AGRIBUSINESS ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP TO BE HELD IN TEL AVIV, 9-16 SEPTEMBER

AGRIBUSINESS ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP

TO BE HELD IN TEL AVIV, 9-16 SEPTEMBER

(Reissued as received.)

      GENEVA,9 September (UNECE) -- The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) are organizing an International Workshop on Agribusiness Enterprise Development.  The Workshop will take place in Israel from 9-16 September 2003.

In rural agricultural sector development, both at the national and regional levels, agribusiness entrepreneurship is a key element in assisting and improving rural income opportunities and economic growth.  In this context, agribusiness enterprise development is an important factor in promoting sustainable agricultural and rural sector development.  These activities constitute a growing phenomenon both in industrial and developing countries.  Agribusinesses are contributing to the value added of primary production resources in many forms.  It is also supporting and promoting the development of relevant agricultural support services much needed in the process of agricultural and rural development the world over.

Israel's own agricultural and rural sectors, both at the national and regional levels including the primary village level, have developed various agribusiness enhancement mechanisms and financing systems.  These systems have been developed to support the ongoing specialization and market-driven orientation of the sector, particularly related to high quality and export market production and agribusiness entrepreneurship.

The Workshop will focus on recent case studies reflecting Israel's experiences in overseas technical cooperation programmes in the field of agribusiness development.  Over the last 10 years, Israel has cooperated intensively with Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)countries, generating a solid professional methodological base together with practical agribusiness development at the field level in a wide range of agribusiness entrepreneurship project activities.

For the countries in transition, various modalities of agribusiness entrepreneurship and related support services have been developed and put into operation at field level.  These activities have been developed to facilitate the changes in these regions, assisting in their transformation to a market-driven system.  This has also involved privatization processes and other macro policy changes.

The aim of the Workshop is to acquaint policy makers and civil servants responsible for agribusiness development in their countries with both international and specifically with Israeli experience of agribusiness enterprise development at national, regional and local levels.  Representatives from

15 transition economies, including several Deputy Ministers for agriculture and foods, will attend the Workshop.

The programme will combine professional presentations, case studies and lessons, field visits to various agribusiness enterprises of different sizes, and round-table discussions related to topics of priority regarding agribusiness entrepreneurship, support services and management capacity-building.  The participants will also attend the fifteenth International Agricultural Exhibition –- AGRITECH Israel 03 -– which is one of the largest events in the field of world agritechnological development.  Viera Baričičová, Vice-Chair of the UNECE Working Party 7 on Agricultural Standards, and Slovak national experts on fresh fruit and vegetables, will report on the activities of the Commission in this field.

The Workshop will be organized by the Centre for International Agricultural Development Cooperation (CINADCO) and the Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development (MOARD) on behalf of the Centre for International Cooperation (MASHAV) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  The Workshop will be in cooperation with Israel's Centre for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Promotion, the Export Institute, and other national and regional non-governmental institutions involved in the development of SMEs, with special reference to the rural/agricultural sector.

For further information, please contact:  Antal Szabó, Regional Adviser on Entrepreneurship and SMEs, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, Palais des Nations, Bureau 440,CH - 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland; tel.:  + 41(0)22 917 24 telefax:  + 41(0)22 917 01 78; e-mail:  antal.szabo@unece.org

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