APPENDIX E
DIRECTOR-GENERAL'S STATEMENT TO THE
ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTH SESSION OF THE COUNCIL
Mr Chairman, Excellencies, Distinguished Ministers and Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen,
1. It is an unequalled privilege for me to bid you welcome at this first session of the Council since I assumed my functions at the beginning of this year.
2. The occasion is also a very special one for the Council, since this session has been convened at the explicit request of the Conference. It is a session of momentous importance because the Conference has empowered the Council and delegated to you the authority to decide on all necessary changes relating to the programmes, structures and policies of the Organization, on the basis of the proposals which I have been permitted to formulate within the overall budget level approved by the Conference for this biennium.
3. For me, this session represents a unique testimony of the confidence extended to me by the Conference which not only elected me to serve you as your Director-General, but gave me the opportunity to make proposals for changes.
4. I have accepted the charge entrusted to me by the Conference with humility but, at the same time, with eagerness. The commitment to this Organization which I pledged in taking my oath of office is rooted in my conviction that FAO can fulfil your expectations even more than in the past. It should do so even more because of the greater challenges that face us. This requires sharpness of analysis, the distillation of key principles, and the consistent management application of these through coherent and interrelated measures.
5. It is, therefore, with total willingness of effort and deep conviction that I present my proposals to you for your consideration and approval.
6. The challenges facing this Organization are the challenges of Member Nations. It is Member Nations and their people who cannot accept the human tragedy of 800 million people without adequate food, be they those condemned to abject poverty and misery, be they the 192 million children whose hunger today points to the deprivation of opportunities tomorrow. It is Member Nations who face the challenge of feeding 9 000 million people by the year 2030. Accordingly, it is Member Nations who rightly insist that their Organization for food and agriculture effectively help them in dealing with these challenges.
7. The Member Nations of FAO, in accepting its Constitution, have made a solemn pledge to raise levels of nutrition and standards of living of their peoples and thereby contribute toward ensuring humanity's freedom from hunger. There can be no higher purpose. Since the establishment of FAO, impressive progress toward food security has been made, sufficient for the Organization to be able to report to the preparatory session for the International Conference on Nutrition that for the first time the absolute as well as the share of world population that was in a state of undernutrition had declined.
8. Yet food is not distributed equitably. Some whole regions have in excess of 3 600 kilocalories per person per day, while at the other extreme only 2 100 kilocalories are available in sub-Saharan Africa.
9. The prospects for the future, as they emerge from Agriculture Towards 2010, are for increasing per caput food supplies globally, and in many developing countries. However, unless appropriate and concerted actions are taken by all concerned, the incidence of undernutrition in the developing countries will continue to be unduly high.
10. These disturbing prospects for the level of undernutrition are foreseen at the same time as the net food deficits of the developing countries would continue to grow and the developing countries as a whole will soon turn from net agricultural exporters to net importers. These are alarming prospects given the difficult balance of payments situation and the unfavourable economic prospects for many developing countries.
11. Nothing short of a significant upgrading of the overall development performance of the lagging economies, with emphasis on a more equitable sharing of the benefits, will free the world of the most pressing food insecurity problems. In view of the high dependence of a large number of food insecure countries on agriculture for employment and incomes, their only feasible option for an early and sustainable improvement in food security is the enhancement of the productivity and production of food. The key to such gains is efficient technology, applied to the commodities that can make a difference. For the strategy to be successful the overall policy climate must be favourable and adequate incentives have to be in place.
12. While FAO will focus its food security assistance to Member Nations on the production aspect of the food security concept, where its strength lies, it will continue to provide assistance on the formulation of national action plans to improve the qualitative status and the demand side of food security.
13. The basic goal of food security is one that peoples, governments and the international community have no alternative but to address. For this reason, I am proposing an initiative on which I am beginning the process of consultations with Member Nations through our forthcoming Regional Conferences, to be pursued in future sessions of the Council and the Conference. It is envisaged to have an appropriate forum to assess the evolution of the world food situation since the World Food Conference more than twenty years ago and to present the prospects for the year 2010 so as to raise awareness of the high risks of food crises and famine and to produce the necessary commitment at the highest political level and in the public arena with a view to take early corrective measures. Therefore, I am proposing that a World Food Summit be held early in 1996 taking advantage of the sequence of relevant meetings of FAO Regional Conferences and Governing Bodies to ensure a progressive preparatory process.
