It has come to our attention that in some countries individuals with no affiliation with the Organization have been presenting themselves as FAO officials in order to enter into fraudulent commercial arrangements for financial advantage and to the detriment of third parties and/or FAO. Notably, we have come across attempts of fraud (1) proposing the signature of contracts with local travel agencies in order to secure payments and (2) payments requested in relation to alleged FAO recruitment processes, including undertaking fee paying tests in relation to the “International Dynamic Psychometric Exponential Logical Objective Mean Score”.

Due to difficulties in identifying the perpetrator(s), and FAO’s limited capacity to enter into legal proceedings in the countries, we strongly recommend that FAO Decentralized offices warn the public of the possibility of fraudulent initiatives using the name of the Organization, by placing appropriate  disclaimers in their websites. The following disclaimer could be adapted and/or translated as needed:

“The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) wishes to warn the public of fraudulent schemes purporting to offer or soliciting applications for internships or employment or business opportunities on behalf FAO or of FAO officials. FAO strongly recommends that prospective applicants and recipients carefully verify the authenticity of solicitations and offers before sending any response.Electronic communications should be disregarded if they originate from other than an FAO e-mail account - @fao.org - or website - fao.org.

FAO does not charge any fee at any stage of the recruitment process whether at the application, interview, processing or training stage. FAO does not require or need to know any information relating to the bank account details of applicants. FAO conducts its procurement in accordance with transparent processes through the UN Global Market Place.

Any request deviating from these standard practices should be rejected. Suspicious communications purportedly from, for or on behalf of the FAO should be reported to FAO at the following email address [email protected]. Fraudulent schemes may also be reported to the local law enforcement authorities for appropriate action”.

I would be grateful if you could inform those Decentralized offices under your responsibility of the above. Moreover, if any fraudulent activities come to their attention, they should inform LEG at HQ, the relevant Regional Representative, as well as other UN agencies operating in the respective country. 

Best,

Donata

Donata Rugarabamu

Legal Counsel