High-Level Regional Meeting on Food Security in Latin America and the
Caribbean
High-Level
Regional Meeting on Food Security
in Latin America and the Caribbean
Venue:
Permanent Secretariat of SELA
Torre Europa, 5th floor,
Caracas,
Bolivarian Republic
Venezuela
Caracas, 30 May 2008
Background |
Objectives |
Expected Results
Activities
|
Provisional Agenda
|
Documentation
|
Organization
|
Date and Venue
Contacts
|
Languages
|
Hotels
|
Official
Foreign Exchange Rate
Transport
|
Migration Information
|
Photo gallery
Background
-
The strong
increase in food prices has become a global challenge which has a dramatic
impact on the poorest citizens of the world. Such a challenge has various
consequences, but the most serious one is an evident and unprecedented food
crisis affecting the most vulnerable sectors of society. For this reason, the UN
Secretary-General warned recently – at the end of a meeting of top-ranking
officials in charge of twenty-seven programmes, agencies and international funds
of the UN System in Bern – that “the ghost of hunger is haunting us”.
-
In March 2008,
the price index calculated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the
United Nations (FAO) – which takes into account the variations in the prices of
cereals, dairy products, meat, sugar and oils – increased by 57% with respect to
the level they were in March 2007. December 2007 saw a record high monthly
increase in food prices in almost 20 years. According to FAO figures, there are
three food groups, which clearly reflect the increase registered over the last
few months: cereals, with an increase of 41%, vegetable
oils, with a 60% increase, and dairy products with an 83% increase.
Additionally, international food reserves are in their lowest level since 1980.
This situation has severely affected the UN World Food Programme (WFP), which is
responsible for providing foodstuff to nearly 73 million people living in
critical situation. According to the WFP General Director, Josette Sheeran, at
present, the Programme is able to provide only slightly over 60% of the aid
supplied last year. According to the World Bank, this would increase the total
number of people suffering from hunger by approximately 100 million persons this
year.
-
This crisis is
the result of a great number of factors, among them: i) the climate change –
which have provoked both droughts and floods – and their adverse effects on the
world agricultural production capacity; ii) the rise in fuel prices with its
subsequent remarkable increases in costs involved in producing, transporting and
storing food products; iii) the increased use of agricultural lands for crops to
produce biofuels; iv) the exaggerated speculation in financial and raw material
markets; v) the considerable increase seen in the demand for certain food
products in emerging markets, mainly China and India; vi) the mortgage crisis in
the United States – with repercussions on other countries and markets – and its
subsequent increase in the valuation of futures in commodities markets; and vii)
the still high levels of subsidies and protectionist measures for farming
activities mainly in industrialized countries, which contributes to keep high
prices in world markets for foodstuffs. Paradoxically, and due to structural
restrictions and political errors, farm producers in developing countries –
mostly in the case of small-scale farmers and poor families which depend on
agricultural activities – have not benefited from the increase in demand and
prices of agricultural products; and therefore they do not feel encouraged
enough to proportionally increase their production levels.
-
The response to
the current crisis must necessarily include urgent measures in the short term,
but at the same time they must be accompanied by medium- and long-term
solutions. The strategies for confronting the causes and manifestations of this
crisis must be established at the national level, but also – and most of all –
at the multilateral and regional levels. FAO is convening the “High-Level
Conference on Food Security, Climate Change and Bioenergy”, to be held in its
headquarters in Rome in early June 2008, whereas the UN Secretary-General has
decided to create an emergency unit to face the food crisis, under the direction
of highest-ranking official in the area of humanitarian aid area within the
organization: John Holmes, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs.
