THE GLOBAL WINDOW OF TURKISH FOOD AND AGRICULTURE The Global Window of Turkish Food and Agriculture Sector
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Press release…
The training developed the project management capacities of BSEC-CSFS staff and National Focal Points of BSEC member countries….
24 June 2022, Ankara – Following agreement by Member States, the Organization for Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) agreed to establish a Regional Cooperation Centre for Sustainable Food Systems (BSEC-CSFS) in Ankara, Türkiye. The Centre commenced activities on the premises of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Türkiye in November 2020 through a BSEC-CSFS project implemented by FAO under the FAO-Türkiye Partnership Programme (FTPP).
As part of the BSEC-CSFS project, online capacity-building training on Project Planning and Performance Measurement was organized and delivered in ten sessions spread over a period of four weeks (18 May – 15 June 2022). The training provided an opportunity for participants to learn the basics of the Project Cycle Management (PCM) approach and to familiarize themselves with tools essential for project concept notes and proposal documents. The participants also had a chance to learn about project design, planning and performance evaluation. The training was facilitated by Professor Borja Santos Porras who has extensive experience in the field of public policy and international development. The last session provided an overview of cooperation modalities with the European Union, and was delivered by Magali Herranz, Programme and Resource Mobilization Specialist of the FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia.
The objective of the training was to develop the capacity of BSEC-CSFS staff and National Focal Points of BSEC member countries to ensure the sustainable operation of the Regional Cooperation Centre after completion of the project. To capitalize on the shared experiences and create synergies, representatives from the Economic Cooperation Organization Regional Coordination Centre for Food Security (ECO-RCCFS) were also invited and participated in the training.
The first day commenced with opening remarks delivered by Özge İmamoğlu, BSEC-CSFS Coordinator and Head of the Department of International Organizations at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Türkiye, who presented the main activities of the BSEC-CSFS. A speech was also given by Sumiter Broca, Senior Policy Officer at the FAO Sub-regional Office for Central Asia and Lead Technical Officer of the project, who underlined the vital importance of peace for protecting people from hunger and highlighted the devastating effects of the regrettable conflict in the Black Sea region.
The training sessions were grouped into four broad categories: strategic planning, implementation, performance measurement and resource mobilization. In each category, participants had an opportunity to learn about time and cost management, human resources and monitoring, and to acquire an understanding of cooperation modalities with the European Union in an interactive setting. They also discussed the information and put into practice in group exercises.
About the FAO-Türkiye Partnership Programmes
The objectives of the FAO-Türkiye Partnership Programmes are to provide support to ensure food security, rural poverty reduction and sustainable forest management; combat desertification; and preserve ecosystems in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Türkiye, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, and other countries of mutual interest.
Established in 2007, the first phase of the FAO-Türkiye Partnership Programme on Food and Agriculture (FTPP) has benefited from trust fund contributions totaling USD 10 million, financed by the Government of Türkiye and represented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. During the first phase of the programme, 28 projects were implemented in 16 countries between 2009 and 2015.
In 2014, Türkiye and FAO commenced the second phase of the FTPP along with the first phase of the FAO-Türkiye Forestry Partnership Programme (FTFP) with additional funding of USD 20 million, bringing Türkiye’s total contribution to USD 30 million.
