Colombia confirms its continued support for the CFC
The Hague, 17 September 2025 – Ambassador Sheikh Mohammed Belal, Managing Director of the Common Fund for Commodities (CFC), paid a courtesy visit to H.E. Ms. Carolina Olarte Bácares, Governor of the CFC for Colombia and Ambassador of the Republic of Colombia to the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The meeting provided an opportunity to exchange views on matters of mutual interest and to explore avenues for deeper cooperation.
Ambassador Belal briefed Ambassador Olarte Bácares on the CFC’s ongoing activities and the growing challenges it faces in meeting the increasing demand for its services. He underlined the Fund’s tangible impact on the ground and emphasized the importance of collective action in alleviating poverty, strengthening resilience, and promoting sustainable development in commodity-dependent developing countries.
In expressing his appreciation, Ambassador Belal thanked Ambassador Olarte Bácares for her active engagement and steadfast support of the CFC, noting Colombia’s consistent and constructive role in advancing the Fund’s mission. He further highlighted the potential for enhancing agricultural value chains to enable farmers to capture greater benefits while strengthening national economic resilience.
The discussion also focused on the Humanizing Value Chains (HVC) initiative, which addresses persistent challenges such as low farmer incomes and unequal value distribution across commodity chains. Ambassador Belal reaffirmed Colombia’s support for the HVC initiative and expressed his pleasure in announcing that Peru has officially endorsed HVC, setting an encouraging precedent for other countries to join in fostering fairer and more inclusive commodity value chains.
Ambassador Olarte Bácares welcomed the visit and reaffirmed Colombia’s strong commitment to the CFC. Ambassador Bacares commended the Fund’s work in advancing inclusive growth and sustainable development. With its pivotal position in global food and commodity markets, Colombia’s voice and vision remain central to building more resilient and equitable value chains.
In conclusion, Ambassador Belal warmly encouraged Colombia to further deepen its engagement with the CFC, recognizing the country’s esteemed role as a global leader in the commodities sector and its ability to inspire collective action toward fairer and more inclusive terms of trade. Both Ambassadors graciously reaffirmed their shared commitment to advancing collaboration in support of smallholders and farmers, whose success remains indispensable to fostering sustainable growth and development.
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[CFC Media Relations Team]
[Email: managing.director@common-fund.org]
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