Agroamerica CEO, was invited to participate in the Global Dialogue of the United Nations Environment Programme

Guatemala, April 2011. On the 11th and 12th of April, Fernando Bolaños, Agroamerica CEO, was invited to participate in the global dialogue Road to Rio +20: Strengthening the role of the private sector in the transition to a green economy and efficient use of the resources. Over 200 representatives from business and industry, governments, and civil society organizations met to discuss how the engagement from the private sector is crucial for the scaling-up of a green economy.

This activity took place in Paris, France, and its objective was to dialogue with the private sector about its contribution to a low carbon, resource-efficient green economy, an important topic of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, Road to Rio +20, which will be held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in June of 2012.

The event was organized by the Environment Programme of the United Nations -UNEP- in collaboration with the International Chamber of Commerce and the French Postal Service, Le Groupe La Poste. The dialogue was aimed at defining the role of the private sector in the transition to a low carbon, green economy and the efficient use of resources. It began with opening statements from the Executive Director of UNEP, Achim Steiner, the General Secretary of the International Chamber of Commerce, Jean-Guy Carrier, and the General Director of Le Groupe La Poste, Jean-Paul Bailly.

Some of the participants in this panel were representatives from the United Nations Global Compact, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Hungarian State Secretary for Green Economy and Climate Change.

Fernando Bolaños stated that it is important for Agroamerica to participate in activities such as these, since they encourage companies to devise innovative ways to increase production while minimizing the environmental impact and improving the sustainability of the supply chain: Companies must create a sense of community and develop sustainable practices to achieve long-term success.

Mr. Bolaños participated in the panel discussion of the UNEP’s report on a Green Economy from the perspective of private industry. This discussion centered on the challenges, possibilities, and course of action to take for the transition to a green economy.

The dialogue gave participants an opportunity to anticipate and plan their contributions to the Rio +20 Conference. Fernando Bolaños made a presentation on how Agroamerica uses the supply chain to make the production processes more efficient, environmentally friendly, and maintain the high quality of its finished products. The panelists were directors and managers of Unilever, Business for Social Responsibility -BSR-, PepsiCo, and the International Council on Mining and Metals.

Agroamerica’s participation in the conference was rich and rewarding. After the event, Mr. Bolaños was approached by several important groups who wanted to document Agroamerica’s processes in order to showcase them as an example of sustainability.

Governments, stakeholders and private enterprises must work together to find solutions and create green economies.

-Fernando Bolaños

To see the note published in the UNEP website, please visit:

http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=2637&ArticleID=8703&l=en