14. The International Symposium and the Ministerial Meeting on the occasion of special commemorative observance in Quebec to celebrate the Fiftieth Anniversary of the founding of FAO will provide the opportunity for the final preparatory phase before the Summit.
15. The conclusion of the Uruguay Round of Multilateral Trade Negotiations has significant repercussions, both in terms of the resulting implications for developing countries, as also for the FAO relations with the World Trade Organization in particular in the implementation of the Final Act.
16. Of primary concern to FAO are the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, the Agreement on Agriculture and the Agreement on Textiles and Clothing. The relevant provisions of these Agreements are being studied so that the Organization can provide the required services, including the provision of advice and assistance to developing countries who must reformulate their policies and programmes to be in compliance.
17. The Codex Alimentarius Commission and the International Plant Protection Convention will be involved in the implementation of the Agreement on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, to avoid arbitrary or unjustified discrimination between members.
18. The impact of the Agreement on Agriculture which mandates a scheduled reduction in domestic support to producers, in tariffs and in export subsidies, will be assessed as soon as the specifics become available.
19. The Conference last November confirmed the high priority given by Member Governments to the activities of the Organization related to sustainable development and environment, and requested that FAO fully cooperate with the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) in the follow-up of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED).
20. The basic considerations which guided my review of FAO programmes and structures in this broad area are that sustainable development should be focused on the development of human capacities, individually and collectively, to manage and maintain the earth's resources to meet the needs and aspirations of present and future generations. As stated in the Principle No. 1 of the Rio Declaration: "Human beings are at the centre of concerns for sustainable development. They are entitled to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature".
21. I therefore intend to establish a closer integration between the long-established stream of FAO's work on the management of natural resources and protection of the environment on the one hand, and that which stems from the World Conference on Agrarian Reform and Rural Development (WCARRD), the Plan of Action on People's Participation, the Plan of Action for the Integration of Women into Development and the related aspects of human resources, capacity-building and social development on the other. These considerations are at the heart of my proposal to establish a Department of Sustainable Development, which will provide the focal integrative point for addressing the cross-cutting issues of sustainable development in relation with technical departments which will continue to be responsible for sectoral sustainable development.
22. The Council will recall that the Conference also requested the Organization to strengthen its role as a major partner in the UN system for UNCED follow-up and, in particular, its cooperation with the CSD and the Inter-Agency Committee on Sustainable Development (IACSD), for the implementation of Agenda 21 and other UNCED agreements.
23. Since the beginning of the year, in spite of other pressing demands, the Organization has been active in a number of intergovernmental and inter-agency consultations related to the implementation of the international conventions on climate and biodiversity; the negotiation of a convention on desertification; the development of the UNDP-led programme Capacity 21, the Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States; the development of inter-agency cooperation on toxic chemicals and chemical safety, on oceans, on sustainable mountain development, on the monitoring of terrestrial ecosystems, etc. etc.
24. In approving the Programme of Work and Budget for the 1994-95 biennium, the Conference endorsed the proposed activities in the field of natural resource management, and agricultural production and related services, which respond to priorities contained in the Organization's Medium-term Plan. I am determined to maintain all these programmes, and in particular the overall emphasis on technical and institutional sustainability of agricultural and rural development as the Conference requested. I also intend to preserve and further develop the unique normative role that FAO should play in a number of areas of global importance. Particular examples of FAO's normative role in the field of agriculture include the assessment of the resource base, and its change in time; the facilitator function for the development, negotiation and implementation of International Agreements and Codes of Conduct in such fields as Plant Quarantine, Pesticide Use and Regulation, Water and Land Use.
25. If I would single out one area of our work in the agricultural sector it would be in Genetic Resources - both animal and plant, thus responding to the expressed wishes of the Conference. Here we have to play our lead role in the universal commitment to preserve and sustainably utilize the biodiversity found throughout the world. Our concern is naturally for biodiversity which is of immediate or potential importance to food and agriculture. We have just launched a process of intergovernmental renegotiation of the International Undertaking on Plant Genetic Resources to bring it into harmony with the Convention on Biological Diversity, and to find solutions to outstanding matters. We will integrate this process closely with the development of the Global Plan of Action for Plant Genetic Resources. To facilitate the renegotiation process some budgetary provision has been made to hold extraordinary sessions of the Commission on Plant Genetic Resources and of its Working Group. The country-driven process of assessing the state of the world's plant genetic resources and developing the Plan of Action will be major inputs to the Fourth International Technical Conference on Plant Genetic Resources to be held in 1996, subject to our ability to fill the substantial remaining funding gap through extra-budgetary means.
