Intra-ACP Agricultural Policy

Producers in the Caribbean and Pacific face similar challenges. Both regions are impacted by  climate change, natural disasters, high food import bills, small internal markets and reliance on a few export commodities.

“In the developing states of the Caribbean and Pacific regions the acceleration of social and economic change over the past two decades has undermined both subsistence and commercial plantation agriculture, while new crops, production structures and markets have not emerged as viable economic alternatives. Smallholder agriculture has been particularly affected, weakening rural communities, while food insecurity has increased and nutrition has suffered as dietary habits from outside the region have proliferated.”

APP OBJECTIVES

In this context, the Intra-ACP Agriculture Policy Programme (APP) aims to address the common problems faced in the two regions by promoting the development of smallholder agriculture through its closer integration into local, national, regional and where appropriate global markets.

It will draw not only on the technical and institutional resources of the entire ACP region, but also considers the social, economic and technological tools for agricultural development that have been tried and tested elsewhere.

The Intra-ACP APP is a €20 million programme for 4 years (2013-2016)funded under the 10th European Development Fund (EDF), which is an instrument to provide Community aid for development cooperation in the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) States - hence the Intra-ACP dimension.

APP KEY PRIORITY AREAS

The programme addresses four key areas:

-Policy

-Markets Research Development &, climate change

-Knowledge management

APP COMPONENTS

Also referred to as projects, the Intra-ACP Agricultural Policy Programme is being implemented through the joint effort collaboration of three organisations:

The Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), in the Caribbean;

The Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Co-operation ACP-EU (CTA), at central level, and

The Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC), for the Pacific.

In the Caribbean, other implementing institutions are the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI).

Activities progressed include studies, events and E-discussions on topical issues such as agro-tourism, women entrepreneurships, value chains, agri-value chain finance, and climate change adaptation.

APP INTERVENTION STRATEGY

The programme specifically addresses the following policy areas:

1.Strengthening regional agricultural development strategy

2.Strengthening regional knowledge sharing platform and communication for both regions.

3.Improving dissemination and adoption of applied research and appropriate technologies, including agriculture-oriented measures in disaster preparedness and climate change adaptation. Ecosystem-based approaches are to be given special attention.

You can learn more about the Intra-ACP Agriculture Policy Programmehere.