GLOBAL COFFEEPLATFORM

The Honduras Country Platform and the Global Coffee Platform warmly welcome Guillermo Alvarado as the new Program Manager. Mr Alvarado, an agronomist, former National Minister and organizational director, takes on the new role – the first for the platform – as part of Honduras’ push to improve the livelihoods of Honduran coffee farmers.

Mr Alvarado has more than 30 years’ experience in agriculture development management from the most operative position as extension agent with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation in Agriculture (IICA) and farmer, to the most senior public positions as Minister of Agriculture, Vice-Chairperson of the Bureau of the Governing Council of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) 2000-2002 and Executive Director of a Regional International Organization (OIRSA).

During his vast experience, Mr Alvarado says he has “worn the boots of all the actors of the agriculture development world.” His resume boasts a great diversity of experience that will be useful in steering the Honduras Country Platform into a new decade of sustainability.

With expertise in food security, agricultural marketing, economics, agribusiness, natural resources management, agricultural production, international trade policy, trade facilitation, policy dialogue, donor cooperation and capacity building, Mr. Alvarado will prove instrumental in convening the diverse spectrum of Hondruan cofee stakeholders to work together behind a common agenda and collectively tackle those priority issues threatening the future of the country’s coffee sector.

Mr Alvarado, who hails from El Zamorano, has also held the position of President of IHCAFE, a member of the Board of Directors of BANCAFE, and a delegate to the International Coffee Organization.

“As Minister, I was a major promoter of sustainable coffee through the sustainable rural development programs and projects,” he says, adding that during his time at OIRSA, the Integrated Management Project for Coffee Rust for Central America was started with support of the Colombian Coffee Federation, installing the first Early Warning System for Coffee Rust and a series of didactic material for Coffee Rust Integrated Management.

GCP Executive Director, Annette Pensel, said Mr Alvarado’s vast experience as an international development consultant, and having worked within both international and national institutions will be “key for the success of coordinating Honduran coffee stakeholders around collective action for sustainable, profitable coffee production”.

She welcomed Mr Alvarado to GCP, adding that the “entire global GCP Team looks forward to working with him, learning more about Honduras, and sharing insights and lessons of other countries and work areas.” Ms Pensel said the team was especially looking forward to working on measuring progress and addressing local sustainability gaps through collective action and co-investments, for example through GCP Collective Action Initiatives.

Mr Alvarado gained formal training from the University of Florida with BSc and MSc degrees in Food and Resources Economics with emphasis in marketing. He has also completed additional training in policy analysis and implementation at the John F. Kennedy School of Government from Harvard, export promotion at the Center for the Promotion of Imports from the Netherlands, and a Certificate from the Tecnologico de Monterey in Export Management.

To get in contact with Mr Alvarado and learn more about what 2020 has in store for the Honduras country platform, please email him.