Mr. Barton Clarke was appointed Executive Director for the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) on 12 May 2015.  Mr Clarke is a national of Barbados and has a wealth of professional experience in agricultural development and a deep understanding and knowledge of the Region’s political and socio-economic systems.

In his position, Mr Clarke is responsible for overseeing the development and implementation of the Institute’s work programme inclusive of donor funded projects.  He also leads resource mobilisation activities, so as to increase scientific and technological research, innovation and partnerships critical to boosting the Region’s agricultural sector.

Mr Clarke has held many senior managerial positions including the position of Chief Agricultural Officer in his native Barbados.  He served as the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) Representative for Trinidad and Tobago and Suriname at the FAO Office in Trinidad and Tobago. He also held various positions previously at CARDI, including Country Representative for Barbados, Dominica and Saint Lucia, Deputy Director Technical Programmes for the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) and Project Manager for European Union (EU) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funded projects.