26. Added emphasis will be given to our work on Animal Genetic Resources where we have decided to further strengthen the related programme so as to undertake FAO's role as a centre for global Animal Genetic Resource activities. An Action Programme with a regional structure is being developed.
27. From its earlier days, FAO has developed a number of important programmes and international agreements on plants, livestock, fish and forestry genetic resources. These activities were strongly supported at the last Conference. FAO's Commission on Plant Genetic Resources which the Conference recognized as "the only intergovernmental body in the United Nations system addressing a large portion of the biological diversity" for food and agriculture, provides guidance on crop and forestry genetic resources. I now believe it opportune to begin a gradual process of broadening the Commission's scope to livestock and to fish, that is, to genetic resources for food and agriculture in general. I shall submit such a proposal in more detail to the next session of the Council. This broadening of the Commission will permit member countries to provide advice and guidance to the Secretariat with a more integrated agro-ecological approach, better suited to the concept of sustainable agriculture and the new possibilities of modern biotechnologies to transfer genes between plants and animals. A broadened Commission could also provide technical support to the Conference of the Parties of the Convention on Biological Diversity.
28. The unprecedented public awareness of the role of forests in environment conservation and sustainable development places special responsibility on FAO as the international organization with a global and comprehensive mandate in forestry. The annual deforestation of 17 million hectares lends urgency to FAO's action. Major international fora, especially UNCED, have amplified the call for action by FAO. FAO is task manager for UNCED follow-up activities in relation to the implementation of the "Forest Principles" and major forest-related chapters, specially Chapter 11, of Agenda 21 on combating deforestation.
29. The Twenty-seventh Conference re-emphasized FAO's role in the preparatory process leading up to the 1995 session of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) when forestry will be discussed and beyond to CSD '97. In responding to these expectations, I propose to enhance the work of FAO forestry to project a higher profile and adopt a more proactive posture. FAO's action should be seen as part of a comprehensive programme which must be delivered in the true sense of partnership with all concerned in support of the actions which member countries themselves have decided to undertake as follow-up to UNCED.
30. You will note my proposal to strengthen the Major Programme Forestry with a resource increase of 2.1 percent, or approximately US$700 000. This increase demonstrates unequivocally the increased importance attached to FAO's forestry programmes. I have also adopted a strategy which refocuses FAO's priorities in forestry within the 1994-95 Programme of Work and Budget to address the immediate requirements of the preparations for CSD 1995.
31. In the medium term, FAO must play an increasingly important role in meeting the new challenges born of UNCED and other related developments. To provide high-level policy advice and counsel for the future activities of FAO in forestry I propose to convene in the autumn of this year a high-level panel of external experts in time for their advice and recommendations to be considered both for the formulation of the Programme of Work and Budget 1996-97 and for the preparations for CSD 1995 and 1997.
32. The several ongoing initiatives in forestry, led by countries with important forest resources underline the intensity of interest and political concern of governments and their eagerness to respond to the UNCED challenges. Since January 1993 there have been at least ten meetings on forestry. Moreover, I understand that there is a move by some governments for an intersessional committee, between CSD 1994 and 1995, to deal inter alia with forestry. These all illustrate the seriousness of purpose and intensity of the debate. What is evidently lacking is a universally accepted international forum where all these efforts could converge. Following the recommendation of the Conference I propose to invite Ministers responsible for forestry to the Twelfth Session of the Committee on Forestry (COFO) in March 1995, to discuss these issues. This will be the first occasion that FAO will organize a Ministerial Meeting exclusively devoted to forestry. Immediately prior to the session of COFO, we also plan to arrange a meeting with our partners from non-governmental organizations and the private sector with a view to ensuring the best concerted joint action.
33. UNCED called on all countries to prepare National Forest Action Plans (NFAPs) and recognized the merits of the TFAP as a suitable framework for this purpose. Ninety-two countries, tropical and sub-tropical, are currently applying the TFAP principles in the preparation and implementation of their NFAPs. Hence I have decided to strengthen the TFAP, especially to provide for decentralized support to countries.
34. FAO will play an increasingly supportive role both in strengthening national capabilities and seeking to ensure the transfer of technology and resources on equitable terms. In this effort, and to meet the new challenges, the promotion of global partnerships for action between all the principal actors, national, international, the private sector and NGOs, is of critical importance. At the same time, forest conservation and development cannot be achieved in isolation from other forms of land use. A cross-sectoral approach will be pursued to deal with the interactions among forestry, agriculture, poverty and population growth.
