, education, information, training, and research programs and promote the exchange of best practices, to foster innovations in agricultural technology, including models for integrated farming systems that emphasize productivity, profitability, efficiency, and environmental protection. These programs should address the needs of small-scale farmers, poverty eradication, improved nutritional standards, and food security. (Plan of Action Santa Cruz de la Sierra, 1996).

 

 
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