-
As a region, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) has had a rapid response
to this problem, creating agencies in several nations for coordinating and
outlining responses with the participation of government institutions and
private sector representatives. At the bilateral, plurilateral, subregional
and regional level, steps have also been taken to use and activate existing
coordination mechanisms within integration agencies, and at the same time
cooperation actions have been promoted among LAC countries, including:
-
The XXX FAO
Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean, which took place from
14 to 18 April 2008 in Brasilia, dealt with the problem of hunger in the region
and it established that eradicating this scourge is not only an ethical
obligation but a possible goal. Particularly, the conference analysed the
functioning of the Initiative “No hunger in Latin America and the Caribbean” and
identified specific problems related to Food and Nutritional Security in the
present situation;
-
In Central
America, a Regional Agro-environmental and Health Strategy (ERA) was defined,
whose actions focus on identifying the interrelations among economic, social and
environmental factors directly affecting food and nutritional security and
sustainable human development in the region. Similarly, the Regional Program for
Food Security for Central America (PRESANCA) has been promoted, and
complementary joint actions are being outlined which should be considered within
the framework of the emergency plan to intensify the production of basic grains
and to face the global crisis of food prices, upon a proposal made by the
Central American Agricultural Council;
-
During a Special
Summit held on 21 and 22 April 2008 in Caracas, the member countries of the
Bolivarian Alternative for the Peoples of Our Americas (ALBA) signed an
Agreement for the Implementation of Cooperation Programmes in the area of
Sovereignty and Food Security, in order to implement integral agro-industrial
development programmes to produce cereals, leguminous, oilseeds, meat and milk,
and to build potable water and irrigation systems. They also agreed to creation
the Food Commercialization Network of ALBA and the Fund for Food Security of
ALBA, with an initial capital of US$ 100 million;
-
In the case of
Andean Community countries, decisions have been made with a view to
strengthening the Regional Strategy for Food Security in the Andean Community
countries;
-
The Caribbean
Community (CARICOM) has been analyzing the implications
that the new international scenario would have on the Regional Caribbean
Programme for Food Security. Participants in the preparatory meeting for the XI
Session of the Council for Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR) of CARICOM,
which was held in Antigua in mid-April 2008, agreed that climate change and food
security, as well as the community’s relations with third countries, would be at
the top in the list of high-priority issues to be dealt with as part of the
agenda for the upcoming ministerial meeting, scheduled to take place on 8 and 9
May 2008;
-
Additionally,
upon an initiative of President Daniel Ortega, the member countries of ALBA and
other Central American and Caribbean nations held on 25 and 26 April 2008, in
Managua, a Meeting on Food Sovereignty and Emergency, with the participation of
representatives of Belize, Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti,
Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Dominican Republic and Venezuela. They agreed to
establish a regional alliance to face the global food crisis. At the end of the
meeting, a consensus was reached on various proposals for cooperation in the
area, which were submitted for
consideration of the Presidential Summit on this problem,
held on 7 May 2008 in Managua;
-
For their part,
Ecuador and Venezuela signed a Convention on Food Security and Sovereignty,
which defines policies to exchange foodstuffs and develop programmes in
accordance with the needs of each nation;
-
The Foreign Ministers of the Republics of El Salvador and Colombia,
and the Minister of Agriculture of Colombia, exchanged their views
on food security at the global level, making emphasis on the
importance of undertaking actions to safeguard food security in both
countries. In this connection, they recognized the need to undertake
concrete actions in the short term, signing an official Declaration
on the subject in late April 2008.
Bearing this in
mind, and considering that the fundamental purposes of SELA are to provide a
system of consultation and coordination for the adoption of common positions and
strategies on economic and social matters, and to promote intra-regional
cooperation among its Member States, it is necessary to hold an urgent,
high-level meeting to analyze, exchange views and propose actions with a Latin
American and Caribbean scope, in order to face the current global food crisis by
resorting to regional cooperation mechanisms.
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Objectives of the
regional meeting of SELA
-
To analyze
the likely impacts and possible responses at the regional level to face the
current crisis resulting from the increase in international prices of
foodstuffs and agricultural raw materials, from a Latin American and
Caribbean perspective.
-
To
coordinate common positions for Latin America and the Caribbean ahead of
FAO’s “High-Level Conference on Food Security, Climate Change and Bioenergy”,
scheduled to be held from 3 to 5 June 2008 in Rome.
