XXXII Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean (LARC)

The FAO Regional Conference is held every two years and is the highest governing body and forum of the Organization in the region.

During the Conference, government representatives from every FAO member country gather to discuss the main challenges that Latin America and the Caribbean face with regard to agriculture and food security. The Regional Conference will also examine the actions undertaken by FAO during the biennium, and the establishment of regional priorities that the Organization will follow during the next two years.

Consequently, the Conference is principally a forum where FAO member countries, government representatives, civil society and the production sector gather to establish the guidelines that FAO must follow from 2012 to 2014.

Why is it important

The upcoming FAO Conference, that will be held in Buenos Aires Argentina, from 26 to 30 March 2012, is of greater importance than any of the previous ones, since as of 2012, Regional Conferences will no longer only be technical and advisory in nature, but will establish issues that will guide FAO actions worldwide.

What does this mean for the region? This means that the issues and priorities established by the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean for the development of agriculture and the fight against hunger will be submitted to the Council and the FAO Conference as part of their official agenda.

Regional priorities will also have an important role in the FAO Programme and Budget, whose mission will be to include them in the Organization's programmes and to ensure they are reflected in the results of FAO actions.

Conference Agenda

During the Conference, the FAO Regional Office will present two main documents for discussion, one on food and nutritional security and another on climate change. In addition, FAO activities in the region carried out during 2010-2011 will be analyzed, based on the recommendations of the previous Conference, together with the work programme and budget for 2012 and 2013.

The main conclusions from the regional technical bodies, COFLAC (forestry), CODEGALAC (livestock) and COOPESCAALC and COPACO (fisheries), will also be presented to the member countries.