Remarks at the Employee Recognition Awards Ceremony 2022

Remarks at the Employee Recognition Awards Ceremony 2022

By Dr. QU Dongyu Director-General of Food and Agriculture Organization of the Unite Nations (FAO)

Plenary Hall, 15 December 2022

Dear Colleagues,

1.         Thank you for joining me today for this very special event, which is being held for the 4th time.  

2.         Since I came, I remember on 18 December 2019, we had the first one ever in the history of FAO. It was scheduled to take place in a small room, but my former Director of Cabinet, Mario Lubetkin, - I hope he is online today – we had a meeting during COP25 at that time in Spain. I asked him to contact with Laurent and we needed a bigger room to celebrate. He said, “No. It would be too big.”

3.         He was worried that probably not many people would have come to join, because I was a newcomer. I did not understand the FAO culture. And then, I said, “Try to get a more attractive one.” Laurent helped me to get several staff with talents, from different regions, who were working here in the headquarters.

4.         And we invited some talented colleagues there and started singing and playing violin and I hope there is still that gentleman from security today. He did a very special performance. Everyone came and many colleagues even stood behind the room.

5.         It was a shock for many colleagues that have been working here for so many years. It was a shock for Mario Lubetkin. I said, “Please never, never underestimate the potentials of your colleagues, your staff, and your employees.”

6.         That brings me back to today.

7.         We are here today, also the Council endorsed the reform for the FAO Awards, and now, for the second time, it has become an official recognition, not only by FAO Director-General recognition awarding. Now it is one of the official FAO awarding systems.

8.         We are here today for our annual celebration of our extraordinary 100 Young and 100 Young-at-Heart colleagues, as well as Extraordinary Teams in 2022.

9.         This makes this year so special, because now we are full of people in this new renovated Plenary Hall. Last year, I did not see this so colourful and so dynamic.

10.       So, it is time for FAO to show to people and to the world that a both traditional and new digital FAO.

11.       When I became Director-General 40 months ago, I made it my priority to ensure that we regularly recognize all FAO employees, as you are FAO’s biggest asset.

12.       This annual celebration has now become part of FAO’s working culture – before we celebrate the New Year and Christmas, or whatever, that is a more individual family celebration. That is an annual collective celebration. Thanks to the digital FAO now we can celebrate all around the world. Through the digital FAO. – The recognition of employees, by their fellow employees.

13.       Yesterday, I held a town hall meeting with all staff and employees from around the world – with over 1 400 colleagues connected virtually. I remember the first Town Hall meeting had more than 6 000 during the lockdown period in 2020.

14.       These meetings are important because they reflect the new FAO culture of inclusivity and transparency, of listening to each other.

15.       All working together towards our common goal of a world free from hunger, in line with FAO’s noble mandate.

16.       We must learn together, think together, work together, and go further together, with reciprocal respect and understanding.

17.       These are the core values I have advocated for many years during my career, and also the values we must continue to strengthen in the years ahead.

Dear Colleagues,

18.       For the 2022 awards, 589 nominations were received across streams and offices, 200 of these were selected in the Organization-wide poll that was carried out.

19.       The 100 Young and 100 Young-at-Heart in 2022 are representatives of the diversity of our Organization.

20.       Over 100 nationalities are represented from 75 duty stations, of which 50 are Country Offices

21.       This year’s results are an even balance between consultants and staff at all levels, and most of our awardees are in the field. 

22.       Today we are also celebrating the extraordinary women across our Organization – with the majority of awardees being women.

23.       We are only successful if we work together - that means working in teams.

24.       Teams working together, breaking down silos, reaching across geographic locations and cutting across the Organization. 

25.       Today we celebrate the important contributions of our teams for their extraordinary efforts in serving the Organization. 

26.       The One FAO Team Award recognizes these efforts and the spirit of collaboration which has contributed to a more innovative, responsible, effective and impactful FAO. 

27.       I have personally endorsed 19 teams to be recognized for their extraordinary work in 2022.

28.       At the same time, I wanted to tell you that our colleagues Maria Helena Semedo, Máximo Torero Cullen and Beth Bechdol, are also leading the teams, teleworking and meeting at COP15 in Montreal, Canada and in India to support the G20 presidency.

29.       Some of these teams are big. Some are small. The size is not important. What matters are the results they achieve, and the impact they have, and the spirit of collaboration that is in their minds and hearts.

30.       By working in teams, we accumulate our collective knowledge and experience for results beyond our expectations – this is the definition of extraordinary. We could not imagine earlier this year, when I declared the year of the extraordinary, this would have really been the year of the extraordinary challenges, extraordinary difficulties, and extraordinary workload. I do not want to repeat all the achievements now, I have already said them several times on PC/ FC meeting, now it is time for you to relax and enjoy yourself. 

31.       This is the benefit of an intergenerational dialogue – which was also a key feature of this year’s World Food Forum.

32.       And let’s celebrate FAO’s birthday on 16 October. The 16 October is a noble day for FAO. We have to take the ownership by ourselves, by our members, by FAO generations to come.

33.       FAO’s Mentorship Programme is also a key platform for these valuable exchanges.

34.       From my very first days in this Organization, my vision has been to build a dynamic FAO for a better world - as ONE FAO. Since we came in this room this morning, I felt the dynamicity in the room and all around the world in the FAO system. You can see from the Small Islands, or online from other parts of the world. Now it is really ONE FAO. At the beginning, many people doubted- how do we build ONE FAO? Put politics aside, respect professionalism, respect culture, respect religions -and then you understand. I know many here are married with people of different religions, different culture, and from different countries: how can you harmonize life together? Respect each other and try to understand each other, and then you can harmonize yourself in your one small family. Now, FAO is a big family.

35.       The Four Betters set out in our Strategic Framework 2022-2031 guide our work to ensure we contribute to making the world a better place for all.

36.       Working collectively towards Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment, and a Better Life, leaving no one behind.

37.       Congratulations to all the 2022 awardees and other hidden heroes. Because they are only 200. I appreciate a lot of people, which are really hidden heroes.

38.       I thank all employees for their dedication, commitment, passion, and contribution.

39.       Let us continue to walk the talk together.

40.       2022 has been the year of the EXTRAORDINARY, building on the previous 2 years of EFFICIENCY and EFFECTIVENESS.

41.       At yesterday’s Town Hall meeting, I declared that 2023 will be the Year of EXCELLENCE! Of course, we can have excellence version 1.0 or excellence version 2.0, but we start with version 1.0, first.

42.       Let us continue to excel in all that we do, together.

43.       I wish you all a safe and successful, healthy and happy 2023!

44.       I thank you.

45.       Before closing my statement, I will present one special gift to my colleagues who are here today. Laurent, Ismahane and Godfrey, would you come on the stage? Also Maurizio Martina, if you can join, too. I have prepared it by myself last night.

(The Director-General presented the Chinese Calligraphy to the members of core leadership.)

Applause

46.       [开掘创新，追求卓越！]

47.       FAO is a big, precious golden mine, so we need deep, deep digging, excavating. And we also need innovation. And then, we can seek for excellence.

48.       First, we dig our golden mine, and then through innovation we seek for excellence.

49.       Thank you very much.