35. At its One Hundred and Third Session, the Council decided to establish the TFAP Consultative Group. The TFAP/CG inter alia is aimed to promote dialogue between all partners in the TFAP to assess progress, identify evolving opportunities and issues in implementing TFAP and NFAPs. The deliberations of the CG would be a useful input to the process leading up to the CSD 95. As appeals for extra-budgetary resources for the TFAP/CG have been in vain, I propose to convene the first session as soon as possible under Regular Programme funding.
36. In the discharge of its normative functions in forestry, FAO must continue to build on its strengths and its comparative advantages particularly in relation to forest resource assessment, enhancing the capability and capacity of national governments to plan and manage their forest resources sustainably and prepare the technical basis for the establishment of an international agreement on forests. Attention must be given to mechanisms for international coordination and the funding of the implementation of any such agreement.
37. The call for action from our member countries for the conservation and sustainable development of all forests is loud and clear. FAO will not be found wanting in responding to their demands.
38. The fisheries sector is of great importance in a large number of countries, as provider of nutritious food, as a source of employment and income and as a contributor to foreign exchange earnings. In many developing countries, it is particularly the low-income sector of the population which depends heavily on fisheries for its diet.
39. The world fisheries situation is characterized by marine resources being generally exploited up to their maximum, with many indeed over-exploited and requiring urgent management and conservation measures. Such measures are needed not only to ensure stability in future supplies, but to lead, through more rationalized and effective operations, to higher profitability.
40. From where are we to obtain additional fish supplies? The most promising prospect is from aquaculture, both marine and freshwater. Fish culture, although practised throughout history, is still in its infancy in many developing countries. It now contributes some 15 percent to food fish supplies. According to AT 2010 projections, its share can be expected to rise to 30 percent.
41. The other source of increased supplies is through the more rational utilization of presently exploited stocks, both through improved management and through improved catch utilization.
42. As the only global intergovernmental organization for fisheries, FAO must respond to all these challenges. You will note my proposal to strengthen the Major Programme on Fisheries with the resource increase of just over US$300 000. If we did not operate within a no-growth budget, a much higher increase would have been justified. These increased resources will be channelled to programmes for increased aquaculture production and to ensure timely preparation of the International Code of Conduct on Responsible Fishing.
43. This is a complex undertaking, covering not only marine fisheries operations and management but also aquaculture, trade, integrated coastal area management and research. In order to facilitate discussion and endorsement of the Code of Conduct at the next session of the Committee on Fisheries (COFI) in March 1995, it will be necessary to have the draft text of the Code, at least of the major sections, reviewed by a Technical Consultation beforehand, in autumn this year. Only with such a first screening can we hope to approach the stage of a final draft which COFI could then approve. We hope that this important instrument will help to introduce some order into fishing on the high seas and will soon become operational. We have committed FAO to closely monitor and follow-up on the implementation of this Agreement and to report on it to you.
44. The Organization has also contributed substantially to the ongoing discussions in New York at the UN Conference on Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks. It is certainly appropriate that the negotiations on the legal interpretations of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea take place in the United Nations, where the Convention was created. However, international discussions on the practical implementation of fisheries management and development should take place under FAO which has the exclusive mandate in this field and which has the required multidisciplinary expertise. FAO, including its regional fishery organizations, is prepared to play a central role in the follow up to the UN Conference and in the monitoring of the progress made in the implementation of its outcome.
45. The enhancement of the Organization's work in fisheries is also proposed to benefit from a series of measures to give better focus to our programmes and to ensure the more effective involvement of other parties. Thus, I propose to convene, before the end of the year, a high-level panel of external experts in order to provide guidance on our future programmes, both for the next biennium and for the medium term.
46. Immediately prior to the session of the Committee on Fisheries (COFI) in March 1995, it" is planned to arrange a meeting with our partners from non-governmental organizations and the private sector, with a view to ensuring the best concerted joint action.
47. World Ministers of Fisheries have had no occasion to meet in one forum since the World Conference on Fisheries Management and Development held ten years ago. I therefore propose to invite Ministers of Fisheries to participate in the next session of the Committee on Fisheries as a mark of reconfirmation of the relevance and impact of our work in fisheries.
