Tropical Agriculture Association (TAA)
The Tropical Agriculture Association (TAA) is an international professional association of individuals, institutional/ corporate bodies and civil society organisations concerned with the role of agriculture for sustainable development throughout the world.
Company details
Find locations served, office locations
- Business Type:
- Professional association
- Industry Type:
- Agriculture
- Market Focus:
- Globally (various continents)
- Year Founded:
- 1972
- Employees:
- 1-10
About Us
The Tropical Agricultural Association (TAA) is a unique professional association of individuals, businesses and corporate bodies involved in sustainable agricultural development.
Mission. The Associations’ mission is “To advance education, research and practice in agriculture for rural livelihoods and sustainable development”.
Governance. The TAA is a UK registered charity (No 800663) administered by its Trustees, in accordance with its constitution, adopted on 1st December 1988.
Trustees are responsible for directing the affairs of the Association and ensuring that it delivers its charitable objects, in particular:
- Ensuring compliance with the rules of the charity as set out in its constitution, including annual submission of information on Trustee/ExCo minutes, Trustee liability insurance, budget for following 18-24 months, all grant information, transactions with detailed parties and a risk assessment ledger that shows key risks, possible impact and measures taken or being taken to mitigate the risks.
- Ensuring that its charitable funds and assets are used to further its charitable aims, taking appropriate advice when necessary.
- Preparing an annual Trustee report with accounts for approval by the AGM, and subsequent submission to the Charities Commission. Click here to read our latest annual Trustees Reports and Accounts. Annual financial statements from 2006 are in the document archive.
Trustees are elected, appointed or reappointed at the Association’s Annual General Meetings. Presently Trustees include the Chairman, General Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Secretary and Coordinating Editor of the Association’s Journal. All Trustees are registered with the Charities Commission.
Trustees are supported by an Executive Committee, which has a wider mandate in running the affairs of the Association.
We abide by our Privacy Policy, according to the General Data Protection Regulations 2018. Our registered postal address is ‘TAA, c/o Montpelier Professional Services, 1 Dashwood Square, Newton Stewart DG8 6EQ, UK‘.
Our Objectives
- To contribute to international policies aimed at reducing poverty and improving livelihoods in rural areas in the tropics, sub-tropics and countries with less developed economies in temperate areas.
- To encourage local and other initiatives to arrest the degradation of natural resources and improve the productivity of agriculture, rural enterprises and commercial investment in order to enhance family incomes and livelihoods.
- To support the achievement of the 2015 UN Sustainable Development Goals, especially Goal 2: “End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture” and Goal 15: “Life on Land”.
TAA recognises the interrelated roles of farmers and other stakeholders living in rural areas, agriculture-related professions and researchers, government, non-governmental organisations, civil society and the private sector in achieving a convergent approach to sustainable rural development. This includes recognition of the importance of the role of women, the effect of climate change, nutrition and food chain aspects, and other social and cultural issues that impact on the rural economy and livelihoods.
Our History
The Association traces its roots to the Imperial College of Tropical Agriculture (ICTA), Trinidad. Alumni of the college formed the ICTA Association in the mid-1970s. Subsequently, in 1979, the association was renamed the Tropical Agriculture Association and constituted in the UK. Over the years the TAA membership has broadened to include all those interested in the various aspects of agricultural development worldwide. It has produced a quarterly ‘Newsletter’ since 1981. Since March 2008 this has evolved into a 4-monthly journal called ‘Agriculture for Development’.
See the timeline of the evolution of the TAA and read the history of TAA from the early days to 2015. We celebrate our 40th Anniversary in 2019.