CATIE and IICA strengthen their cooperation to promote agriculture and education in the Americas

• The alliance marks the beginning of a new phase of joint work, with an emphasis on research, capacity building, and regional cooperation

CATIE (Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center) and the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) have initiated a new phase of strategic cooperation following a meeting between Dr. Muhammad Ibrahim, Director General of IICA, and Dr. Luis Pocasangre, Director General of CATIE. Among the points discussed, the following stand out:

1. The strategic importance of higher education was highlighted for the training of regional leaders at CATIE’s Graduate School, as it is the oldest in tropical agriculture and has trained more than 3,000 Masters of Science from 47 countries across five continents.
2. The complementarity between IICA and CATIE was emphasized in organizing consortia to seek new funding to support research and innovation in tropical agriculture in the Latin America and Caribbean region.
3. The importance of developing a strategic plan to support the Caribbean region (CARICOM, OECS) in education, research, and training was agreed upon, in cooperation with the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI).
4. The importance of working jointly with IICA’s regional offices in its 34 member countries and CATIE’s 13 member countries in the Latin America and Caribbean region was discussed.
5. It was agreed to cooperate in the joint organization of international scientific and technical conferences. For example, the Wallace Scientific Conference on One Health, to be held from March 3 to 5 at CATIE, Turrialba, in tribute to Mr. Henry Wallace, Vice President of the United States and founder of both institutions.

In this regard, Dr. Pocasangre noted that this strategic alliance with IICA consolidates a shared vision to strengthen research, education, and regional cooperation. “Working together will allow us to expand our impact and contribute more effectively to the sustainable development of agriculture in the Americas,” he stated.

This renewed cooperation between IICA and CATIE lays the foundation for long-term collaboration, aimed at generating comprehensive solutions and strengthening the institutional and human capacities required by the region’s agri-food sector.