BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:unctad.org BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6a7b38a300ea2 DTSTART:20220526T130000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE DTEND:20220526T210000Z LOCATION:Online and Kingstown\, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines SUMMARY:Regional workshop and validation of the OECS Blue BioTrade Action P lan for the queen conch value chain in the Eastern Caribbean CLASS:PUBLIC DESCRIPTION:UNCTAD in collaboration with the Organisation of Eastern Caribb ean States (OECS) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) with the financial support of the European Union through the RIGHT Programme launched a regional project tit led "\;Seizing the trade and business potential of Blue BioTrade produ cts for promoting sustainable livelihoods and conservation of marine diver sity in selected OECS countries (Blue BioTrade project)"\; in October 2020.\n\nThe project aims to empower small scale coastal operators from Gr enada\, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (project benefici aries) to produce and trade queen conch products in domestic\, regional\, and international markets under the Blue BioTrade environmental\, social a nd economic sustainability criteria\, including CITES.\n\nThe project cont ributes to achieving key targets of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 and 15\, whilst also addressing key economic\, environmental and social ob jectives of the OECS Development Strategy 2019-2028 and supporting recover y in a post COVID-19 scenario.\n\nKey issues\n\nQueen conch (Strombus giga s) is a highly appreciated seafood delicacy with important non-food uses\, including therapeutical products and handicrafts. Whilst global demand is booming\, small-scale coastal producers in the Eastern Caribbean do not f ully seize the opportunities offered by sustainable conch markets. In many locations\, early uncontrolled harvesting has resulted in overfishing\, i llegal landings and a rapid deterioration of endowments. Supply-side issue s include the absence of traceability systems\, limited landing and trade evidence\, poor understanding and use of CITES processes and permits\, lac k of common handling practices and sanitary standards and a low level of a ssociativity of fishers. From a trade perspective\, limited access to mark ets – in particular international buyers - and the absence of certificat ion schemes for producers are major challenges ahead. In this context\, th e project aims to empower small-scale coastal producers to produce and tra de queen conch products sustainably through the application of apply the B lue BioTrade Principles and Criteria (for the marine environment).\n\nDuri ng the Phase 1 of the Blue BioTrade project\, three country case studies f ocusing on stakeholder-owned value chain assessments in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines\, Grenada and Saint Lucia have been produced. These reports \, as developed by UNCTAD in collaboration with CITES and the OECS\, have analysed and identified stakeholder capacity to identify sustainable and g ender-inclusive business opportunities and put forward recommendations on how to implement the Blue BioTrade Principles and Criteria in the queen co nch value chain to ensure that small-scale coastal producers within and ou tside beneficiary countries benefit from enhanced sustainable production a nd trade opportunities in the queen conch value chain.\n\nObjectives\n\nDr awing from research and evidence from each country study\, the Regional Bl ue BioTrade Plan of Action Validation Workshop aims to:\n\n\nServe as a pl atform to take stock\, exchange experiences\, address existing bottlenecks \, and explore options and country priorities to implement Blue BioTrade i n the Caribbean.\nMainstream research findings and evidence-based policy s olutions globally and serve as a basis for delivering tailor-made capacity -building activities in the three beneficiary countries. Present Blue BioT rade opportunities for each country study and highlight cross-country less ons learned under phase 1 of the project.\nPresent\, propose and discuss t he draft Blue BioTrade regional plan of action and key recommendations dev eloped in the country studies for stakeholders’ inputs.\nPresent and pro pose the revised Blue BioTrade regional plan of action and key recommendat ions for the validation of the stakeholders.