The Representation strengthens its team with the introduction of four new and repositioned members: Clifton Wilson, Beichen Ding, Everton Robinson and Armando Aban.

Mr Clifton Wilson (Photo- 1st from left) is the new Assistant FAO Representative - Programme, for the FAO Representation for Jamaica, the Bahamas and Belize based in Kingston, Jamaica. His post became effective on June 1, 2020. Mr Wilson previously served as a Programme Management Consultant for the FAO team in Jamaica. More information on him may be found here.

Mr. Everton Robinson (Photo - Fourth) joins the team as National Consultant of the Home Grown School Feeding Programme.

Serving on Secondment from the On Farm Water Management Unit of the Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA), Mr. Robinson is an Agricultural Engineer. He has worked for over thirteen years in the field of on farm irrigation technology with RADA and remains Manger of the Unit.

Mr. Robinson holds a Master’s Degree from the Universidad de Pinar del Rio in Cuba and has a passion for building capacities and rural development. He has served as an Agricultural Facilitator at the Ebony Park Academy-HEART Trust NTA and is certified as an Assessor with the National Council on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (NCTVET). He also speaks Spanish fluently.

Mr. Robinson has been the point person under many United Nations support programmes, chief among them being the RADA/FAO TCP on disaster and climate risk management and sustainable agriculture, the United Nations Human Security Joint Project in Northern Clarendon, whilst providing support to the UNDP supported Japan Caribbean Climate Change Partnership Project (JCCCP). His experience has enabled him to highlight the results obtained in the field with other international partners.

His current work at the FAO will include the implementation of a successful, self-sufficient Home Grown School Feeding Programme through the mobilization of farmers and creating strong linkages between all the relevant stakeholders.

Ms Beichen Ding, (Second) has been appointed as the Market Intelligence and Agribusiness Consultant. She previously served as an Intern in the FAO Jamaica Office where she supported the work of the Trade and Markets Team. Over the past months, she has assisted the work of value chain development in Jamaica and in other countries of the region, namely the research and analytics on costs of production and business modelling for a number of priority chains, most notably in the ginger sector in Jamaica. She has delivered training in costs of production in Belize, and in gender in value chains in the context of our support to the rice value chain development in Guyana.

Ms Ding will continue leading this type of work for the public private partnership project in Jamaica and in support of other value chain development efforts across the region. More information on her may be found here

Mr Armando Aban (Third) joins FAO as the National Correspondent for Belize.

Mr Aban has over 17 years of experience within the Department of Cooperatives of the Ministry of Agriculture in Belize, where he currently serves as the Senior Cooperatives Officer. He has a strong academic background in business studies including a degree in Business Management from the University of Belize.

Mr Aban serves as the Focal Point for the ACICAFOCA Indigenous and Peasant Coordinating Association for the Central American Community Agroforestry and the Central American Agriculture Commission, SICA, Competitiveness, Commerce and Agribusiness Technical Group.

In recent years, he has supported the work of the FAO Trade and Markets team in the Caribbean, particularly through value chain development for the Tilapia sector in Belize.

He has been an ardent and devout Scout for over 25 years and currently holds the position of National Scout President for Belize.

Mr Aban replaces Ms Melissa Almendarez.