LARC/00/INF/11


 

TWENTY-SIXTH FAO REGIONAL CONFERENCE
FOR LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

Merida, Mexico, 10-14 April 2000

REPORT OF THE SIXTH SESSION OF THE COMMISSION ON LIVESTOCK DEVELOPMENT FOR LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

 

1. Considering the serious limitations on livestock development in Latin America and the Caribbean and addressing the request by the FAO Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean in Barbados in 1986, the 92nd Session of the Council of FAO adopted Resolution 1/92, which established the Commission on Livestock Development for Latin America and the Caribbean (CLDLAC) to prepare policy, and to formulate and implement in a coordinated manner an active national and regional programme of livestock development. The Commission, made up of eligible Member Nations that have duly informed the Director-General of their desire to be considered as Members, has the following present membership: Argentina, Bahamas, Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, United States of America, Uruguay and Venezuela.

2. The Sixth Session of the CLDLAC was held in the form of three subregional meetings, the purpose being to address and examine more closely the differing realities of livestock development. Countries were grouped on the basis of geographical subregion and similar livestock development conditions. A seminar was also held before the Commission session on issues of topical importance to livestock production in the Region. In May 1999, with the collaboration of CATIE, the Sixth Session of the Commission for the countries of Central America, Mexico and the Spanish-speaking Caribbean1 was held in Costa Rica. On this occasion, the session was preceded by the International Seminar on the Intensification of Livestock Production in Central America: Economic and Environmental Benefits. The Sixth Session of the Commission for the Andean Countries and the Southern Cone Countries2 was held in December 1999 in Santiago de Chile. On this occasion, and in collaboration with the United States Department of Agriculture3, the session was preceded by the Seminar on Practical Experiences in the International Trade of Livestock Products.

3. Because of the importance that the member countries of the Region gave to the livestock sector when they requested that FAO establish the Commission on Livestock Development for Latin America and the Caribbean, it was considered appropriate to make available to the FAO Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean the recommendations and ideas that arose during the last session of the Commission.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR ON THE INTENSIFICATION OF LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION IN CENTRAL AMERICA:
ECONOMIC AND ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS

4. The recommendations from the Seminar were examined and approved by the Commission in view of the importance attached by the represented countries to the analysis, discussion and identification of concrete proposals to achieve balance between human requirements, environment and livestock production. With this in mind, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of FAO

5. The holding of a workshop in each member country of the Commission with the following objectives:

6. The Commission proposed that FAO be entrusted with coordinating project proposals aimed at strengthening livestock production while maintaining environmental conservation, and that these be jointly formulated with CORECA and CATIE for submission to the World Bank. It requested that the secretariats of CORECA and the CCAD include on the agenda of the meeting of Ministers of Agriculture and Environment the examination of FAO-generated information on balancing human requirements, environment and livestock production, as well as the outputs of the International Seminar on the Intensification of Livestock Production in Central America: Economic and Environmental Benefits.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE SEMINAR ON PRACTICAL EXPERIENCES IN THE INTERNATIONAL TRADE OF LIVESTOCK PRODUCTS

7. The recommendations of this Seminar were examined and, in the light of the importance of the SPS and TBT Agreements of the WTO and rapid developments concerning their implementation, the Commission recommended,

Regarding application of the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures

For the attention of countries

8. To create the institutional framework for workforce stability and specialization of livestock health service professionals so as to be able to regulate and oversee the full application of the SPS Agreement in international commodity trade, and so that the member countries can be represented at the meetings of the SPS Committee of the WTO by specialized technical officers who are familiar with the areas under discussion.

9. Cases studied at the Seminar revealed the advisability of seeking to resolve conflicts through the informal mechanisms of the IOE and the SPS Committee of the WTO, before taking the matter to the WTO tribunals.

For the attention of FAO

10. To document the processes of conflict between countries of the Region on matters related to application of sanitary measures; to promote technical cooperation and exchange of experiences in the application of the SPS and TBT Agreements among developing countries, establishing related discussion panels that involve all the stakeholders - from production to consumption of livestock products.

Regarding application of the Agreement on
Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT)

For the attention of Governments and FAO

11. To establish a system of training and updating government services on the application of the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade and the obligation to notify WTO Member Countries of any changes made to national standards, thus complying with its transparency and coherence requirements.

