Managing Director meets Ambassador of the Dominican Republic
Ambassador Sheikh Mohammed Belal, Managing Director of the Common Fund for Commodities, met H.E. Dr. Juan Bautista Duran, Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, at their Embassy in The Hague, to discuss, among others, the accession of the Dominican Republic to the CFC.
Ambassador Belal, while sharing the basics of the CFC’s structure and working process, also shared insights on how innovations in agriculture, which, in his views, are in abundance in the Netherlands and in the region, are being used in the implementation of CFC’s projects. Ambassador Belal also shared with Ambassador Duran stories from CFC’s projects where new innovations have been incorporated to bring higher productivity. Ambassador Belal also highlighted the importance of nutrition security at this time of pandemic and elaborated how the CFC also contributes towards making the commodity value chain duly loaded with elements of nutrition. They also discussed other innovations that CFC is either implementing or contemplating to implement in the near future.
Ambassador Belal further informed Ambassador Duran of the approval of the recently concluded 33rd Governing Council to formulate the CIIF (Commodity Impact Investment Facility). The fund, which is now undergoing the legal process, will be a public-private partnership fund to invest in commodity value chains in developing countries for advancing the Sustainable Development Goals.
Ambassador Duran showed keen interest in the workings of the CFC and stated that his county is also putting enough emphasis on mainstreaming agriculture to bring more income for the smallholders and SMEs. As such, Ambassador Duran stated that the mission of CFC is well aligned with what his country considers a national priority.
Ambassador Belal extended an invitation to the Dominican Republic to join the CFC and thereby help as many people as possible to lift themselves from poverty. Ambassador Duran thanked Ambassador Belal for the invitation while assuring their active consideration of the proposal to join CFC. The meeting concluded with a mutual resolve to do their best for the cause of sustainability and alleviation of poverty.