FAO and UNICRI to strengthen collaboration

11 September 2020, Rome/Turin - FAO Director-General QU Dongyu welcomed Antonia Marie De Meo the recently appointed Director of the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI), at a virtual meeting today. 

During the meeting, both parties stressed their full agreement on the importance of strengthening legal, technical and regulatory frameworks to promote and improve food safety standards and discussed ways to support member states in their efforts to enforce these frameworks. To this end, the Director-General offered FAO’s support to UNICRI on their priorities, particularly in Africa, and to other matters of importance for UNICRI’s ongoing work as part of the broader UN family in Italy (UNICRI is based in Turin, Italy).  

The Director-General also alluded to FAO’s extensive network of decentralized offices and confirmed his interest to enhance engagement with UNICRI and identify opportunities for cooperation at country level. 

For her part, De Meo thanked the FAO chief for his warm welcome and the openness of FAO to provide support. She also expressed appreciation for the Director-General’s work aimed at promoting innovation in food safety.