Regarding application of the Zoosanitary Code of the International Office of Epizootics (IOE)

For the attention of countries

12. To be a member of the IOE so as to benefit from the normative services it provides all its members and to participate in associated fora and bodies to identify discrepancies in the international trade of livestock products. It also recommended involving a country's academic community and its technical and professional experts in examining the proposed standards of the Zoosanitary Code.

For the attention of FAO

13. To promote the training of technical teams in the Region to analyse and make proposals to the IOE for standards related to local or regional matters that present comparative advantages to the countries of the Region.

Regarding Codex Alimentarius and its relation with
the WTO Agreements

For the attention of countries

14. To maintain coherence between sanitary standards applied to products for export and to products for domestic consumption.

Regarding strategies used by APHIS/USDA to reduce risks associated with livestock products

For the attention of FAO and other international organizations

15. To coordinate efforts and resources with APHIS/USDA to promote and increase the attendance of government veterinary experts from the Region on its courses and seminars on the practical application of risk analysis.

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ON THE PRESENT STATE OF THE LIVESTOCK SECTOR OF THE REGION

16. Consideration of FAO's organizational structure, services and programmes, of restrictions to livestock development, and of related trends and prospects for Latin America and the Caribbean in the context of economic globalization led to the following conclusions and recommendations:

On the social and economic level

17. Considering the importance and implications of the information provided in the document Ganader�a 2020, la Siguiente Revoluci�n Alimentaria ("Livestock 2020, the Next Food Revolution")4 the Commission recommended:

For the attention of FAO

18. Considering the continuing outmigration from rural to urban areas, which is causing social instability among the population, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of Governments

For the attention of FAO

With regard to the environment

19. Considering the technological viability of reversing the environmental degradation caused by livestock production, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of Governments

For the attention of FAO

With regard to health

20. Considering the need to eliminate the double standards of sanitary requirements for livestock products for export and those for the domestic market, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of Governments

21. Considering the downsizing of veterinary services in the Region and the successful delegation of prior State-run activities to the private sector, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of Governments and FAO

22. Considering the higher in risk of introducing exotic diseases and disseminating endemic diseases arising from the increase in international trade of livestock products and the greater ease and possibility of internal movement, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of Governments and FAO

With regard to the primary production process

23. Considering the low productivity of most cattle production systems and the need to apply technologies that will safeguard the environment but also raise productivity to sufficiently competitive levels to access international markets, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of Governments

For the attention of FAO

24. Given that the lack of documented records and analysis leads to the mismanagement of the natural, physical, human and financial resources of the Region's livestock production systems, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of FAO

With regard to stocking, processing and marketing

25. Considering the Region's obvious potential in international livestock markets; the high degree of modernization of the international livestock trade; and the proximity of the WTO round of multilateral negotiations on agriculture, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of FAO

26. Considering that most of the livestock marketing systems in the Region rely on intermediaries, to the detriment of producers and consumers, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of FAO

27. Considering the regulatory provisions of the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures that presently governs international trade, and given that most of the countries of the Region have a tradition and potential as exporters of livestock products, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of FAO

With regard to credit and finance

28. Given that livestock operations require financial terms that are commensurate with the nature of the production processes, the Commission recommended,

For the attention of Governments

OTHER MATTERS

29. The delegates unanimously recommended that FAO maintain the subregional format of the Commission's sessions as this provides for better and greater participation and for closer national affinities in discussions. It was also agreed that a permanent channel of e-mail communication should be set up between the Secretariat of the Commission and the delegates, supplying them all information from FAO that might help them perform their duties as promoters of livestock development in their respective countries.

______________________________

1  Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Panama.

2  Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela

3  Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of the US Department of Agriculture (APHIS/USDA)

4  IFPRI/FAO/ILRI 1999, Documento de Discusi�n No.28, La Alimentaci�n, la Agricultura y el Medio Ambiente. Visi�n 2020 (Discussion Paper No. 28, "Food, Agriculture and the Environment. Vision 2020")

5  This recommendation was made by the delegates of the Commission of the countries of Central America, Mexico and Spanish-speaking Caribbean, which was held in May without any foreknowledge of the seminar in December on the subject that generated similar recommendations.