Archives: Agenda

Posted on May 27, 2024

Thierry DUPEUBLE, Director of CIHEAM Montpellier, Omar BESSAOUD, former Scientific Administrator of CIHEAM Montpellier, and Raúl Compés, Director of CIHEAM Zaragoza, were part of a CIHEAM delegation led by Secretary General Teodoro Miano and Administrator Yasmine SEGHIRATE.

From 20 to 24 May 2024, the city of Algiers hosted a delegation from CIHEAM at the 22nd edition of the SIPSA FILAHA International Exhibition of Agriculture, Livestock, and Agribusiness. This prestigious event served as a backdrop for several significant gatherings, including the inaugural Panafrican Food Debate conference, the DjazAqua Forum in partnership with France’s Économie Bleue programme, and the Afrika Food Export Forum.

This visit to Algeria also enabled several working meetings held with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and associated institutes during which future collaborations to be developed in the fields of training, research and technical cooperation were discussed.

Finally, the CIHEAM delegation visited the ambassadors of Spain, France, and Italy, host countries of the CIHEAM institutes in Zaragoza, Montpellier, and Bari. A member of the CIHEAM since 1986, Algeria actively participates in many research and cooperation programs of the organisation. Furthermore, the numerous Algerian alumni trained in the four CIHEAM institutes represent a unique human resource for relations between Algeria and the CIHEAM.

SIPSA FILAHA SHOW AND PANAFRICAN CONFERENCE

The CIHEAM delegation, led by Secretary General Teodoro Miano and Administrator Yasmine Seghirate, included Director of CIHEAM Zaragoza Raul Compés, Director of CIHEAM Montpellier Thierry Dupeuble, and former Principal Scientific Administrator of CIHEAM Montpellier Omar Bessaoud. These representatives took an active part in the SIPSA FILAHA exhibition, which featured the inaugural edition of the traveling conference “The Panafrican Food Debate.”

Co-organised by the Filaha Innov Think Tank and the Institut Sénégalais des Recherches Agricoles (ISRA), this high-level meeting was intended as a space for discussion and cooperation between African States on sustainable and inclusive food systems in the context of climate change, water stress and facing socio-economic challenges in agricultural and rural areas.

On this occasion, discussions were held with several decision-makers, including H.E. Ms Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko, African Union Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment.

WORK MEETINGS AT THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND THE INSTITUTES (22-24 MAY)

The Secretary General of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr. Hamid Bensaâd, received the CIHEAM delegation in the presence of the directors of the production, cooperation, training, research, and innovation departments and the Director General of INRAA.

During these meetings, future collaborations to be developed in the fields of research and technical cooperation were discussed, in line with the country’s new agricultural strategy, which aims to strengthen food self-sufficiency, modernisation, and innovation dynamics, accompany investors, integrate small farms into value chains or even preserve natural resources. Avenues are being analysed to offer Algeria tailor-made training courses for managers and professionals, to develop joint cooperation and research projects, or to set up a Master of Innovation and Entrepreneurship for young people in Algeria.

VISIT TO EMBASSIES

The CIHEAM delegation was received by the Ambassadors of France, Italy, and Spain to present its ongoing activities with Algeria and to recall the importance of relations with the country.

The CIHEAM Institutes of Montpellier (France), Zaragoza (Spain), Chania (Greece), and Bari (Italy), which host many students and researchers, count several Algerians among their teaching staff and project coordinators.

Today, some 30 CIHEAM projects are underway in Algeria in the fields of sustainable resource and energy management, reduction of agricultural losses and food waste along supply chains, improving the conservation of agrobiodiversity and agroecological practices, mitigating and adapting to climate change, and animal and plant health.

Posted on May 23, 2024

Hatem Belhouchette (scientific coordinator) and Thierry Dupeuble (director) from CIHEAM Montpellier went to Beirut from May 12 to 15, 2024 to finalize the proposal for a new agroecology development project, implemented jointly with Fair Trade Lebanon and Action contre la Faim (ACF), with the support of the Agence Française de développement.

It was also an opportunity for further meetings with His Excellency the Minister of Agriculture, Abbas HDJ HASSAN, the Lebanese delegate to CIHEAM and advisor to the Minister, Wafaa Dika Hamze, the Minister’s advisor, Salem Darwich, and many staff from the Ministry of Agriculture. As part of the SUPMED project, the mission also included a meeting with several women’s cooperatives from the Baalbek plain, to prepare their participation in a major trade fair for local produce scheduled for autumn. Finally, a meeting with the Lebanese management of the World Food Program raised the prospect of a tripartite collaboration between the Ministry, WFP Lebanon, and IAMM to design and set up a data server dedicated to sustainable food systems in Lebanon.

The mission ended with a presentation of CIHEAM’s activities in Lebanon to the new Counselor for Agricultural Affairs at the French Embassy, Siham Bouchenak-Talet.