48. Whether dealing with agriculture, forestry or fisheries, it is as the World Reference Centre in its fields of mandate that FAO is uniquely precious to its Member Nations and must continue to be strengthened. The dissemination of information on topics related to food and agriculture is a basic function of the Organization. The basic data collected are subjected to analyses that provide, inter alia, the basis for reports on food security and nutritional status, the state of food and agriculture, and the current and prospective situation and outlook.
49. The World Agricultural Information Centre (WAICENT), having focused so far on standards, the integration of statistical data banks into a corporate system and means of dissemination of information, will concentrate increasingly on improvements in the quality of statistics and information. The quality of the information depends foremost on the reliability and scope of national statistical systems. The Organization is prepared to respond to requests from Member Nations to improve their food and agriculture statistical systems.
50. Greater attention shall also be given to the scope of national statistical systems. Statistics on production and trade are better than those related to the sustainable use of natural resources,
nutritional status of the people, the role of women in development or the distribution of incomes. Yet, the latter are essential to national governments in the formulation and monitoring of their policies and programmes, and to the Organization in providing services to Member Nations. The Organization, working in collaboration with the entire community of interest, shall give priority to the development of appropriate methodologies for the collection of the basic data needed to guide policy decisions on these important matters, and to the collection and dissemination of a more relevant and complete set of basic data.
51. The basic data lead to the assessments which are the basis for policy and programme decisions, for immediate action, as in the case of the early warning information from the Global Information and Early Warning System, or to establish longer-term goals or objectives and formulate plans of action to reach them, a purpose of the Agriculture Towards 2010 perspective.
52. The Organization shall continue to be the primary source of information on topics such as the nutritional status of the people, the state of food and agriculture, near-term food and agricultural relief needs as well as the medium- and longer-term prospects for food security, the production and trade of agricultural products, and sustainable agriculture and rural development. To perform these functions it will continue to provide leadership for emergency food and agricultural needs assessments, monitoring policies and performance of the sector, and assessing developments that have implications for the future performance of the sector, the nutritional status of the people and the conditions of rural people.
53. The Organization must have the ability to assess more quickly the implications of developments, not only the man-made or natural disasters, but also those such as the Uruguay Round Agreement on Agriculture, the enlargement of the European Economic Community, the creation of the North America Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the transition to market-based economies, structural adjustment programmes, the devaluation of currencies, and so forth. Special attention will be given to the impact on the least-developed countries.
54. Higher priority must be given to the Organization's work on the key social issues of today and tomorrow. The conditions and concerns of rural people should be fully considered when the issues of the day are being debated, declarations are being formulated and plans of action prepared. In order to be in a position to provide advice and assistance on the formulation of national policies and plans of action, there must be a clear understanding of the role of women in sustainable agriculture and rural development as well as the links between such development and population growth, agrarian reform, migration, people's participation and rural poverty.
55. The Organization will continue to assume the lead role with respect to the ACC Sub-Committee on Rural Development, where these matters are on the agenda for consideration by the entire UN system, and will pursue the implementation of the relevant aspects of the Agenda 21 and the Plan of Action for Nutrition. It is making a contribution to the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development, and the International Year of the Family. It is also participating in the preparations for the 1995 World Summit for Social Development.
56. The Organization shall prepare a substantive contribution to the Fourth World Conference on Women (1995), and pursue the implementation of the Forward-Looking Strategies endorsed by the last World Conference in Nairobi. The implementation of FAO's own Plan of Action for the Integration of Women into Agricultural and Rural Development and the Plan of Action on People's Participation in Rural Development will also be pursued, with the focus increasingly on the sharing of experiences and the provision of assistance to requesting member countries.
57. Challenges are opportunities and it is this which leads me to submit proposals which are geared to your Organization being more focused, being more effective in collaboration with all interested partners, having greater impact and being more cost-effective.
58. In every aspect of FAO's activities, there are challenges and opportunities. The Organization intends to address them, deal with them, and to submit to you, the Member Nations, proposals for further action in the years to come, both through the next Programme of Work and Budget and the next Medium-term Plan.
59. Conference Resolution 10/93 called on me to review and submit proposals on the programmes, structures and policies of the Organization.
60. The programme priorities endorsed by the Conference, for follow up to UNCED and the ICN, programmes on the role and involvement of women in development, on forestry, fisheries and trade, are taken carefully into account in each aspect of the proposals before you.
61. This brings me to comment on the two new programme proposals on Food Production in support of Food Security in Low-Income Food Deficit Countries; and on an Emergency Prevention System for Transboundary Animal and Plant Pests and Diseases (EMPRES).
