Council of the EU
3-6 June: Meeting of the Political and Security Committee (PSC)  
4 June: Coreper I
4 June Coreper II
Others
2 June: EU Food Law: Sustainable Food  
4-5 June: G7 Summit
6 June: Global Governance and the Emerging World Order: What Role for ACP-EU Cooperation?

The upcoming change in the EU sugar regime will be discussed during the three-day 45th Council Session of the International Sugar Organisation (ISO), starting yesterday in Montego Bay, St James. Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Roger Clarke said that challenges facing the sugar industry, including cost of production, will be discussed at the meeting. The minister added that the Caribbean Community (Caricom) delegates will be particularly interested in the discussion on the sugar regime.

The Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) announced that Pacific Island countries have received aid from Germany to increase their resilience and adaptive capacity in order to face the impacts of climate change. The aid focuses on five development: land use (agriculture, forestry and land use planning), fisheries, education, energy and tourism. The implementation is realized  in collaboration with regional partners like the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) in a project entitled SPC/GIZ Coping with Climate Change in the Pacific Islands Region (CCCPIR).

The EU-funded Agricultural Policy Programme (APP) in favour of 15 Caribbean Forum of African Caribbean and Pacific States (CARIFORUM) countries was officially launched in Trinidad last week. The APP will focus on the development of small holder agricultural producers and entrepreneurs in order to enhance agriculture in CARIFORUM countries. The EU granted of 8.6M Euros for the APP. This grant is expected to improve productivity and profitability of the region’s small, agri-based producers and entrepreneurs through improved policies and strengthened institutional and development capacity.

Stricter import requirements for South African citrus fruit were today endorsed by Member State experts1. These emergency measures are being taken to protect European crops from citrus black spot, a harmful plant disease not native to Europe. According to the new measures, citrus fruits imported from South Africa will be subject to more stringent criteria such as recording pre and post-harvest chemical treatments and mandatory registration of packing houses as well as on-site official inspections at citrus orchards.