• The PASTINNOVA project, financed by PRIMA, aims to reinforce innovation in Mediterranean pastoral farms to strengthen their economic and social sustainability.

• The partners of the project have met in Tangier in Morocco to coordinate activities and participate in a conference on Mediterranean pastoral systems.

CIHEAM Zaragoza is one of the 20 organizations from 12 Mediterranean countries (Algeria, Croatia, Cyprus, Slovenia, France, Greece, Italy, Lebanon, Morocco, Spain, Tunisia and Turkey) participating in the PASTINNOVA project, financed by PRIMA with the purpose of reinforcing innovation in Mediterranean pastoral livestock systems to strengthen their economic and social sustainability.

The intergovernmental organization for cooperation in agriculture and food has met fellow project partners in Tangier, Morocco, from 10 to 12 May, to share experiences, plan activities and participate in a conference and discussion on Mediterranean pastoral systems organized by the National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA) of Morocco.

During the annual meeting the partners have planned the activities for the second year of the project, including the creation of the four thematic groups to classify pastoral innovations to be studied, provide advice and exchange experiences: technical innovation; organizational innovation; markets and value chains; and training and gender issues.

Regarding the activities coordinated by CIHEAM Zaragoza, the action plan for the second year of PASTINNOVA contemplates the organization of a course for young researchers in Spain in 2024, the launch of a cycle of webinars and development of the first dissemination materials on Mediterranean pastoral innovation.

A TALK AND DISCUSSION ON MEDITERRANEAN PASTORAL SYSTEMS

CIHEAM Zaragoza and other PASTINNOVA partners also had the opportunity to participate in a forum with several Moroccan stakeholders from the extensive livestock sector and representatives of the Administration in charge of implementing development plans and policies for the sector in the country.

The PASTINNOVA project partners shared their experiences on innovations they are working on in their respective countries. Although widely diverse, the initiatives they presented address common challenges that the sector is facing across the Mediterranean, and covered degradation of grazing resources, lack of generational replacement and labour, low economic profitability, difficult market access, conflicting land use, and legislation that is often incompatible with grazing practices.

They spoke of innovations underlying the essential role of extensive livestock and pastoral systems in Mediterranean rural areas. Antonio López-Francos, Administrator of Cooperative Projects and Networks of CIHEAM Zaragoza comments on some of the aspects addressed: "Even when faced with enormous challenges, the innovations and initiatives shared in this conference reflect the rich diversity of extensive livestock grazing systems, their potential to place high-quality products on the market and sustain economic activity and employment in marginal rural areas, as well as their unique capacity to manage and make use of vast territories, and basically their essential role in the integrated development of many Mediterranean rural areas".