62. Both proposals are in areas of work where FAO has important programmes, much competence and much to its credit. I should explain why I consider it so important to enhance FAO action in those areas.
63. Depending on the classification and categorization of our technical and economic programmes, one can easily show that about one-third of these deal with food security. Our Governing Bodies have devoted much debate and effort to conceptual issues, such as in defining the "broadened concept" of food security and in adopting the Compact on Food Security. Much policy effort is devoted by both Member Nations and Secretariat to the work of the important Committee on Food Security. Yet it is undeniable that improved concepts in themselves do not increase food security; words, however wise, do not grow seeds; and reports, however important and weighty, do not have cereals or other staple foods growing out of them. It is for this reason that I am convinced of the potential for effective action, in growing more food, in high potential areas but also those which have been neglected or overlooked; with technologies which are available but have not been harnessed and applied there; with the involvement of government, farmers and the myriad institutions which work for, with and around them; with emphasis on Economic Cooperation among Developing Countries and Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries (ECDC/TCDC); with the mobilization of further resources, not only from the funding institutions with whom we habitually work, but with others, as with NGOs and the private sector with which we are willing to be and should be more closely associated. The proposal before you is a viable one and can show that FAO's help does not only lead to meetings and publications, but to the production and availability of more food. For these reasons I submit the case for "a new Green Revolution", which can benefit the low-income food-deficit countries. They are in Africa where drought has been prevalent, in Asia where population pressures are growing and in Latin America and the Caribbean where issues centre on agrarian problems and diversification issues.
64. It must be stressed that FAO's assistance will be provided at request and in full recognition that it is the government that decides its policies, strategies and priorities. This is a basic principle which applies to all aspects of FAO assistance to countries, these having the sovereign authority for their development programmes, the role of FAO being to assist through expert advice and national capacity building.
65. Similarly, the proposal for EMPRES has its base in the consolidated work of FAO over many decades as well as on the recognized competence which is respected when emergencies occur, whether with the desert locust, the screwworm, African swine fever, rinderpest or a host of other pests and diseases. But despite four decades of sustained work and international collaboration, it is evident that although much is known about what needs to be done when disaster strikes, we are never ready for it, we are at the mercy of the processes of alert and mobilization of resources which inevitably take time. Here again, it is possible to organize a course of action, within available resources, which will do much to increase the impact of our joint action.
66. The strengthening of the Organization as a centre of excellence is the principle on which I have discerned the greatest unity among Member Nations. It is to improve the quality of FAO's work, and strengthen its efficiency that I submit the proposed changes in the Secretariat structure. The organizational structure is in many ways just a framework animated by its human capacity and the dynamics of its operations. But the structure is of great importance as it will facilitate effective, meaningful and economical operations.
67. Our Governing Bodies have for long been concerned by these issues and questioned the appropriateness of the Secretariat structure, particularly in the context of the Review of FAO's Goals and Operations which was conducted in 1988-89. I do not believe that the concerns were ever resolved: a departmental structure by major sector can be accepted. But how does cross-sectoral work get effectively done? Where, at Headquarters, is the lens of country focus? There has been a multiplicity of country foci: in the operations units dealing with field operations in Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries; in the Policy Analysis Division in the Economic and Social Policy Department; in the Regional Bureaux of the Field Programme Development Division; and many others. And how are these various units each with their country focus, expected to cooperate? I am told through interdivisional and interdepartmental committees, task-forces and other such mechanisms. There is such a plethora of such mechanisms that it is common for a professional officer, for example in the Agricultural Operations Division, to belong to 70 task forces! Can you imagine the cost-efficiency of such a structure? No wonder we have problems in compressing overhead and support costs; and at the same time face problems of insufficient technical backstopping in our field operations.
68. It is to deal with such questions that I propose the changes in organizational structure. The modified structures and the changed procedures and links which will accompany them will render our work under both normative and operational functions more integrated, better focused and less costly.
69. The same kind of reasons lead me to the policy proposals regarding decentralization which have a fundamental objective: to bring FAO as close to you as is effectively possible. For this reason, the Regional Offices should fulfil their due part in both normative and operational activities. They will be strengthened with more staff, in order to be able to deal with your problems and needs to a greater extent in the region. The sub-regional offices are geared to be their extensions even closer to the countries that they will serve. These offices are needed in all regions, but have a special significance in developing countries but also in areas in transition and undergoing political and structural changes in their economies. The country offices will also be strengthened, as agricultural policies are decided and programmes and projects implemented at that level. The use of National Professional Officers, together with international staff, will make these offices more in tune with developments in the country they serve and help enhance national capacities.
