CATIE explores opportunities for cooperation with government authorities in the state of Chiapas

• The visit focused on identifying potential areas for technical cooperation on issues related to livestock, cocoa, coffee, and integrated watershed management.

During a recent visit to the state of Chiapas, Claudia Sepúlveda, CATIE (Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center) liaison for Mexico, held meetings with the Coordination of Advisors and Strategic Projects of the Governor's Office and with the Honorable Congress of the State of Chiapas.

The first meeting was attended by Lic. Juan Carlos Gómez A., Lic. Carlos Mario Soto P., Biól. Ricardo Hernández S, and Lic. Rafael García P, from the Coordination of Advisors and Strategic Projects, as well as Ing. César Antonio Nájera T., from the Directorate of Agri-Food Promotion and Agricultural Development of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (SAGyP). The meeting included a presentation on the research and development activities and academic programs promoted by CATIE in the region, which serve as a bastion of support for the Center's member countries, including Mexico.

For its part, the Chiapas delegation presented the strategic actions of the state executive, with Lic. Carlos Mario Soto confirming that CATIE's mission coincides with this vision. Specifically, agreement was found on issues such as watershed management, sustainable livestock farming, cocoa, coffee, and sustainable tourism, among others, in which the state would require technical cooperation.

In addition, discussions were held on the support that CATIE could provide for the management of international resources to enable the structuring of initiatives or projects that integrate the development of actions in the aforementioned production systems. Therefore, a joint effort will be made to manage international resources with the support of federal agencies such as SEMARNAT and the Secretariat of Agriculture.

Subsequently, the meeting held with the H. Congress of the State of Chiapas was attended by the president of the Congress, Representative Alejandra Gómez Mendoza, as well as Representatives Bertha Flores S., María Reyes D., Erika Paola Mendoza S., Elvia Catalina A., and Representatives Javier Jiménez J., representative of various committees related to agriculture, forests, climate change, and the environment; and Representative Juán Manuel Utrilla Constantino, president of the Livestock Development Committee.

At the meeting, CATIE's technical capabilities in applied research, education, and technical cooperation were presented. "A similarity was identified between CATIE's cooperation proposal and the thematic priorities that have been discussed in these commissions and that are aligned with the Strategic Development Plan of the State of Chiapas, which allows for the identification of synergies for collaboration between both parties. so we will work on prioritizing actions in which CATIE can provide support with basic information from academia to support legislative actions," explained Sepúlveda.

The H. Congress of the State of Chiapas raised the possibility of signing a collaboration agreement or memorandum of understanding that would serve as a framework for collaboration in the development of joint actions in the short and medium term. The president of Congress thanked CATIE for its visit and expressed her interest in strengthening collaboration through this body, which would enable the sustainability objectives proposed by the current executive of the State of Chiapas to be achieved.

The visit was accompanied by José Antonio Jiménez Trujillo, M.Sc., a CATIE graduate and liaison for sustainable livestock farming initiatives in the state.

Through technical collaboration and cooperation with local governments in its member countries, CATIE has established itself as a leader in promoting green and inclusive development in Latin America and the Caribbean.