Executive Leadership in Food Safety Program

Transcription

1 Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture Executive Leadership in Food Safety Program Professionals promoting change and modernization of public policies Agricultural Health and Food Safety Program

2 Preparing leaders and forging networks Given the increase in trade and tourism among the countries of the Americas, as well as between these countries and the rest of the world, the countries are required to design and implement policies that will guarantee the quality and safety of the food which all of us consume and which is an important component of trade. The Executive Leadership in Food Safety (ELFS) Program, implemented by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) with support from institutions such as the University of Minnesota and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), has made it possible to prepare leaders who, from their posts in the public, private and academic sectors, can promote the changes and policies that are needed. In the two series of the program held to date ( and ), 62 professionals from the 34 member countries of IICA have received specialized training. Participants comments I have taken on challenges and set goals, both personal and professional, that a year and three months ago I would have thought impossible; obstacles I never would have dreamed I could overcome. It is very exciting to hear about the successes and failures of the participants, and to offer them advice, which they begin to understand more clearly as their work progresses. We had the opportunity to benefit from the experience of outstanding leaders in different fields and none of them had it easy, which makes it all the more praiseworthy. For me, this means that for a good leader, nothing is impossible, only a little more difficult to achieve.

3 Exercising leadership Leadership is a key element in promoting the formulation of comprehensive food safety policies in the Americas. Leaders must convince those who make up the agrifood chain, from the farm to the table, of the advantages of establishing a scheme in which national authorities, producers, industries, truck drivers, merchants and consumers assume responsibilities and reap benefits that range from improved competitiveness to highly developed public health systems. One of the challenges of the ELFS program is to encourage professionals to step outside their comfort zone, in which they do things with ease, and take on personal and professional challenges to which they are not accustomed (growth zone). By expanding their comfort zone, they can take on tasks that earlier would have taken them into their panic zone, and thus apply newly acquired know-how. Expansion of comfort zone Panic Stretch Comfort Panic Stretch Comfort

4 General objective To provide food safety professionals with leadership skills they will need in the future to formulate effective food safety policies and programs in the countries of the Americas. Methodology The ELFS program calls for a two-year commitment, during which the participants must take part in four one-week modules (one module per semester), and design and implement an individual project in which both leadership and food safety are combined. Participants continue in their current jobs, with the written consent of their employers, who are fully aware of the time demands, mutual obligations and the benefits of the program. The program is much more than informative seminars - it is structured to create an environment suited to learning, dialogue, reflection and personal growth. Three elements have been taken into account in designing the modules: food safety, leadership and community. Modules Module 1. Module 2. Module 3. Module 4. Globalization and partnerships in the public and private sectors Food safety systems, public health and agrifood chains Laws, regulations and ethics The many roles of agricultural health and food safety

5 Participants and mentors The program is aimed at professionals who are well on the way to becoming leaders or who show great potential for leadership, and for whom the topics of food safety and the agrifood chain are of key importance. The ELFS program is open to young people with an undergraduate or graduate degree from a university in one of the 34 member countries of IICA. Applicants should already be working in fields related to agricultural health and food safety in the public, private or academic sectors, which will enable them to bring realworld experience to the modules, and ensure that the projects they undertake (as a requirement of the program) will benefit persons in their respective countries. Each participant is assigned an advisor or mentor, whose main functions are to foster the personal and professional development of the participant and providing support at the personal level and in the design and implementation of the projects. Outstanding professionals from the United States, Costa Rica, Canada, Colombia, Chile and Uruguay have served in this role to date. Each mentor helps to expand the vision and potential of the participants and encourages them to step outside of their comfort zone. The mentor also shares his/her leadership and technical experiences and provides guidance and feedback. Results 62 professionals from the public, private and academic sectors of Latin America and the Caribbean have received specialized training. An information network has been created in which the participants exchange experience and knowledge. Topic-specific working groups have been created to strengthen capacities once the program concludes. 30 projects have been implemented that combine leadership and food safety. Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture Agricultural Health and Food Safety Program Headquarters. P.O. Box San Jose, Vazquez de Coronado, San Isidro Costa Rica Phone: (506) n Fax: (506) saia@iica.int n

6 Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture Sowing innovation to harvest prosperity IICA is the institution of the Inter-American System that provides technical cooperation, innovation and specialized knowledge to contribute to the competitive and sustainable development of agriculture in the Americas and to improve the lives of rural dwellers in the member countries. Technical Programs: Innovation for productivity and competitiveness Agricultural health and food safety Agribusiness and commercialization Agriculture, territories and rural well-being Agriculture, natural resource management and climate change Agriculture and food security