70. The eventual sites of sub-regional offices will be the subject of consultation with the governments concerned on the basis of criteria relating to political acceptability by all member countries in the sub-region; the host facilities to be provided, logistical requirements and accessibility to other sub-regional organizations with responsibility for agriculture, forestry and fisheries.
71. In the development of these proposals on decentralization, a fear has been expressed that the process could lead to spreading FAO staff expertise too thinly and that small outposted units might suffer from being isolated. The proposals take into account these apprehensions. It is necessary to determine the appropriate balance in distribution of resources, so that the necessary critical mass of expertise is maintained where needed, so that what can only be afforded to be done centrally so remains, whereas what can be done more effectively and economically through the decentralized structures, is so deployed. Similarly, the fear of isolation must be faced and taken into account. It is not intended, for example, to have sub-regional offices working in isolation. They should be seen as the action force in the field, effectively linked to Regional Offices and Headquarters through adequate modern communication facilities.
72. At all stages, I continue to emphasize that even with decentralization, FAO remains one Organization.
73. The proposals regarding programmes, structures and policies clearly impact on each other and together on future resource implications.
74. Both the structural changes and the policy of decentralization have a direct impact on the focus and concentration of programme priorities. I have no doubt that future Programmes of Work and Budget will see more focus in programme proposals, a lesser fragmentation of effort and resources. Having examined and reflected on the programme changes that have been stressed in the Governing Bodies, I have been able to discern those for which the most urgent action has been sought and to take account of them in the proposals before you.
75. To take one example, the Governing Bodies have relentlessly pressed for FAO to be more active and more effective in giving policy advice to Member Nations. The proposal for the Agriculture and Economic Development Analysis Division is precisely to expand the capacity in a domain of work on which we have not concentrated enough. The proposal for the Policy Formulation Division is precisely to provide more focused and effective policy advice. The fact that this Division is proposed to be located with other Divisions in the Technical Cooperation Department, is precisely to have a more logical chain of FAO interventions covering policy analysis as well as investment and operational activities.
76. It has long been recognized that the concepts of Technical Cooperation among Developing Countries (TCDC) must permeate all programmes. The pace of implementation, however, has been slow. The proposals are aimed to boost implementation not only through the refined programme priorities, but through the process of decentralization, on the basis of agreements between FAO and governments willing to provide expertise for TCDC and those willing to receive and utilize such expertise.
77. All proposals are also developed with an eye on future resource implications. Thus, the number of publications is reduced for now, by postponing or cancelling those which are less urgent or of lower priority. The longer-term objective is to have fewer publications, but of higher relevance and quality and produced at lower cost by decentralizing to production centres which have a comparative advantage.
78. To my mind the need for cost savings is inseparable from the responsibility you have given me for the handling of public funds. The maximum of the resources should go for their intended purposes, the impact itself- and not for the means of achieving it. There will never be resources to do all that is needed to be done. To do more will require lower cost of execution. The proposals before you also respond to this key principle. The structural and programme changes proposed are aimed at the heart of the secretariat costs. How can costs be reduced is inseparable from decisions as to what staff is available, where it is located, how effectively it operates, under which procedures its administration is handled and how well its operational resources are deployed.
79. Thus, my proposals take into account the calculation that whereas there is a one-time cost of transfer of a professional officer with dependents depending on the location, decentralization will have a recurring cost/benefit because the cost of operational and support services as well as of project operations staff is lower in the field than at Headquarters.
80. The results of these decisions cannot be apparent within a few months, but the path to making these results possible has to be determined from the outset. That is why, my proposals address these issues from the outset of my term of office.
81. The opening and expansion of partnerships with institutions within and outside the United Nations system, with those intergovernmental as well as non-governmental and with the private sector is paramount among the guiding principles I propose to pursue. It has accordingly featured among my first initiatives since I assumed office.
82. To begin with sister institutions in Rome, close contacts have been established with the President of IF AD, leading to the prospect of FAO's collaboration in investment project work to be greatly increased. A round of senior management meetings has been instituted with the Executive Director of WFP, addressing both policy and administrative issues.
83. A visit to the President of the World Bank has led to the postponement of the earlier action announced by the Bank to terminate the Agreement for the Cooperative Programme. Indeed, we are now committed to developing a closer cooperation on a broader front. Similarly, a new rapport has been initiated with the UNDP with confirmation on both sides of the intention to ensure more effective and harmonious collaboration.
