El Salvador: Rural Development Committee defines strategic plan

The Rural Development Committee, established in January 2004 as the Thematic Group of the UN system Network on Rural Development and Food Security in El Salvador, has devised the vision, mission and aims of its strategic plan.

The nature of this group is that of a technical consultative forum, where national and international, public and private institutions, NGOs and cooperation agencies that work in the rural development sector in El Salvador participate.

Under the coordination and financing of the Interamerican Development Bank (IDB), who has coordinated the Thematic Group’s activities since its creation in 2004, consultations with members were carried out to identify the strategic plan. Members of the Thematic Group include, FAO, UNDP, the Interamerican Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), the German Development Agency (GTZ), the European Union (EU), the US Development Agency (USAID), the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the representative of the technical project RUTA. The Government of El Salvador through the ministries of Agriculture and Livestock as well as COMURES representing local government are also members of the Thematic Group along with the private sector of this country.

The main goals to be fulfilled by the Committee include the definition of a common strategic framework for rural development in El Salvador, establishment of effective mechanisms to improve the impact of investments in the rural development sector and support to public and private institutions regarding strategies, programmes, policies and projects related to rural development. Among the activities to be carried out by the committee are:

• Drafting and publishing of documents;
• Design of national policies;
• Resource identification for activities within the country;
• Joint project implementation,
• Support to fora and workshops.

For more information please contact the FAO representation in this country at FAO-SV@fao.org