\nValidate the Blue BioTrade r egional plan of action to conclude Phase 1 of the Blue BioTrade Project.\n Present Phase 2 of the Blue BioTrade Project as a contribution to the impl ementation of the OECS Blue BioTrade Plan of Action.\n\n\nDue to current C OVID-19 travel restrictions\, this event will be held in hybrid format -  the in-person attendees will be welcomed by the Ministry  of Agricultur e\, Forestry\, Fisheries\, Rural Transformation\, Industry and Labour\, Sa int Vincent and the Grenadines at Sunset Shores Beach Hotel in Kingstown\, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the remote participants will be join ing via Zoom.\n\n \n<\;p>\;UNCTAD in collaboration with the Organisat ion of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) with the fina ncial support of the European Union through the RIGHT Programme launched a regional project titled "\;Seizing the trade and business potential o f Blue BioTrade products for promoting sustainable livelihoods and conserv ation of marine diversity in selected OECS countries (Blue BioTrade projec t)"\; in October 2020.<\;/p>\;\n\n<\;p>\;The project aims to e mpower small scale coastal operators from Grenada\, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (project beneficiaries) to produce and trade qu een conch products in domestic\, regional\, and international markets unde r the Blue BioTrade environmental\, social and economic sustainability cri teria\, including CITES.<\;/p>\;\n\n<\;p>\;The project contributes to achieving key targets of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 and 15\ , whilst also addressing key economic\, environmental and social objective s of the OECS Development Strategy 2019-2028 and supporting recovery in a post COVID-19 scenario.<\;/p>\;\n<\;img alt="\;OECS Director-Gen eral H.E. Dr. Didacus Jules (front center) flanked by queen conch value ch ain stakeholders and the Blue BioTrade team (Photo courtesy of SusGren Inc .)"\; data-align="\;left"\; data-caption="\;&\;lt\;em&a mp\;gt\;OECS Director-General H.E. Dr. Didacus Jules (front center) flanke d by queen conch value chain stakeholders and the Blue BioTrade team (Phot o courtesy of SusGren Inc.)&\;lt\;/em&\;gt\;"\; data-entity-type ="\;file"\; data-entity-uuid="\;e876366b-d02a-421d-bc22-afd9f0 e95266"\; src="\;/sites/default/files/inline-images/ditc-ted-26052 022-StVandGrenadines-BlueBioTrade-group-1-850.jpg"\; />\;\n<\;h4&g t\;Key issues<\;/h4>\;\n\n<\;p>\;Queen conch (<\;em>\;Strombus gigas<\;/em>\;) is a highly appreciated seafood delicacy with importa nt non-food uses\, including therapeutical products and handicrafts. Whils t global demand is booming\, small-scale coastal producers in the Eastern Caribbean do not fully seize the opportunities offered by sustainable conc h markets. In many locations\, early uncontrolled harvesting has resulted in overfishing\, illegal landings and a rapid deterioration of endowments. Supply-side issues include the absence of traceability systems\, limited landing and trade evidence\, poor understanding and use of CITES processes and permits\, lack of common handling practices and sanitary standards an d a low level of associativity of fishers. From a trade perspective\, limi ted access to markets – in particular international buyers - and the abs ence of certification schemes for producers are major challenges ahead. In this context\, the project aims to empower small-scale coastal producers to produce and trade queen conch products sustainably through the applicat ion of apply the Blue BioTrade Principles and Criteria (for the marine env ironment).<\;/p>\;\n\n<\;p>\;During the Phase 1 of the Blue BioTra de project\, three country case studies focusing on stakeholder-owned valu e chain assessments in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines\, Grenada and Sain t Lucia have been produced. These reports\, as developed by UNCTAD in coll aboration with CITES and the OECS\, have analysed and identified stakehold er capacity to identify sustainable and gender-inclusive business opportun ities and put forward recommendations on how to implement the Blue BioTrad e Principles and Criteria in the queen conch value chain to ensure that sm all-scale coastal producers within and outside beneficiary countries benef it from enhanced sustainable production and trade opportunities in the que en conch value chain.