A Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP) project on contract farming in Belize has just started.  

Agriculture is the bedrock of the Belizean economy, contributing significantly to its Gross Domestic Product (GDP), employment, income and food and nutrition security. Agrifood value chains are underdeveloped, the competitiveness of local agribusinesses and small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are to be strengthened, and small-scale farmers face many challenges regarding improving productivity, meeting quality standards and market demand, and accessing market, input, finance, technology, technical guidance, and other productive resources and services.*  

Contract farming has the potential to contributing to overcoming these challenges. Nevertheless, in Belize, contractual arrangements between buyers and producers to procure and sell agrifood products are either absent or face serious problems, such as imbalance of power in negotiations and implementation, informal arrangement, and weakening trust and relations between agribusinesses and producers in some value chains.

The TCP project (TCP/BZE/3702/C2) was developed at the request of the Government of Belize and is jointly implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Enterprises (MAFSE) in Belize and FAO to improve linkages between producers and market, promote effective, fair and formal contract farming arrangements, and create a more conductive environment for sustainable growth of the agrifood sector. The project is entitled “Establishment of a legislative and regulatory framework to enhance contract farming in the agriculture sector in Belize.” The project is aligned with the National Agriculture and Food Policy of Belize: 2015-2030  (the abridged version) and especially contributes to its Pillar 1. Sustainable production, productivity and competitiveness, Pillar 2. Market development, access and penetration, and Pillar 3. National food and nutrition security and enhanced rural livelihoods.

The project aims to 

• improve capacities of relevant stakeholders for contract farming;  
• strengthen legislative framework which creates a more enabling environment for contract farming and provides greater protection particularly for smaller and more vulnerable producers; and 
• improve and promote contract farming based on best practices and evidence-based recommendations.

The targeted beneficiaries of the project include small-scale producers, small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), local agribusinesses, MAFSE staff especially those working in marketing, enterprises, cooperatives and extension, and Belize Marketing & Development Corporation (BMDC). 

The project team comprises members from MAFSE and FAO. The members at MAFSE are led and coordinated by Mr. Gareth Murillo, the Registrar of Cooperatives and the National Project Coordinator for this project, and Mr. Armando Aban, a senior cooperatives officer and FAO’s National Correspondent for Belize. The core technical members at FAO are from Development Law Service, Agrifood Economics Division, and FAO Representative for Jamaica, the Bahamas and Belize.

The following activities will be undertaken to achieve the objectives: 

• Review existing legislative and regulatory framework and practices for contract farming arrangements; 
• Formulate a comprehensive legislative framework for improving and promoting contract farming; 
• Conduct an assessment of existent contract farming practices and potential contract farming opportunities for selected agrifood value chains, identify key challenges, needs and opportunities, and develop recommendations and strategies which promote greater alignment with best practices in contract farming and improve voluntary compliance of contractual relationships between stakeholders in value chains. 
• Provide training and carry out other capacity building activities for stakeholders through a participatory approach to increase their knowledge and build their capacity to implement and promote contract farming and implement recommendations to improve contract farming operations and an enabling environment. 

The project is expected to contribute to reducing rural poverty (Sustainable Development Goal, SDG 1) by building capacities of relevant stakeholders, increasing smallholder farmers’ access to market, technologies, and productive resources, supporting development of SMEs and agribusinesses, and creating a more enabling environment with a legislative and regulatory framework to further promote sustainable contract farming in the country. 

* National Agriculture and Food Policy of Belize: 2015-2030  and its abridged version. 

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us at [email protected].