Professor Baudouin Michel, Director of ERAIFT, met Mr Hans Thulstrup, Chief of the MAB Unit (Man and the Biosphere Program, and Mr Guy Debonnet, Chief of the World Heritage Unit, for a working session at UNESCO in Paris. This meeting is part of the preparations for the International Symposium of Category 2 Institutes and Centres under the auspices of UNESCO in the Natural Sciences, scheduled for 15 to 17 May 2024 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in which ERAIFT will take part.

ERAIFT expresses its gratitude to Unesco for its warm welcome and trust.

On 17 April 2024, a delegation from the Ivorian cooperative PEM N'Zassa ENABEL visited Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, one of the faculties of the University of Liège. During the visit, the Director of ERAIFT, Professor Baudouin MICHEL, gave a fascinating presentation on the economics of food and agro-industrial sectors, focusing on market trends and VCA4D analyses (Value Chain For Development, project funded by the European Union and implemented by AGRINATURA), with particular attention paid to the cocoa sector in Côte d'Ivoire. The presentation focused on various aspects such as cocoa cultivation, production, consumption and world trade in cocoa, as well as the causes of supply instability, using the VCA4D approach to analyse value chains.

The PEM N'Zassa project is an exciting initiative to strengthen partnerships between Ivorian and Belgian entrepreneurs, with the aim of facilitating the development of sustainable partnerships in key sectors such as agribusiness (including cocoa and chocolate), the green economy, the digital economy, and the cultural and creative industries.

ERAIFT expresses its sincere gratitude to Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech for invitation to this event of great importance for the emergence of sustainable agriculture. ERAIFT also thanks the European Union and AGRINATURA for their financial support.

Professor Baudouin MICHEL, Director of ERAIFT, Coordinator of INERA Yangambi's research activities and Rector of IFA-Yangambi, took part on Wednesday April 3 in Yangambi in the outstanding conference given by Professor Pascal Boeckx of the University of Gent (Belgium) entitled "How to reduce Africa's excessive exposure to climate 'risks'", which was presented to INERA researchers. There were many pertinent questions and comments, and a fascinating debate.

ERAIFT and IFA-Yangambi thank INERA and Professor Pascal Boeckx for this invitation.

On Saturday 23 March 2024, the Director of ERAIFT, Professor Baudouin Michel, attended the graduation ceremony of the 2023 cohort of the Master in Management Sciences organized in Kinshasa by HEC Liège and the “Université Protestante du Congo (UPC)” at the “Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles International” (WBI). Eight graduates were honored. This ceremony marks the end of a rigorous academic process and the beginning of a new step in the professional careers of these new graduates.

ERAIFT thanks the Université de Liège, the UPC and the WBI for their invitation and congratulates the Eight new graduates.