1. The Seventy-eighth Session of the Council was held in Rome from 24 November to 4 December 1980 under the Chairmanship o Bukar Shaib, Independent Chairman of the Council.
2. Following a brief statement by the Director-General, the Council observed a minute of silence in sympathy for the victims of the earthquake which had struck widespread areas of Southern Italy during the evening and night of 23 November 1980. In addition, the Council requested the Chairman to send, on its behalf, a telegram of condolence to the Italian authorities.
3. The agenda and timetable of the session were adopted unanimously. The agenda as adopted is given in Appendix A to this report.
4. The Council elected three Vice-Chairmen for its session: C. Batault ( France ), N. Islam ( Bangladesh ), and C. Dajer Chadid ( Colombia ).
5. The Council elected A. Lopes Ribeiro ( Portugal ) as Chairman of the Drafting Committee, and the following as members: Australia , Bangladesh , El Salvador , Frances Ghana, Iraqi United States of America and Zaire.
6. The Council heard a Statement by the Director-General, giving a broad assessment of the serious state of food and agriculture in the world and drawing the attention of the Council to the dangers in the world food situation in 1980-81. He described the action taken by FAO since the last session of the Council, to meet the challenge, and drew attention to the commitment and measures required from Member Nations and the Organization. The text of this statement is given in Appendix D to this report.
7. At the invitation of the Director-General, the Secretary-General of the OAU, Mr. Edem Kodjo addressed the Council on the food situation in Africa . The Council expressed its appreciation to Mr. Kodjo for his presence, and for his illuminating statement which clearly drew attention to the gravity of the food and agriculture situation in Africa and the importance of the effective and close collaboration between the two Organizations. The text of Mr. Kodjo's Statement is given in Appendix E to this report.
1 CL 78/1; CL 78/1(a); CL 78/INF/1; CL 78/PV/1.
2 CL 78/PV/1; CL 78/PV/2.
3 CL 78/INF/5 CL 78/PV/I; CL 78/PV/2.
4 CL 78/PV/3.
