Annual Meeting Jamaica 2019

GFRAS 2019 Banner Final 03 1

 

Role of RAS in Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management

The 10th GFRAS Annual Meeting, whose topic is "Role of RAS in Climate Change & Disaster Risk Management" took place at Royalton Negril, Jamaica between 30 September and 4 October 2019. Side Events happened on September 30th, the main meeting between October 1-3, and a General Assembly on October 4th. GFRAS Steering Committee/Board meeting took place between 5 and 7 October. The Annual Meeting was co-organized by the Caribbean Agricultural Extension Providers’ Network (CAEPNet); Jamaica’s Ministry of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture, and Fisheries (MICAF), and the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA). The Caribbean Agricultural Extension Providers’ Network hosted its Executive Committee Meeting and its annual membership meeting on Sunday, September 29th.

Background

The GFRAS Annual Meeting is a key mechanism for GFRAS to foster learning and exchange and to discuss and strengthen the functioning of GFRAS, regional networks and national fora.

The Annual Meeting contributes to addressing the three strategic fields identified in the GFRAS Strategic Framework, namely:

  1. Advocacy and support for an enabling policy environment and appropriate investment in RAS
  2. Professionalism of RAS
  3. Facilitation and enhancement of effective and continuous knowledge generation and exchange.

Since its inception, the GFRAS Annual Meeting has involved a thematic component, field trips and a functional component (focused on network strengthening). Since 2017, the Annual Meeting also includes a policy dialogue session, to better position RAS and GFRAS in international policy debates, highlight the relevance of RAS to achieving international development goals and to increase the visibility of RAS.

Meeting Objectives

Building on the experience of previous GFRAS meetings, the capacity assessments of GFRAS regional networks, and on the expertise, knowledge, and experiences of participants, the three objectives of the 2019 Annual Meeting were to:

  • identify and define good practices, best-fit approaches, and strategies to develop, strengthen, and maintain resilience in vulnerable communities to climate change and disasters;
  • identify and define ways to build the capacities needed at different levels and by different stakeholders (policy, research, education, extension, farmers) to develop, strengthen, and maintain effective risk management in climate change and disasters including preparation, mitigation, and recovery; and to
  • identify and define the roles and capacities needed by GFRAS and its regional RAS networks to play an important and meaningful role in developing, strengthening and maintaining effective risk management to climate change and disasters.

 

Meeting Report

The report from the 10th GAM, including recommendations from the meeting, and information on the discussions, group work, and panels read, is now available and can be downloaded here:

 

Concept Note

Concept Note, GFRAS Annual Meeting, 2019