-
To identify
lines of action to establish a Regional Cooperation Programme for Food
Security in Latin America and the Caribbean, which would be coordinated by
SELA, along with other regional and multilateral organizations, which should
be approved by the Member States in the next Latin American Council
scheduled for November 2008
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Expected Results
-
Identification of the main effects that the current food has or might have
on Latin American and Caribbean nations.
-
Exchange of
information among the Member States of SELA on the most recent strategies,
the national projects and the projects with a regional scope, which are
being implemented to face the challenges stemming from the food crisis.
-
Outlining
of proposals which could serve to establish a regional common position for
Latin America and the Caribbean vis-à-vis FAO’s Summit on Food Security,
scheduled to be held in Rome, from to 5 June 2008.
-
Preparation and approval of lines of
action for a Regional Cooperation Programme on Food Security for Latin
America and the Caribbean (LAC), to be
considered
by the Member States
during the Latin American Council scheduled for November 2008.
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Activities
|
Activities |
Approximate dates |
|
|
28
April to 2 May 2008 |
|
|
2 May
to 7 May 2008 |
|
|
7 May
2008 |
|
|
5 May
to 9 May 2008 |
|
|
9 May
2008 |
It is
particularly important to ensure commitments from high-level representatives of
FAO, WFP, IICA, WTO, ECLAC and PAHO so that they participate in the meeting
organized by SELA. Similar commitments should be ensured so that a top-level
representative of the new UN emergency unit to face the food crisis, under the
direction of John Holmes, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs,
attends the meeting.
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Provisional Agenda
Friday, 30 May
2008
|
Morning |
Presiding:
His Excellency, Mr. Gerónimo Cardozo, Chairman of the Latin American
Council of SELA and Ambassador of the Eastern Republic of Uruguay
|
|
08:30 a.m. – 09:00 a.m. |
Registration of participants and accreditation
|
|
09:00 a.m. – 09:30 a.m. |
Opening ceremony
|
|
09:30 a.m. – 09:45 a.m. |
Coffee
break
|
|
09:45 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. |
Debate
|
|
11:00 p.m. – 12:00 p.m. |
Perspective of some multilateral organizations
|
|
12:00 p.m. – 01:00 p.m. |
Debate
|
|
01:00 p.m. – 02:30 p.m. |
Free time for lunch
|
|
Afternoon |
Presiding:
His Excellency, Mr. Keith Franklin, Second Vice-Chairman of the Latin
American Council of SELA and Ambassador of Barbados
|
|
03:00 p.m. – 04:00 p.m. |
Perspective of some regional organizations
|
|
04:00 p.m. – 04:30 p.m. |
Debate
|
|
04:30 p.m. – 05:30 p.m. |
Proposals and debate on possible lines of action for a
Regional Cooperation Programme on Food Security
|
|
05:30 p.m. – 06:00 p.m. |
Coffee
break
|
|
06:00 p.m. – 06:30 p.m. |
Summary and
Conclusions
|
|
06:30 p.m. – 07:30 p.m. |
Cocktail
|
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Documentation
Final Report on the High-Level Regional
Meeting on Food Security in Latin America and the Caribbean
SP/RRAN-SAALC/IF- 08
Informative Document
SP/RRAN-SAALC/Di
N° 1-08
Agenda - High-Level Regional Meeting on Food Security in Latin America
and the Caribbean
SP/RRAN-SAALC/DT
N° 1-08/Rev 2
The increase in food prices: SELA’s response
SP/RRAN-SAALC/DT N° 2-08
Presentación del
documento “El alza de los precios de los alimentos: Una Respuesta del SELA”
Embajador José Rivera Banuet, Secretario
Permanente
SP/RRAN-SAALC/Di No. 3-08/Rev 1
Palabras del Embajador Gerónimo Cardozo
Embajador de la República Oriental del Uruguay
y Presidente del Consejo Latinoamericano del SELA
SP/RRAN-SAALC/Di N° 4-08
La respuesta del IICA al aumento en los
precios de los alimentos
Instituto Interamericano de Cooperación para la Agricultura (IICA)
SP/RRAN-SAALC/Di N° 5-08
Soaring Food Prices –Implications for the
Most Vulnerable
