A clarification by the Director-General of FAO
Jacques Diouf responds to an article published in Le Monde
FAO Director-General, Jacques Diouf
©Photo: ©FAO/Simone Casetta
27/01/2011
27 January 2011, Rome/Paris - FAO Director-General, Jacques Diouf, has responded with the following clarification to an article published in the January 25 2011 edition of the French newspaper Le Monde on the need for greater transparency in data collection and promptness in dealing with price spikes.
Here is the full version, translated into English, of his letter to the newspaper:
An article that appeared in the January 25th edition of Le Monde under the headline "G20: Mr. Sarkozy wishes to regulate agricultural markets" includes the following sentence: "The project would involve organizing, under the aegis of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), a fully transparent data base on crop harvests, consumption, or even stocks. But at the moment, giants such as India and China refuse to provide such strategic information".
The article goes on to attribute to an aide to the French President the following comment: "When Russia blocked its exports, it took FAO fifteen days to organize a meeting at the technical level."
The truth is:
1. From the very beginning of the current spike in food prices, FAO’s principal goal has been to calm markets. Thus, as early as July 2010, the Director-General gave an interview to the Financial Times in which he made it clear that, at that moment in time, the level of stocks and theprice of oil differed significantly from the situation that prevailed during the last food crisis in 2007-2008 and it was therefore important to be cautious.
2. At that time, FAO contacted exporting countries to avoid contagion of the restrictive measures on wheat exports announced by Russia. FAO was successful in this effort, except in the case of the Ukraine where it nevertheless succeeded in delaying the decision by several months.
3. On 9 August 2010, the Director-General of FAO wrote a letter to the Heads of State and Government of the G20 countries and to the presidents and executive heads of the following organizations: the African Union, the Community of Portuguese Language Countries, the Organisation of American States, the Commonwealth of Nations, the European Central Bank, the International Organisation of La Francophonie and the European Union. The purpose of the letter was to draw attention to the danger that the situation could worsen and that a food crisis could result if appropriate measures such as the removal of export restrictions were not adopted. To that regard, FAO indicated its willingness to cooperate with all concerned countries and institutions.
4. On 8 September 2010, the FAO Director-General intervened through comments made to the BBC in order to, once again, calm the markets.
5. On 24 September 2010, FAO organized a joint Extraordinary Meeting of the Intergovernmental Groups on Grains and Rice, which was attended by representatives of member countries and, in many cases, their ambassadors to FAO, in order to exchange information on supply and demand and discuss the underlying factors affecting them. A report was adopted by the meeting.
6. From 11 to 16 October 2010, the Committee on World Food Security met at FAO headquarters with the participation of representatives of member countries as well as representatives of international organizations, civil society and the private sector. Thirteen ministers participated in the meeting, including the French Minister of Agriculture.
7. Finally, it should be highlighted that FAO regularly publishes information on stocks, stock-to-utilisation ratios, production, consumption and trade of the main food staples (wheat, rice, oilseeds, meat, dairy, etc) as well as data regarding the price indices of the major food commodity groups. However, when it comes to stocks, it must be pointed out that only four countries - the United States, Canada, Australia and India regularly provide the necessary information, a situation which does little to facilitate the transparency so desired by President Sarkozy.
Here is the full version, translated into English, of his letter to the newspaper:
An article that appeared in the January 25th edition of Le Monde under the headline "G20: Mr. Sarkozy wishes to regulate agricultural markets" includes the following sentence: "The project would involve organizing, under the aegis of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), a fully transparent data base on crop harvests, consumption, or even stocks. But at the moment, giants such as India and China refuse to provide such strategic information".
The article goes on to attribute to an aide to the French President the following comment: "When Russia blocked its exports, it took FAO fifteen days to organize a meeting at the technical level."
The truth is:
1. From the very beginning of the current spike in food prices, FAO’s principal goal has been to calm markets. Thus, as early as July 2010, the Director-General gave an interview to the Financial Times in which he made it clear that, at that moment in time, the level of stocks and theprice of oil differed significantly from the situation that prevailed during the last food crisis in 2007-2008 and it was therefore important to be cautious.
2. At that time, FAO contacted exporting countries to avoid contagion of the restrictive measures on wheat exports announced by Russia. FAO was successful in this effort, except in the case of the Ukraine where it nevertheless succeeded in delaying the decision by several months.
3. On 9 August 2010, the Director-General of FAO wrote a letter to the Heads of State and Government of the G20 countries and to the presidents and executive heads of the following organizations: the African Union, the Community of Portuguese Language Countries, the Organisation of American States, the Commonwealth of Nations, the European Central Bank, the International Organisation of La Francophonie and the European Union. The purpose of the letter was to draw attention to the danger that the situation could worsen and that a food crisis could result if appropriate measures such as the removal of export restrictions were not adopted. To that regard, FAO indicated its willingness to cooperate with all concerned countries and institutions.
4. On 8 September 2010, the FAO Director-General intervened through comments made to the BBC in order to, once again, calm the markets.
5. On 24 September 2010, FAO organized a joint Extraordinary Meeting of the Intergovernmental Groups on Grains and Rice, which was attended by representatives of member countries and, in many cases, their ambassadors to FAO, in order to exchange information on supply and demand and discuss the underlying factors affecting them. A report was adopted by the meeting.
6. From 11 to 16 October 2010, the Committee on World Food Security met at FAO headquarters with the participation of representatives of member countries as well as representatives of international organizations, civil society and the private sector. Thirteen ministers participated in the meeting, including the French Minister of Agriculture.
7. Finally, it should be highlighted that FAO regularly publishes information on stocks, stock-to-utilisation ratios, production, consumption and trade of the main food staples (wheat, rice, oilseeds, meat, dairy, etc) as well as data regarding the price indices of the major food commodity groups. However, when it comes to stocks, it must be pointed out that only four countries - the United States, Canada, Australia and India regularly provide the necessary information, a situation which does little to facilitate the transparency so desired by President Sarkozy.