<\;/p>\;\n\n<\;h4>\;Objectives<\;/h4>\;\n \n<\;p>\;Drawing from research and evidence from each country study\, the Regional Blue BioTrade Plan of Action Validation Workshop aims to:<\ ;/p>\;\n\n<\;ul>\;\n<\;li>\;Serve as a platform to take stock\, exchange experiences\, address existing bottlenecks\, and explore options and country priorities to implement Blue BioTrade in the Caribbean.<\;/l i>\;\n<\;li>\;Mainstream research findings and evidence-based policy solutions globally and serve as a basis for delivering tailor-made capaci ty-building activities in the three beneficiary countries. Present Blue Bi oTrade opportunities for each country study and highlight cross-country le ssons learned under phase 1 of the project.<\;/li>\;\n<\;li>\;Pres ent\, propose and discuss the draft Blue BioTrade regional plan of action and key recommendations developed in the country studies for stakeholders ’ inputs.<\;/li>\;\n<\;li>\;Present and propose the revised Blue BioTrade regional plan of action and key recommendations for the validati on of the stakeholders.<\;/li>\;\n<\;li>\;Validate the Blue BioTra de regional plan of action to conclude Phase 1 of the Blue BioTrade Projec t.<\;/li>\;\n<\;li>\;Present Phase 2 of the Blue BioTrade Project as a contribution to the implementation of the OECS Blue BioTrade Plan of Action.<\;/li>\;\n<\;/ul>\;\n\n<\;p>\;Due to current COVID-19 travel restrictions\, this event will be held in hybrid format - &\;nbs p\;the in-person attendees will be welcomed by the Ministry &\;nbsp\;of Agriculture\, Forestry\, Fisheries\, Rural Transformation\, Industry and Labour\, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines at Sunset Shores Beach Hotel in Kingstown\, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the remote participants w ill be joining via Zoom.<\;/p>\;\n<\;img alt="\;logos"\; dat a-align="\;center"\; data-entity-type="\;file"\; data-enti ty-uuid="\;bdd0f980-437b-4ae5-90d8-df235e723de2"\; src="\;/sit es/default/files/inline-images/ditc-ted-26052022-StVandGrenadines-BlueBioT rade-logos-v1.JPG"\; />\;\n<\;p>\;&\;nbsp\;<\;/p>\;\n\n\n View meeting on unctad.org\nhttps://unctad.org/meeting/regional-workshop-a nd-validation-oecs-blue-biotrade-action-plan-queen-conch-value-chain DTSTAMP:20260811T145843Z END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT UID:6a7b38a300ed9 DTSTART:20220527T130000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE DTEND:20220527T210000Z LOCATION:Online and Kingstown\, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines SUMMARY:Regional workshop and validation of the OECS Blue BioTrade Action P lan for the queen conch value chain in the Eastern Caribbean CLASS:PUBLIC DESCRIPTION:UNCTAD in collaboration with the Organisation of Eastern Caribb ean States (OECS) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) with the financial support of the European Union through the RIGHT Programme launched a regional project tit led "\;Seizing the trade and business potential of Blue BioTrade produ cts for promoting sustainable livelihoods and conservation of marine diver sity in selected OECS countries (Blue BioTrade project)"\; in October 2020.\n\nThe project aims to empower small scale coastal operators from Gr enada\, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (project benefici aries) to produce and trade queen conch products in domestic\, regional\, and international markets under the Blue BioTrade environmental\, social a nd economic sustainability criteria\, including CITES.\n\nThe project cont ributes to achieving key targets of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 and 15\, whilst also addressing key economic\, environmental and social ob jectives of the OECS Development Strategy 2019-2028 and supporting recover y in a post COVID-19 scenario.\n\nKey issues\n\nQueen conch (Strombus giga s) is a highly appreciated seafood delicacy with important non-food uses\, including therapeutical products and handicrafts. Whilst global demand is booming\, small-scale coastal producers in the Eastern Caribbean do not f ully seize the opportunities offered by sustainable conch markets. In many locations\, early uncontrolled harvesting has resulted in overfishing\, i llegal landings and a rapid deterioration of endowments. Supply-side issue s include the absence of traceability systems\, limited landing and trade evidence\, poor understanding and use of CITES processes and permits\, lac k of common handling practices and sanitary standards and a low level of a ssociativity of fishers. From a trade perspective\, limited access to mark ets – in particular international buyers - and the absence of certificat ion schemes for producers are major challenges ahead. In this context\, th e project aims to empower small-scale coastal producers to produce and tra de queen conch products sustainably through the application of apply the B lue BioTrade Principles and Criteria (for the marine environment).