Gordana Jerger, Latin America and the Caribbean Regional Bureau - World Food
Programme
SP/RRAN-SAALC/Di N° 6-08
Precios altos de los alimentos: sus causas y
efectos
Roberto Arias Milla, Organización de las las Naciones Unidas para la
Agricultura y la Alimentación (FAO)
SP/RRAN-SAALC/Di N° 7-08
Crisis de Alimentos Salud, Nutrición,
Desarrollo
Renato Gusmão, Organización Panamericana de la Salud
SP/RRAN-SAALC/Di N° 8-08
Speech by Ambassador Odeen Ishmael of the
Republic of Guyana
SP/RRAN-SAALC/Di N° 9-08
Lista de Participantes/List of Participants
SP/RRAN-SAALC/Di N° 10-08
Organization
Permanent
Secretariat of the Latin American and Caribbean Economic System (SELA).
Director of Integration and Cooperation Relations (http://www.sela.org)
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Date and Venue
Headquarters
of the Permanent Secretariat of SELA
Av. Francisco
de Miranda, Torre Europa, Fifth Floor,
Campo Alegre
Caracas,
Venezuela
30 May 2008
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Contacts
Permanent Secretariat of the Latin American and Caribbean Economic System (SELA)
http://www.sela.org
Coordination
at the Permanent Secretariat of SELA
Dr. Antonio Romero, Director of Integration and
Cooperation Relations - email:
aromero@sela.org
Patricia de Larrosa,
Coordinating
Secretary - email:
plarrosa@sela.org
Telephones: 58-212-9557121 / 9557115 / 9557111;
Fax: (+58-212) 951.52.92 / 69.01
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Languages
The
official languages of
this Regional Meeting will be Spanish and English.
There will be simultaneous interpretation.
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Hotels
With regard to
hotel accommodation in Caracas, the Permanent Secretariat of SELA would be
grateful if each participant chooses the hotel of his/her preference. In this
connection, a list of recommended hotels for your security and proximity to
SELA’s headquarters is provided: (List
of Hotels). Please contact
Mrs. Cora Romero, Travel and Arrangements Official of SELA (Telephones: (58-212)
9557111 and 9557124; Faxes: (58-212) 9516901 and 9515292; e-mail:
cromero@sela.org) for hotel reservations
arrangements.
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Official
Foreign Exchange Rate
The local
currency redenomination process came into force on 1 January 2008, therefore,
all amounts presented will be expressed in "Bolivares Fuertes" or "Strong
Bolivars" which is equivalent to US$ 2.15 per dollar.
It should
be highlighted that, as set out in the Official Gazette of the
Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela No. 38.272, the “Law against Illegal
Exchange” came into force on 14 October 2005.
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Transport
The cost for the taxi service from the International Simón Bolívar
Airport, Maiquetía, to Caracas and vice versa, is approximately Bs.F.
120,00 by way (equivalent to
US$ 56.00 approximately), payable in national currency (Strong
Bolivars).
There are buses, nevertheless it
is recommended to hire the cabs attached to the Airport which are duly
identified. Authorized cabs can be easily identified since their colours
are black with yellow logotypes printed on the doors. They can be hired
after leaving the building of the airport terminal.
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Migration Information for
Entering Venezuela
Except for
special cases, currently, entry into Venezuela of all nationalities is allowed.
Nevertheless, for security purposes, it is recommended that information on
migration for entry into the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela should be
consulted previously by contacting the Embassies of Venezuela in the countries
of origin or downloading the Web site of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs:
http://www.mre.gob.ve/metadot/index.pl?id=2871&isa=Category&op=show
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Photo gallery
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