News digest: Brexit
- 20/04/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Africa, Caribbean, Ireland, Kenya, News, Pacific
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Transit procedures from EU to UK – State of play Freshfel Europe, the European Fresh Produce Association, reports that according to the EC’s Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union (DG TAXUD), despite the UK being a member of the Common Transit Convention since 1 January 2021, the procedure is still not entirely reliable. The UK is not yet entirely connected to the Customs Decisions System (CDS), as they have to re-join as a third country. This onboarding procedure is still… +St Vincent & the Grenadines: Impacts of volcanic eruption on COLEACP members and on the country’s agriculture
- 19/04/2021
- Posted by: Sandra Borma
- Category: Caribbean, News
The La Soufrière volcano, which had seen a low-level eruption since December, experienced the first of several major explosions on Friday 9 April, and volcanologists say activity could continue for weeks. A further explosion was reported on the morning of Tuesday 13 April, sending another massive plume of ash into the air. COLEACP members, partners and friends are sharing news and images with us. Jethro Greene, Chief Coordinator of the Eastern Caribbean Trading Agriculture and Development Organisation (ECTAD CARIBBEAN), which… +IICA and COLEACP promoting entrepreneurship in the Caribbean
- 19/04/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Caribbean, News
On 8 April the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) and COLEACP signed a technical cooperation agreement to work to develop a more sustainable and resilient agriculture sector in the Caribbean region. The agreement was signed during a virtual ceremony by Manuel Otero, Director General of IICA, and Jeremy Knops, General Delegate of COLEACP. Sustainable agriculture, good practices, bioeconomy, trade, food safety and quality, resilience, and the link between agriculture and tourism will be some of the key focus… +Calls For Expression Of Interest
- 16/04/2021
- Posted by: Sandra Borma
- Category: Africa, Caribbean, Dominican Republic, News, Nigeria, Rwanda, Zimbabwe
COLEACP is launching four new calls for tenders concerning the provision of “Support to the COLEACP team for the implementation and monitoring of COLEACP programme activities” in Rwanda (ref. 211196); Dominican Republic (ref. 211195); Zimbabwe (ref. 211194) and Nigeria (ref. 211193). You will find below all information related to this service procurement notice, including the terms of reference (point 8. Objective, description and resources required). Please note that only successful candidates in this first phase will be invited for the… +Caribbean: Business management training on market access
- 13/04/2021
- Posted by: Sandra Borma
- Category: Caribbean
COLEACP’s latest Business Management and Development training in the Caribbean will focus on “Market access: How to make an informed business decision regarding the market to target”. The four-week training is intended for managers/directors of companies or farmers’ organisations operating in the local informal market, or in an informal way, who want to expand their activities to more formal, high-end (international) markets. Professional associations providing advice on this to their members can also participate. The current group of participants are… +News digest: Agri-food markets and production
- 18/03/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Africa, Bananas, Benin, Burkina Faso, Caribbean, China, Ethiopia, France, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, News, Pacific, Spain, Tanzania, Zimbabwe
Global Organic farming is still gaining ground Global organic agriculture is progressing in small steps again in 2019, with a 1.6% increase in the global surface area – an additional 1.1 million hectares (ha) – to 72.3 million ha (including land under conversion), with Oceania in the lead, in fact Australia (nearly 50%), followed by Europe (23%) and Latin America (11%) (Commodafrica, 3 March). But compared to the world’s agricultural surface area, the result is still modest (1.5%). The countries… +News digest: Policy
- 18/03/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Africa, Caribbean, News, Pacific
Global New Director-General of World Trade Organization Nigerian Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the first woman and the first African to lead the WTO, took office on 1 March (WTO News, 5 March). Among her first actions were meetings with the Group of Least Developed Countries as well as the Friends of the System, an alliance of small and mid-sized members from different regions and development levels that are committed to a well-functioning multilateral trading system. A top priority will be to… +Training in the new Rapid SPS Assessment Tool (R-SAT)
- 17/03/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Africa, Caribbean, News, Pacific
Two online R-SAT training sessions took place in February and early March, each for nine experts – in English for participants from the Caribbean Agricultural Health and Food Safety Agency (CAHFSA), the Dominican Republic, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda and Zimbabwe; and in French for experts from Cameroon, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Madagascar, Senegal and Togo. Experts’ feedback will inform the final version of the tool, and the training will be followed by the use of R-SAT in… +COLEACP-CABA agreement
- 17/03/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Caribbean, News
COLEACP and the Caribbean Agri-business Association (CABA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate in support of the SMEs and businesses operating in the agri-food sector in the Caribbean. The joint COLEACP-CABA action plan includes the following areas of cooperation, among others: Industry and market intelligence – information on international, regional and national policies and regulations impacting private sector operators, and joint information and communication products Business support – technical assistance to business proposals to improve production, access markets,… +15th Commission on Phytosanitary Measures in March/April
- 17/03/2021
- Posted by: Gaetan Dermien
- Category: Africa, Caribbean, News, Pacific
The 15th Session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM-15) will be held on 16 and 18 March, and on 1 April 2021, in virtual format. The agenda includes standard-setting, capacity-building, communication, ePhyto, and the CPM recommendations. These agenda items are of critical importance to the functioning of National Plant Protection Organisations (NPPOs), and COLEACP encourages the participation of ACP countries. For contracting parties to the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), registration is via the FAO Members Gateway. Those who… +