FAO-Sudan Team

Last week, from 15 to 17 September 2014 in Khartoum, the FAO Sudan team gathered to learn more about the FAO Strategic Framework and in particular on its Strategic Objective 5 on the increase of resilient livelihoods to shocks and threats, along with the Resilience Regional Initiative. This workshop was supported by both Headquarters and the Regional Office (RNE) giving FAO Sudan an opportunity to bring Khartoum and 11 states together. The workshop, most noticeably, revived a team spirit, bringing together a range of expertise and experience in relief, recovery and risk-sensitive development interventions.

Since its beginning in 1977, FAO Sudan has been a leading example of achievements in terms of institutional capacity, programme portfolio and innovation for delivering FAO triple mandate.

With the secession of South Sudan, the Sudan country context and situation is changing fast and the fundamental contribution of agriculture-food-nutrition related sectors for resilience and in turn for sustainable development is better understood by all players for the economy, stability and peace.

FAO leadership at the global, regional  and national levels have also changed and provides a positive momentum with a new strategic framework promoting coherence of actions and putting the country at the center of the action, with decentralization and integration of different teams.

FAO Sudan resilience workshop helped its staff to better understand and relate to the new FAO strategic framework and its delivery mechanisms, with a particular focus on the SO5-Resilience to shocks because on average natural disasters alone affect about 1 million people every year in Sudan.

The FAO Representative in Sudan, Dr. Abdi Jama,  in his opening of the workshop informed the participants that Sudan has been chosen by FAO as a focus country for resilience which is one of the main strategic objectives of FAO. 

The workshop also helped foster a common understanding of priority risks and threats for the agriculture-food-nutrition related sectors in Sudan and driving its resilience programme both for the Humanitarian Needs Overview and Strategic Response Plan, plus for the alignment of the Country Programming Framework and development of the Plan of Action for 2015-19 (using the menu of corporate indicators). Finally the workshop allowed the team to review a selection of good practices for resilience to help showcase the quality work of FAO Sudan together with its partners and to mobilize resources.

FAO Sudan resilience workshop is paving the way for a new way of working together bringing convergence of thinking and action between Country, Region and HQ staff for scaling up efforts to better serve the country and its 5.7 million food insecure population at risk.