5 December 2014, Rome – At the closure of the FAO Council held today, the agency’s Director-General José Graziano da Silva urged Members Countries to step up efforts to implement food security and other programmes during the next six months – a period which marks the remaining time of his mandate.

“2014 is coming to an end, meaning that three years of my mandate will be completed. Over the next six months leading to the FAO Conference in June, we need to focus on finalizing the implementation of programmes,” Graziano da Silva said.

The FAO Director-General noted that during the Conference, he will present concrete actions stemming from FAO’s Regional Initiatives. In this regard, he also launched a new “Investing for Results” pack containing a set of promotional pamphlets that describe programme activities. The pamphlets call for broader partnerships among FAO, governments and other stakeholders and greater investments to accelerate key results at the regional level.

The Director-General also stressed the importance of the next FAO Council slated for March 2015, during which he intends to present the initial results of FAO’s strategic objectives.

Lula to deliver the McDougall Memorial Lecture in June 2015

During today’s speech the FAO Director-General said that former Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has accepted an invitation to deliver the McDougall Memorial Lecture, scheduled during the June 2015 FAO Conference.