84. Following a visit to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in London, its President, Mr J. Larosière and I have signed a Memorandum of Understanding which offers an opportunity for developing progressively a number of joint activities. A preliminary programme is under way, permitting assistance to some of our Member Nations particularly in Eastern Europe and the Baltic States.
85. Discussions with the Islamic Development Bank have led to agreements for joint programmes of policy advice and investment assistance.
86. A new work programme has been agreed with the African Development Bank which is larger than for 1993, despite no growth in the AfDB's administrative budget.
87. New collaboration has been initiated with the West African Development Bank (BOAD), aimed at focusing on investment for expanding local rice production in several member countries.
88. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has requested a formal Cooperative Agreement permitting joint work linked to their new Five-Year Plan.
89. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) evidences interest in revitalizing its cooperation with FAO. A new draft agreement is under way, which will expand collaboration both in policy work and investment preparation.
90. The Andean Development Corporation (ADC) has requested FAO assistance in finalizing a study on lending to agriculture in the Andean-Pact countries. A joint programme is envisaged, once the policy guidelines for agricultural lending are approved by the ADC management.
91. The Central American Bank of Economic Integration (BCIE) shares FAO priorities for food security and sustainable agricultural development. A joint work programme has been initiated, focusing on one Central American country this year, with other joint activities over the coming year.
92. Closer contacts have also been established with the Caribbean Community, on the occasion of the recent meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Community. It is intended to undertake joint work with the Caribbean Development Bank, including project formulation on agricultural diversification and sub-sector studies on water resources, land management and sustainable development.
93. If I have dwelt for a moment on this panorama of enlarged partnerships, Mr Chairman, it is to share with you the sense of promise and opportunities for a reinvigorated FAO to be more active, more effective and more responsive to the needs of its Member Nations, working with other organizations which are also their organizations.
94. At the outset of my submission, I have found it necessary to draw attention to the limiting factors which I have had to accept: the limited time for the development of the proposals; the limited scope for changes, because of the ceiling of the budget level and the staff in place, etc. These same limitations have circumscribed the stage to which the proposals could be elaborated in terms of detail. The document had to be finalized more than two months ago. This has inevitably meant that many of the details have been worked on since then and continue to be worked on. I am pleased to have been able to provide additional information on my proposals, in response to a recommendation of the Programme and Finance Committees. But I want to be completely candid and honest with you where the details have not been developed. And this is precisely why, in implementing the proposals you will eventually approve, I request flexibility. The flexibility is not to go beyond the terms or scope of your approval. The flexibility I need is in implementation within the provisions of our established Rules and Regulations. That is why I have not come to you with requests for budgetary transfers at this time. I propose to seek approval of the transfers, as necessary and provided for, under our Financial Regulations.
95. I cannot end this statement before expressing my gratitude and paying tribute to the large number of governments who through their Ministers and senior officials have inspired and stimulated these proposals. From their responses, I know that I am not wrong in proposing what I have. Indeed, from their responses, I know that these proposals have their support. I hope very much that the Council, in addressing the proposals, will find the unity of purpose and intent which may lead it to express its decisions and agreements in total harmony.
96. I wish to express my appreciation to the Programme and Finance Committees for their thorough and stimulating review of my proposals. Their reactions are well reflected both in the report of their Joint Meeting and in the report of their separate sessions. I express my gratitude to the two Committees for their unanimous commendation of the proposals and recommendation for Council approval.
97. I would also like to acknowledge the help and support I receive from my colleagues at all levels in the Secretariat. I have said that one of the greatest assets of your Organization is the staff which serve you. Their capacity for openness of ideas and receptivity for change with the aim of improvements has been reassuring, even encouraging. I rely on this same spirit to implement your decisions.
98. This is a historic session of the Council, a chance to address strategic choices and to chart the course for the reinvigoration of FAO for the end of this century and beyond. The greatest challenge in any human endeavour is the improvement of quality: the quality of our reflection, the quality of our action and the quality of our impact. In the ever-present context of resource limitations and fierce competition, it is not a matter of change for the sake of it. However, if Member Nations wish to see a stronger FAO we must act now, not dally in the search for perfection. The Fiftieth Anniversary is the propitious time to give rebirth to our Organization. I hope that the Council will find the proposals in its favour. Its approval will constitute a reconfirmation of its authority, the Organization's strengthened mandate and a renewed compact of trust between FAO's Governing Bodies and your Secretariat.
