About
- The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a specialized UN agency that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security.
- It was established in 1945
- It headquarters are in Rome, Italy
- FAO is composed of 195 members which also includes the EU (European Union)
- It helps governments and development agencies to improve and develop
- agriculture
- forestry
- fisheries
- land and water resources
- It also conducts research, provides technical assistance
- FAO publishes a number of reports related to food, agriculture, forestry, fisheries and natural resources.
- FAO works to promote public-private partnerships, improve smallholder agriculture
- How it is Governed ?
- FAO is governed by a biennial conference representing each member country and the EU
- The conference elects a 49-member executive council
- The Director-Generali is the chief administrative officer
- Various committees govern matters such as finance, programs and agriculture.
- FAO is composed of eight departments
- Agriculture and Consumer Protection
- Climate, Biodiversity
- Land and Water Department
- Economic and Social Development
- Fisheries and Aquaculture
- Forestry
- Corporate Services
- Technical Cooperation and Programme Management
Short History
- The idea of an international food and agriculture organization was given by Polish-born American agriculturalist David Lubin
- 1905 : International Institute of Agriculture (IIA) was eatablished to deal with the problems and challenges of agriculture on a global scale.
- 1943 : During WW2 United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt called a United Nations Conference on Food and Agriculture. The Conference ended with a commitment to establish a permanent organization for food and agriculture
- 1945 : FAO was established in Quebec City, Canada
- 1945 : First Session of FAO was held in Quebec City
- 1974 : In response to African famine, FAO convened the first World Food Summit to address widespread hunger, malnutrition, and food insecurity.
FAO Focus Areas
- Eliminating hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition by facilitating policies and political commitments
- Make agriculture, forestry and fisheries more productive and sustainable, by advocating policies and practices to support agriculture
- Reduce rural poverty
- Improve access to resources for the poor
- Rural employment and social protection
- Build safe and efficient food systems
- Support small farmers
- Increase the resilience of livelihoods by supporting countries to prepare for all types of disasters
Important Initiatives
- Reports and Publications
- The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture
- The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World
- The State of Food and Agriculture
- The State of Agricultural Commodity Markets
- World Food Price Index
- Global Report on Food Crises.
- State of the World’s Forests Report ( every 2 years)
- Codex Alimentarius Commission
- Jointly established by FAO & WHO in 1961
- Aim : to develop food standards and best practices
- Rome Declaration
- Released during the World Food Summit in 1996
- Aim : To reduce by 2015, the number of people who suffer from hunger
- Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) Partnership Initiative
- This initiative aims to identify, support and safeguard globally important agricultural heritage systems and their livelihoods, agricultural and associated biodiversity, knowledge systems, cultures and landscapes around the world
- It is important because these agricultural systems are threatened by many factors including climate change and increased competition for natural resources
- Right to Food Guidelines
- These are voluntary guidelines to support the Progressive Realization of the Right to Adequate Food in the Context of National Food Security
- International Plant Protection Convention or IPPC in 1952
- It is a 1951 multilateral treaty overseen by the FAO
- Aim : To secure coordinated efforts to prevent and control the introduction and spread of pests of plants and plant products
- International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture
- It is also known as ITPGRFA, International Seed Treaty or Plant Treaty
- It is an international agreement in harmony with CBD, which aims at guaranteeing food security through the conservation, exchange and sustainable use of the world’s plant genetic resources for food and agriculture (PGRFA)
- The treaty was approved in 2001 during the 31st FAO Conference
- Goals
- Conservation and sustainable use of all plant genetic resources for food and agriculture
- Fair and equitable sharing of the benefits arising out of their use, in harmony with the Convention on Biological Diversity(CBD)
India & FAO Initiatives
- FAO and Indian maintain partnership since 1948.
- FAO plays an important role in India’s progress in areas of crops, livestock, fisheries, food security, and natural resources.
- The main objective of the Indian government is to double farmer’s incomes. This is to be acheived by
- maximising efficiency
- ensuring equity in a sustainable manner.
- Priority Areas in India
- Sustainable and improved agricultural productivity and increased farm incomes
- Under this FAO will facilitate adaptation of Farmers Water School (FWS) in Uttar Pradesh for groundwater management and crop productivity
- FAO will work on AP Drought Mitigation Project to strengthen the adaptive capacity and productivity of agriculture
- FAO will provide technical assistance to Nagaland and Mizoram for sustainable practices
- Stronger food and nutrition security systems
- FAO will collaborate with IFAD and WFP in Odisha forprojects that promote nutrition-sensitive agricultural practices
- FAO will promote positive nutritional behaviours including hygiene and sanitation
- FAO will work on reduction of absolute poverty
- FAO will help in capacity building at nutrition training institutions/universities
- Effective natural resource management and community development
- FAO will implement the GEF funded Green Agriculture project that will provide models for successful landscape approaches
- FAO will work with Nagaland and Mizoram to make jhum cultivation, more adaptive to climate change, more sustainable and gender inclusive.
- FAO will give assistance for projects for strengthening Agriculture sector’s contributions to India’s National Biodiversity Action Plan (NBAP)
- Technical assistance for combating anti-microbial resistance and implementation of the National Action Plan for AMR
- Under BOBLME project FAO will promote sustainable livelihoods for coastal communities
- Enhanced social inclusion and skill development
- FAO will help build capacities and skills of the poor for gainful livelihoods through employment generating agribusiness and enterprise
- Assistance and build capacity to strengthen agro ecological systems
- To reduce climate vulnerabilities by making dryland and highland farming systems more climate resilient
- Sustainable and improved agricultural productivity and increased farm incomes
Sumit is Creator and Author at learncrisp.com. He started this learning platform with a mission to emerge as an aspirants resource hub, especially for those preparing in self study mode. He loves writing and his interests are History, Security and Diplomacy.