UPDATES: Colombian Government Rejects FNC’ Shortlisted List Amid Lack of Women
(Adds further details throughout the story)
Bogota (Coffee Network )- The Finance Ministry has rejected the list of the shortlisted candidates to head the coffee growers federation, claiming that a significant number of female candidates must be included, and has convoked a meeting with the Steering Committee of The National Coffee Growers Federation for next week, a source familiar with the situation at the finance ministry said.
The Finance Ministry will ask the Steering Committee of the National Federation of Coffee Growers to review the list of the shortlisted candidates.
“The National Government will carry out a detailed analysis, with the objective of confirming that all candidates meet the requirements demanded by the National Committee of Coffee Grower,” the Ministry said in a release today.
The minister of finance has repeatedly said he wants a female as the head of FNC and one of the three shortlisted candidates at the end of the process must be a woman.
“It is unbelievable that in this process only Sandra Morelli was shortlisted. Several women submitted their CV and it is unbelievable why the steering committee only preselected this one,” said a source at the Finance Ministry, who declined to be identified.
Sandra Morelli. Morelli is a former legal director at the coffee growers federation, and former general country’s comptroller. Morelli was the legal director of the coffee growers federation during 12 years. She handled the crisis of the Flota Mercante Gran Colombiana, a marine shipping agency that no longer exists. The Flota Mercante generates 57 billion Colombian pesos ($19 million) in yearly pension liabilities that are covered by FNC.
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But in the list of the preselected candidates, it was missing the name of Maria Claudia Lacouture who was gaining momentum among coffee growers even though she lacks the knowledge in coffee.
The National Committee of Growers must shortlist three candidates. One of them must have the express and favorable vote of the Minister of Finance. An extraordinary coffee summit must be carried out to choose the new FNC manager.
Yesterday, the Colombian coffee committee of the coffee growers federation shortlisted seven candidates including Carlos Felipe Robayo Duque, former commercial manager at FNC and César Augusto Echeverry Castaño, former director of Tecnicafe, and current researcher at the International Center of Tropical Agriculture CIAT among seven preselected candidates to head FNC.
Colombia is selecting a new general manager of the coffee growers federation after president Gustavo Petro requested the resignation of incumbent director Roberto Velez, who led the institution since 2015.
It should be noted that the Steering Committee of the coffee growers federation is holding a meeting earlier today.
However, the resolution 01 of February 1, 2023 of the FNC, established the criteria, the profile and the schedule of the process to pick the new manager. FNC is a non-governmental organization and by then, the resolution indicated that "the process is designed to ensure the participation of women interested in the call who meet the profile and requirements determined in this call for the position called. In any case, there must be a woman in the shortlist that is presented to the National Congress of Coffee Growers."
Another name that emerged yesterday as the shortlisted candidates was Luis Fernando Mejia, incumbent director of think tank Fedesarrollo and former director of the government’s national planning department.
Other names that were preselected are Germán Alberto Bahamón Jaramillo, Mauricio Velásquez García, and Santiago Pardo, who was FNC’s representative in Asia.
The National Coffee Growers committee is comprised by the Finance Minister, the Agriculture Minister, the Commerce Minister and the director of the national planning department as well as representatives from each of the 15 coffee departments. The National Coffee Growers Committee is a joint body that coordinates the country’s coffee policy.
The Committee will shortlist three candidates, one of which must be approved by Finance Minister between March 13 and 17.
Between March 21 and 31, the candidates that are part of the shortlist will present their proposals and programs to each of the 15 departmental committees.
On April 18, an Extraordinary Coffee Congress will elect the new FNC manager who will take the helm of FNC on that day.
Coffee producing department whose production is higher than 9% of the country’s total output will have six votes during the polling session. Departments with coffee output below 3 and 9% will have three votes and those below 3% of output will have two votes.
Profile of new head of FNC
According to the profile of the applicants and the guiding criteria disclosed in the call, whoever reaches the general management will face the challenge of maintaining the unity of the industry group, the closeness with all the producers and improve the institutional indicators in economic, financial, social, environmental matters and governance.
In addition, it will ensure the well-being of coffee growers. With a well-structured institutional value strategy, the FNC provides goods and public coffee services to all producers thanks to a successful management model financed by the National Coffee Fund (FoNC), whose management is also crucial.
With great vision both domestically and globally, the new general manager must lead the FNC to its first centenary as a leading institution in sustainability and prosperity of coffee-growing families on the national and international scale.
The profile of the next general manager must also gather leadership qualities, solidarity, social sensitivity, managerial capacity and ability to lead and carry out the union's priorities and project it into the future, FNC said.
By Diana Delgado