\n\nDuri ng the Phase 1 of the Blue BioTrade project\, three country case studies f ocusing on stakeholder-owned value chain assessments in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines\, Grenada and Saint Lucia have been produced. These reports \, as developed by UNCTAD in collaboration with CITES and the OECS\, have analysed and identified stakeholder capacity to identify sustainable and g ender-inclusive business opportunities and put forward recommendations on how to implement the Blue BioTrade Principles and Criteria in the queen co nch value chain to ensure that small-scale coastal producers within and ou tside beneficiary countries benefit from enhanced sustainable production a nd trade opportunities in the queen conch value chain.\n\nObjectives\n\nDr awing from research and evidence from each country study\, the Regional Bl ue BioTrade Plan of Action Validation Workshop aims to:\n\n\nServe as a pl atform to take stock\, exchange experiences\, address existing bottlenecks \, and explore options and country priorities to implement Blue BioTrade i n the Caribbean.\nMainstream research findings and evidence-based policy s olutions globally and serve as a basis for delivering tailor-made capacity -building activities in the three beneficiary countries. Present Blue BioT rade opportunities for each country study and highlight cross-country less ons learned under phase 1 of the project.\nPresent\, propose and discuss t he draft Blue BioTrade regional plan of action and key recommendations dev eloped in the country studies for stakeholders’ inputs.\nPresent and pro pose the revised Blue BioTrade regional plan of action and key recommendat ions for the validation of the stakeholders.\nValidate the Blue BioTrade r egional plan of action to conclude Phase 1 of the Blue BioTrade Project.\n Present Phase 2 of the Blue BioTrade Project as a contribution to the impl ementation of the OECS Blue BioTrade Plan of Action.\n\n\nDue to current C OVID-19 travel restrictions\, this event will be held in hybrid format -  the in-person attendees will be welcomed by the Ministry  of Agricultur e\, Forestry\, Fisheries\, Rural Transformation\, Industry and Labour\, Sa int Vincent and the Grenadines at Sunset Shores Beach Hotel in Kingstown\, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the remote participants will be join ing via Zoom.\n\n \n<\;p>\;UNCTAD in collaboration with the Organisat ion of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) with the fina ncial support of the European Union through the RIGHT Programme launched a regional project titled "\;Seizing the trade and business potential o f Blue BioTrade products for promoting sustainable livelihoods and conserv ation of marine diversity in selected OECS countries (Blue BioTrade projec t)"\; in October 2020.<\;/p>\;\n\n<\;p>\;The project aims to e mpower small scale coastal operators from Grenada\, Saint Lucia and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (project beneficiaries) to produce and trade qu een conch products in domestic\, regional\, and international markets unde r the Blue BioTrade environmental\, social and economic sustainability cri teria\, including CITES.<\;/p>\;\n\n<\;p>\;The project contributes to achieving key targets of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 and 15\ , whilst also addressing key economic\, environmental and social objective s of the OECS Development Strategy 2019-2028 and supporting recovery in a post COVID-19 scenario.<\;/p>\;\n<\;img alt="\;OECS Director-Gen eral H.E. Dr. Didacus Jules (front center) flanked by queen conch value ch ain stakeholders and the Blue BioTrade team (Photo courtesy of SusGren Inc .)"\; data-align="\;left"\; data-caption="\;&\;lt\;em&a mp\;gt\;OECS Director-General H.E. Dr. Didacus Jules (front center) flanke d by queen conch value chain stakeholders and the Blue BioTrade team (Phot o courtesy of SusGren Inc.)