On 8 July, the WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger in Brazil inaugurated the cycle of virtual meetings aimed at promoting the exchange of Brazilian and African experiences and good practices in the context of the Beyond Cotton Project, with a focus on valuing family farming, food and nutrition security and strengthening South-South cooperation.
The first webinar of the cycle focused on the ‘Experience of South-South Cooperation in the implementation of the Beyond Cotton Project’ and included representatives from the WFP Centre of Excellence against Hunger in Brazil, the Brazilian Cooperation Agency of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (ABC) and the Brazilian Cotton Institute (IBA), as well as professors Rafael Péron (Federal University of Lavras), Luderlândio Silva (Federal University of Campina Grande) and Mario Santos (Federal University of Western Bahia) representing the Brazilian cooperating institutions that are partners in implementing the project in Mozambique, Tanzania and Benin, respectively.
ABC Project Analyst Mariana Falcão emphasized the importance of sharing good practices within the Beyond Cotton Project. ‘This sharing not only contributes to the development of institutional capacities and small cotton producers, but also to increasing the income and food and nutritional security of these small farmers and their families, connecting them to more stable markets,’ she said.
At another point, professors from the cooperating institutions Rafael Péron (UFLA), Mario Santos (UFOB) and Luderlândio Silva (UFCG) commented on the development and results of the project in each country. Péron said that combining cotton production with food crops was a providential action for the success of the project in Mozambique. For Santos, the agroforestry and agroecological production carried out in Benin has provided a space of abundant food and life, which is fundamental for food security and sovereignty. Finally, Silva emphasized the power of South-South cooperation in Tanzania with the construction of rainwater harvesting cisterns. ‘With little time and few resources, we have done something that has left its mark on the communities and will generate a domino effect.’
The next webinars will take place on 13 August and 24 September and will focus on ‘Institutional purchases and access to markets by small producers of cotton and intercropped crops’ and ‘Nutrition-sensitive agriculture: Diversified production and food and nutrition security’, respectively. The event will be broadcast on the Centre of Excellence’s YouTube channel, with simultaneous translation into English and French.
About the project
The Beyond Cotton Project is a Trilateral South-South Cooperation initiative developed since 2017, in partnership with the Brazilian Cotton Institute (IBA), the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC) and the technical support of the Brazilian Cooperating Institutions: Federal University of Campina Grande (UFCG), Federal University of Lavras (UFLA) and Federal University of Western Bahia (UFOB). The aim of the project is to support family farmers who produce cotton, fostering income generation, food security and the valorization of local biodiversity by promoting markets for cotton by-products and intercropped crops.