Bilateral meeting between the Executive Director and the Tunisian Ambassador
In the bilateral meeting held on Tuesday, February 13, at the IOC’s headquarters in Madrid, Jaime Lillo, IOC Executive Director, and H.E. Ms. Fatma Omrani, Tunisian Ambassador to Spain, convened to discuss Tunisia’s continued support for the IOC. They emphasised Tunisia’s longstanding significance within the intergovernmental organisation, being this Mediterranean country one of the most historically important players for the olive oil sector worldwide.
In this regard, Ambassador Omrani reaffirmed Tunisia’s support and commitment to the IOC. The representatives exchanged views on the international context of the olive sector and the IOC’s agenda, including the ongoing revision of the International Agreement on Olive Oil and Table Olives, and explored opportunities to enhance academic cooperation between Tunisian experts and IOC partners, such as the University of Jaén. Jaime Lillo took the opportunity to extend an official invitation to the Ambassador for the upcoming presentation of the Olive Oil World Congress (OOWC) at the IOC’s headquarters on February 28th. The OOWC, which enjoys the IOC’s institutional patronage, is scheduled for 26 to 28 June, 2024, in Madrid.
Nadia Barhoumi, Minister Counsellor at the Embassy, and Andoni Olano, Head of the IOC’s External Relations Department, were also present at the meeting. Tunisia, one of the IOC’s founding member countries, maintains close collaboration with the organisation across various areas, including scientific research and knowledge transfer among experts.