ICAC: Emblematic of Complex Products
September 14, 2009 The theme of the 68th ICAC plenary meeting in Cape Town, South Africa, September 6-11, is unusually long: The Role of Cotton in Economic Development and Ensuring Food Security During a Period of Global Economic Crisis. This lengthy theme with two related subjects is emblematic of the complex problems facing the world cotton industry and the economic crisis in which the industry has been operating. During the cotton season just past, world cotton consumption fell by 13%, the largest percentage decline since the formation of the Committee 70 years ago, and so a focus on the economic crisis is necessary. And, as speakers during this plenary meeting will note, cotton can serve as a solution to the problems confronting the world economy and rural areas.
The purposes of ICAC meetings are to facilitate cooperation and showcase best practices appropriate for national adoption. One of the lessons of the last cotton season is that increases in trade and efficiency have also led to increased interdependence. During March 2008, volatility in the cotton futures contract traded in New York City led to the bankruptcy of some merchants and the financial weakening of many. As a result, cotton producers have had greater difficulty in selling cotton when they wish, even when quoted prices are attractive, and cotton buyers have had great difficulty securing assured shipments at fixed prices. Trade finance has become much more difficult to arrange.
Industry and government officials do not usually have much sympathy for the financial health of merchants, but the events of March 2008 illustrate how all segments of the cotton value chain are dependent on the health of the other segments and how an event in one country can affect the livelihoods of producers and consumers in other countries. The current economic recession and the attendant difficulties facing all participants in the world cotton industry provide clear evidence that the rationale for the existence of the ICAC is as valid today as in 1939 when the Committee was formed.
Sunday, September 6
10:00 to 16:00 Registration
10:00 Meeting of the Expert Panel on Social, Environmental and Economic Performance of Cotton Production
13:30 Meeting of the Private Sector Advisory Panel
14:30 Round Table Discussion: The Role of Organic Cotton
19:00 Welcome Reception
Monday, September 7
8:00 Registration
9:00 Inaugural Session. Keynote Speech: Berrye Worsham, President, Cotton Incorporated, USA
11:30 First Open Session: Policies to Enhance Food Security
15:00 Second Open Session: Facilitating Small-Holder Cotton Production
19:00 Welcome Dinner
Tuesday, September 8
8:00 Registration
9:00 Third Open Session: Cotton By-Products and Value Addition
9:00 First Breakout Session: The Role of Organizations in the Cotton Economy
11:00 Fourth Open Session: Outlook for Supply, Demand and Prices of Cotton and Inputs
13:00 Lunch for all participants
13:00 Lunch meeting of the International Forum for Cotton Promotion (IFCP)
15:00 First Plenary Session: Overcoming Impediments to Progress in Multilateral Trade Negotiations
16:00 Meeting of the Task Force on Commercial Standardization of Instrument Testing of Cotton
19:00 Evening Program for all participants
Wednesday, September 9
9:00 Second Plenary Session: Statements
9:00 Second Breakout Session: Progress Toward Harmonization of Trade Rules
11:00 Second Plenary Session: Statements (continued)
11:00 Third Breakout Session: Enhancing Demand for Cotton Products
12:30 Lunch for all participants
18:00 Evening Program for all participants
Thursday, September 10
7:30 Breakfast-meeting of plenary host committees
8:00 Registration
9:00 Fifth Open Session (Meeting of the Committee on Cotton Production Research) Technical Seminar: Biosafety Regulations, Implementation and Consumer Acceptance
11:00 Fifth Open Session (Technical Seminar continued)
11:00 Fourth Breakout Session: The Impacts of Carbon Trading on the Cotton Industry
12:30 Lunch for all participants
13:45 Meeting of the Drafting Group (member country delegates)
13:45 Fifth Breakout Session: Best Practices in Cotton Ginning
16:00 Meeting of the Steering Committee (member country delegates)
19:30 Gala Dinner, Exhibition Hall
Friday, September 11
9:00 Sixth Open Session: The Impacts of Social and Environmental Standards on Demand for Cotton and Textiles
11:00 Closing Plenary Session
12:00 Lunch for all participants
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