Statements

Statement to the Special Ministerial Conference on Agriculture in Small Island Developing States
Rome, Italy, 12 March 1999




Distinguished Ministers,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is a pleasure to welcome you to this Ministerial Meeting, which is part of the follow-up to the World Food Summit and which testifies to the importance that FAO attaches to the agricultural development and food security of the Small Island Developing States and the Low-lying Coastal Developing States. FAO is pleased to be able to serve in this way as a platform and forum for such an important constituent of the international community.

I should like to convey my special gratitude to the donor governments whose financial contributions have made it possible to act today upon the request of the Conference of FAO that such a meeting be held.

The characteristics of the small island states are such that a very special approach is required to deal with their problems. These characteristics include their small size, isolation and vulnerability to climatic events and economic factors.

Although their conditions vary extensively, they share common constraints that impact on their agricultural, forestry and fisheries sectors, notably the degradation of an already restricted natural resource base and exposure to fluctuating prices of their basic commodities.

The quality of dietary intake is deteriorating in some small island states, agriculture is marking time or even falling behind, while food demand is becoming increasingly dependent on imports, especially in urban areas and the tourist sector.

If they are to increase their autonomy in food supply, the small island states need to gear up their capacity to deal with natural disasters, to use their fisheries and forest resources more rationally and to diversify their agricultural sector and make it more competitive, so that it can open up new export markets.

The ecological vulnerability of the small island states, their liability to changing weather patterns and a rising sea level call for a special effort to conserve the environment, most importantly the natural resources that underlie their security, indeed their survival.


FAO has played a leading role in placing the debate on the development of agriculture in the small island states into the broader context of their sustainable development. The first Inter-regional Conference of Small Island Countries was held under FAO auspices, in 1992 in Barbados. It was attended by the Ministers of Agriculture, Forests and Fisheries of 25 small island countries. This meeting was undoubtedly instrumental in deciding to hold the 1994 Global Conference on the Sustainable Development of Small Island Developing States, which covered all aspects of the economy and environment. These continue to be topics of discussion in the Commission on Sustainable Development and the United Nations General Assembly, which have in fact each scheduled a special session this year on the small island states, to be held in April and September respectively.

Today's Conference will contribute to on-going international efforts to address the particular problems and prospects of the Small Island Developing States, by focusing on the specific constraints and development opportunities of their agricultural, forestry and fisheries sectors. It also responds to the Plan of Action of the 1996 World Food Summit which drew attention to the particular sustainable development needs of the Small Island Developing States, to the improvement of their food security and to an examination of priority sectors for investment to bring about their sustainable development.

Today’s Conference sets in motion a process that will allow the Small Island Developing States and the Low-lying Coastal Developing States:

• to better prepare themselves for participation in the multilateral trade negotiations on agriculture and thus become more closely integrated in regional and global markets, and trade agreements;
• to develop and implement priority programmes for the sustainable development, diversification and intensification of agriculture, forestry and fisheries, in particular by means of the FAO Special Programme for Food Security;
• to further integrate measures that ensure environmental conservation, the sustainable use of natural resources and a state of preparation for natural disasters.
  

This Conference will also contribute towards enhancing the capacity and role of the agricultural sector, at both national and regional levels, in the implementation of the Earth Summit's Agenda 21, the 1994 UN Programme of Action for Small Island Developing States and the Rome Declaration adopted by the World Food Summit.

I venture to hope that, by addressing topical issues and priority areas of common interest, the Conference will launch a Plan of Action that will serve as a sound basis for activities in support of sustainable agricultural development in the Small Island Developing States.

My concern to orient FAO’s actions towards meeting the specific needs of the different Member Nations had already encouraged me to set up decentralized sub-regional offices, with the agreement of the Governing Bodies. Thus the offices in Apia, Barbados and Harare are following more closely the work of the Organization in the small islands of the South Pacific, the Caribbean and the Southwest Indian Ocean.

I am convinced that the Small Island Developing States need special programmes of assistance, focused on solutions adapted to the characteristics of their natural resources and their specific economic, social and cultural situations. FAO is therefore ready to support your efforts to define priorities and implement projects concerning the agricultural, forestry and fisheries sectors, in cooperation with other institutions and organizations of the international community and donor countries.

I hope that your deliberations will enable you to reach a consensus on the main thrusts of the Plan of Action that you will be discussing during the day.

Distinguished Ministers,
Excellencies,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I wish you every success in your work.