&\;lt\;/em&\;gt\;"\; data-entity-type ="\;file"\; data-entity-uuid="\;e876366b-d02a-421d-bc22-afd9f0 e95266"\; src="\;/sites/default/files/inline-images/ditc-ted-26052 022-StVandGrenadines-BlueBioTrade-group-1-850.jpg"\; />\;\n<\;h4&g t\;Key issues<\;/h4>\;\n\n<\;p>\;Queen conch (<\;em>\;Strombus gigas<\;/em>\;) is a highly appreciated seafood delicacy with importa nt non-food uses\, including therapeutical products and handicrafts. Whils t global demand is booming\, small-scale coastal producers in the Eastern Caribbean do not fully seize the opportunities offered by sustainable conc h markets. In many locations\, early uncontrolled harvesting has resulted in overfishing\, illegal landings and a rapid deterioration of endowments. Supply-side issues include the absence of traceability systems\, limited landing and trade evidence\, poor understanding and use of CITES processes and permits\, lack of common handling practices and sanitary standards an d a low level of associativity of fishers. From a trade perspective\, limi ted access to markets – in particular international buyers - and the abs ence of certification schemes for producers are major challenges ahead. In this context\, the project aims to empower small-scale coastal producers to produce and trade queen conch products sustainably through the applicat ion of apply the Blue BioTrade Principles and Criteria (for the marine env ironment).<\;/p>\;\n\n<\;p>\;During the Phase 1 of the Blue BioTra de project\, three country case studies focusing on stakeholder-owned valu e chain assessments in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines\, Grenada and Sain t Lucia have been produced. These reports\, as developed by UNCTAD in coll aboration with CITES and the OECS\, have analysed and identified stakehold er capacity to identify sustainable and gender-inclusive business opportun ities and put forward recommendations on how to implement the Blue BioTrad e Principles and Criteria in the queen conch value chain to ensure that sm all-scale coastal producers within and outside beneficiary countries benef it from enhanced sustainable production and trade opportunities in the que en conch value chain.<\;/p>\;\n\n<\;h4>\;Objectives<\;/h4>\;\n \n<\;p>\;Drawing from research and evidence from each country study\, the Regional Blue BioTrade Plan of Action Validation Workshop aims to:<\ ;/p>\;\n\n<\;ul>\;\n<\;li>\;Serve as a platform to take stock\, exchange experiences\, address existing bottlenecks\, and explore options and country priorities to implement Blue BioTrade in the Caribbean.<\;/l i>\;\n<\;li>\;Mainstream research findings and evidence-based policy solutions globally and serve as a basis for delivering tailor-made capaci ty-building activities in the three beneficiary countries. Present Blue Bi oTrade opportunities for each country study and highlight cross-country le ssons learned under phase 1 of the project.<\;/li>\;\n<\;li>\;Pres ent\, propose and discuss the draft Blue BioTrade regional plan of action and key recommendations developed in the country studies for stakeholders ’ inputs.<\;/li>\;\n<\;li>\;Present and propose the revised Blue BioTrade regional plan of action and key recommendations for the validati on of the stakeholders.<\;/li>\;\n<\;li>\;Validate the Blue BioTra de regional plan of action to conclude Phase 1 of the Blue BioTrade Projec t.<\;/li>\;\n<\;li>\;Present Phase 2 of the Blue BioTrade Project as a contribution to the implementation of the OECS Blue BioTrade Plan of Action.<\;/li>\;\n<\;/ul>\;\n\n<\;p>\;Due to current COVID-19 travel restrictions\, this event will be held in hybrid format - &\;nbs p\;the in-person attendees will be welcomed by the Ministry &\;nbsp\;of Agriculture\, Forestry\, Fisheries\, Rural Transformation\, Industry and Labour\, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines at Sunset Shores Beach Hotel in Kingstown\, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and the remote participants w ill be joining via Zoom.<\;/p>\;\n<\;img alt="\;logos"\; dat a-align="\;center"\; data-entity-type="\;file"\; data-enti ty-uuid="\;bdd0f980-437b-4ae5-90d8-df235e723de2"\; src="\;/sit es/default/files/inline-images/ditc-ted-26052022-StVandGrenadines-BlueBioT rade-logos-v1.JPG"\; />\;\n<\;p>\;&\;nbsp\;<\;/p>\;\n\n\n View meeting on unctad.org\nhttps://unctad.org/meeting/regional-workshop-a nd-validation-oecs-blue-biotrade-action-plan-queen-conch-value-chain DTSTAMP:20260811T145843Z END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR