C 2003/INF/8

Conference

1. The Twenty-Seventh Session of the FAO Conference in November 1993 adopted Resolution 2/93 and decided to institute, as a new permanent feature in FAO, an award to a national or regional institution which - in the course of the biennium preceding the Conference - has implemented with particular efficiency a project funded by the Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP). The award bears the name of Dr. Edouard Saouma and is directed towards the goals he served. It is conferred every biennium.

2. The elements of the Award are (i) a medal inscribed with the name of the recipient institution; (ii) a scroll describing its achievements; (iii) a cash prize of US$ 25 000; (iv) travel to FAO headquarters in Rome by a representative of the winning institution to participate in the Award ceremony and to receive the award on behalf of the institution.

3. The Edouard Saouma Award Selection Committee, under the Chairmanship of the Director-General selects the Award winning institution; it comprises the Independent Chairman of the Council, the Chairman of the Programme Committee and the Chairman of the Finance Committee. The selection has been made from a short-list drawn up by an Ad Hoc inter-departmental Screening Committee, chaired by the Deputy Director-General and comprising the Assistant Directors-General of all the Headquarters Departments, the Director of the Field Operations Division, and the Chief TCOT as Secretary.

4. Nominations are submitted by national institutions to FAO Representatives or UNDP Resident Representatives, as appropriate, for endorsement and eventual submission to the technical Department in charge of the project's technical backstopping. FAO Representatives, FAO Regional Representatives or UNDP Resident Representatives, as appropriate, may also submit nominations directly to the technical department concerned.

5. The Award is presented by the Director-General at a special ceremony held at the beginning of each regular session of the Conference to the representative of the winning institution. The Award for the 2002-2003 biennium will be presented at the Thirty second Session of the FAO Conference, at a ceremony to be held on 29 November 2003.

6. This year, the Award is being granted jointly to two national institutions that excelled equally in the implementation of their respective TCP assistance. Given the outstanding contribution of both, the Organization proposes to confer the Award to two national institutions, that will share the cash prize.

8. The performance of these two projects has been outstanding in terms of efficiency of project implementation as well as impact and catalytic effects. The personal commitment and enthusiasm of the Directors and the staff of these institutions has been vital for the achievements of the two projects and is at the origin of their success, not only in terms of immediate objectives but also with regard to the sustainability of their achievements.

Sichuan Provincial Plant Protection Station, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, People’s Republic of China
(TCP/CPR/8926 (T) – Rural Rodent Control in Sichuan Province)

9. Crop damage caused by rodents has been widespread in Sichuan Province. About 1.5 million tons of wheat, rice and corn were lost in the fields every year and 1 million tons in storage. The mean food grain loss was estimated at 320 kg per hectare. Lack of an integrated approach and systematic monitoring of rodent populations as well as improper baiting techniques were identified as the main underlying reasons.

FAO assistance was requested and a TCP with significant technical contributions from another developing country in the region was launched to reduce grain losses both in the fields and in storage as well as to establish an effective rodent monitoring and control system. A training of trainers’ curriculum was developed and 60 extension staff went through the first training course. They passed on their knowledge to 600 farmer-trainers who subsequently disseminated the new management techniques in Farmers’ Field Schools (FFS) to more than 36 000 farmers.

Farmers quickly adopted the new techniques and reported not only up to 93 percent decrease in rodent numbers but also a reduced rate of rat-transmitted human diseases and minimized hazards of accidental poisoning of non-target animals. A village random survey after project termination indicated that damage to crops was seven times less in FFS villages than in non-FFS villages, storage damage was only 5 kg per FFS family compared to 68 kg and the unit cost of rodent control in FFS villages was only one third of the cost in non-FFS villages.

Field activities are largely supported by provincial, county and local government funds so that new strategies for rodent management and control are not only sustained locally but are spreading rapidly to other counties in the province. Within 2002 the number of counties involved could be more than doubled and a total of 63 000 farmers were trained. A manual on rural rodent control in Chinese language has been published to boost further expansion beyond Sichuan province.
The achievements of the project in terms of impact and follow-up are largely due to the outstanding performance of the Sichuan Provincial Plant Protection Station. It impressively demonstrated its ability in motivating its staff, the farmer-trainers and the farmers. Efficient extension work was the key to rapid and effective project implementation as well as to a wide dissemination of project results and recommendations within the province.

Instituto Nicaragüense de la Mujer (INIM), Managua, Nicaragua
(TCP/NIC/8923 (A) – Creación de un Programa para la Mujer Rural)

10. Rural Nicaraguan women continue to be disadvantaged with regard to education, health, work load and access to assets. To ensure better targeting of women and to introduce a gender perspective in the working plans of institutions dealing with agriculture and natural resources, an Inter-institutional Commission of Women and Rural Development (CMYDR) has been created and is coordinated by the Nicaraguan Institute of Women (INIM).

A TCP was initiated to assist the Government in the design and implementation of a Rural Women Programme to tackle rural poverty and to promote rural development from a gender perspective. Gender training for the collaborating agencies from the government, the private sector and civil organizations was provided, institutional action plans were developed and gender units/focal points were established.

Based on the sustained commitment of INIM, the TCP has been instrumental in advancing gender consideration in rural development programmes/projects. Both the access of women to resources and services and the attention given to women through technical assistance in the sector has increased significantly. The share of projects with a specific women component has increased from 8 to 27 percent. Community leadership provided by women in projects stands at 24 percent and the participation of women in project related training increased from 31 to 40 percent.

The institute efficiently coordinated the inter-institutional commission and was successful in actively involving other relevant public institutions dealing with agricultural and rural development and civil organizations at both central and community level. Despite scarce financial and human resources, it was able to develop and implement additional field activities by, e.g., mobilizing external resources for small-scale business development in support of food security. The members of the CMYDR are keen to implement the institutional action plans developed by the TCP and the INIM continues to be instrumental for expanding training activities on gender analysis in agricultural and rural development.