Statement on the occasion of
the Nineteenth Special Session of the General Assembly of
the United Nations:
overall review and appraisal of the implementation of
Agenda 21
New York, United States, 26 June 1997
Mr Chairman,
Excellencies,
Honourable Delegates,
The Earth Summit of Rio de Janeiro
gave a strong jolt to reflection and action to ensure
sustainable development and environmental conservation.
An irreversible change in outlook was indeed required to
address the major challenge of the 21st century, which is
to improve the well-being of an ever-growing population,
notably by eliminating hunger and poverty, and to
safeguard the resources of our planet for the survival of
future generations.
With this challenge in mind, the Food
and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO,
restructured and formed a Sustainable Development
Department so that the future perspective would be
integral to the policies and projects of the sectoral
departments of agriculture, forestry, fisheries and
economic and social affairs.
It embarked on an ambitious programme
of decentralization that would take its experts closer to
realities on the ground and the needs of rural
communities.
As Task Manager for four chapters of
Agenda 21, the Organization, in collaboration with its
partners, has refocused its policies, programmes and
projects with the Member Nations. As a result:
- the notion of sustainable
agricultural and rural development has been
conceptualized and defined through dialogue with its
partners;
- a new integrated approach to
land-use management and land protection has been
developed and is gradually being put in
place;
- national forestry action
programmes have been developed and implemented in many
countries;
- finally, special efforts have been
made for the management of mountain areas.
However, besides its specific
responsibilities for these four chapters of Agenda 21,
FAO also has a key role to play in other areas,
including:
- the definition and implementation
of rational policies for the utilization of water.
This is a truly precious resource that will become
increasingly scarce. And agriculture, weshould note,
is by far the largest consumer of water, accounting
for 75 percent of total offtake, with irrigated
agriculture providing 40 percent of world food
production;
- the drafting and adoption of a
Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries;
- the development of the renewable
forms of energy needed for agricultural production and
processing;
- collaboration with its partners of
the "Climate Agenda" and the "Framework Convention on
Climate Change";
- active support to the "Convention
on Biological Diversity" and development, with the
Secretariat of the Convention, of a joint programme on
agricultural biodiversity;
- support to the "Convention to
Combat Desertification" for which the first Conference
of the Parties will take place in Rome in early
October, upon the joint invitation of the Italian
Government and FAO.
Moreover, the Declaration and Plan of
Action adopted by the World Food Summit follow on
naturally from the Rio Summit.
At their meeting in Rome in November
1996, the Heads of State and Government and high-level
representatives of 186 countries pledged to eliminate
hunger and malnutrition by providing a stable political
environment based on respect of all human rights, by
ensuring equality of opportunity for all, particularly
women, and by adopting social and economic policies that
will encourage public and private initiative while, at
the same time, safeguarding the environment. More
specifically, they undertook to involve the people and
grassroots organizations more closely in the framing and
implementation of concrete plans and programmes for the
sustainable management of natural resources: water, soil,
plant and animal material, oceans, forests and climate.
FAO is convinced that the food
requirements of the world's population can be met, for
decades to come, under systems of sustainable
development; to this end, appropriate measures will have
to be taken, here and now, to build national economic
environments that are conducive to investment in the
primary sector. International solidarity will also need
to act so that the neediest rural populations are given
control over water resources and access to effective
technologies, modern inputs, credit and markets.
The resounding message from Rome is
that sustainability and food security go hand-in-hand,
and that agriculture and the rural world must be part of
the sustainable development debate.
With this in mind, enforcement of
international agreements, such as the "Convention on the
Law of the Sea", the "Leipzig Plan of Action on Plant
Genetic Resources" and the three Conventions coming
directly from Rio, is a matter of urgency. Furthermore,
implementation of the recommendations of the
"Intergovernmental Panel on Forests", notably through the
Inter-Agency Task Force on Forests led by FAO, is a
fundamental step towards consolidation of the collective
approach to natural resources management.
Mr Chairman,
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
FAO continues to endorse the
commitments made in Rio five years ago. The full
implementation of the decisions taken at the "Earth
Summit" and the "World Food Summit" will lead us to a
better world and healthier life, with an environment kept
intact on a planet given over to peace and justice.
