Press Releases

37 th World Farmers’ Congress of IFAP

 300 people discussing the ambitions of worldwide farmers in Seoul

Seoul, 17 May 2006 – The 37 th World Farmers’ Congress opened today in Seoul is gathering 300 farm leaders from 70 countries to discuss the ambitions of farmers and the current issues face by agriculture worldwide. “The Congress will highlight farmers’ concerns about environmental issues such as desertification, climate change and renewable energies, trade issues and WTO negotiations, health issues, food safety, food labelling, and partnerships for sustainable agricultural development. We are looking for positive changes in the international agricultural policy that will lead governments around the world to develop national farm policies that will make a real difference in the improvment of farmers’ livelihoods,” said the President of the International Federation of Agricultural Producers (IFAP) Jack Wilkinson.

This year also mark the 60th anniversary of IFAP and the Conference is the occasion to celebrate the work of the 600 millions farm families now represented by the Federation. “The uniqueness of IFAP is its capacity to get together farmers from developed and developing countries, that can identified common interests, suggest solutions and, together, advocate in international bodies concrete policy that meets the real needs of farmers” said Wilkinson. “All of us should be very proud of what we have accomplished over the years and excited about what we will still achieve over the coming years for agriculture.  I tell the decision-makers from all over the world: Farmers are ready to work with you, as equal partners, to feed this world but they also need to receive a fair return. This is the main ambition of farmers” said the IFAP President.

Under the theme “60 years of empowering farmers – for diversity, for sustainability, for health, for peace” this biennial Congress is hosted by the National Agricultural Cooperatives Federation (NACF) of the Republic of Korea. In his welcome address, Mr. Dong Hae Kim, CEO Planning & Coordination of NACF, paid tribute to the role of farmers and agriculture. “Farming is life-industry that has been responsible for providing the food needed for the sustenance of humankind” said Mr. Kim.

This conference is the occasion to gather farmers, but also to invite high-level decision makers to dialogue with farm leaders.  Here is the name of national and international decison makers that accepted the IFAP's inviation to dialogue: Minister of Agriculture of Korea, Hong-Soo Park; President of the International Federation of Agricultural Development (IFAD), Lennart Båge; Vice-Minister of Agriculture of Japan, Issui Miura; Executive Secretary of the UNCCD, Hama Arba Diallo; Director General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Pascal Lamy; Minister of Cooperation Development of the Netherlands, Agnes van Ardenne-van der Hoeven.