REPORT of the COUNCIL OF FAO Third Session 17–20 August, 1948 |
Washington, D.C., U.S.A.
FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION OF THE UNITED NATIONS
Washington, D. C., U. S. A.
August, 1948
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In compliance with various provisions of the Rules of Procedure, the Council was convened to consider with the Director-General the advance preparations for the Fourth Session of the Conference which is to be held in Washington on 15 November 1948.
In the absence of the Chairman and the Vice-Chairman, the Council, in conformity with Rule I, paragraph 3 of the Rules of Procedure for the Council of FAO, appointed the representative of the Union of South Africa, the Honorable P.R. Viljoen, to take the chair.
1. Agenda and General Planning for the Conference
After a detailed discussion of the work to be effected by the Fourth Session of the Conference, the Council recommends that a pattern of organization similar to that adopted by the Third Session at Geneva should again be employed, implying thereby a division of the work of the Conference into three main categories, as follows:
Annual review and discussion of the world situation in respect to production, marketing, and consumption of food and agricultural products, including fish and timber,
Consideration and discussion of the technical activities of the Organization during the preceding twelve months as well as of its program of work for the ensuing year,
Consideration and discussion of major constitutional, administrative, and financial issues requiring decision by the Conference, particularly of its budget for the next fiscal year.
The agenda to be submitted for the approval of the Conference has been drawn up accordingly. It will be circulated in due course to member governments as C48/1.
The Council has also approved, for circulation to member governments, a note setting forth the physical and technical arrangements to be made for the forthcoming Conference (Document C48/1-A).
2. Program of Work and Draft Budget for 1949
The Council has been given the opportunity to consider not only the Draft Budget which the Director-General has prepared for submission to the Conference, but also a detailed Program of Work for next year. It wishes to draw the attention of member governments to the fact that for the first time the Draft Budget has been prepared in terms of a plan of activities to be implemented during the course of the ensuing calendar year. The two documents need to be considered simultaneously since the Draft Budget embodies the financial implications of the Program of Work.
The Council wishes to commend the initiative taken by the Director-General in presenting these two documents. Member governments will thereby be in a position to obtain a comprehensive picture of the activities which the Director-General is planning for 1949 and at the same time to appraise the funds required to implement them. The preparation of these two documents has involved a process of selection and sifting of the multiple and diverse lines of activity in which FAO could usefully engage, since, within a maximum of $5,000,000, the Director-General cannot possibly undertake all the various requests and projects which have been referred to him by previous Conferences. In the introduction of his Program of Work, he has given a clear indication of the principles which have guided him in the framing of his program. This introduction, the Council feels, should receive the special consideration of member governments. They will appreciate that the drawing up of such a program involves the determination of a careful balance between its component parts.
The Council wishes further to record that the preparation of this program has necessitated a careful revision of the general structure of the various services of FAO, with the object of securing adequate technical and administrative facilities for carrying out the activities of the Organization particularly in the regions. The Director-General has reported thereon and, in conformity with Rule XXVI,1(e)(ii), the Council, after due consideration of his detailed plans for reorganization, records its approval.
In examining the Draft Budget, the Council has been assisted by a previous study of that document carried out by the Committee on Financial Control. The comments of the Committee have been embodied in an excellent report which the Council has decided should be transmitted to the Conference (C48/4).
In considering the Program of Work and the Draft Budget, the Council has refrained from going into the details of these two documents. Both of them are Conference documents on which the Council cannot pass final judgment. At this stage the Council considers that it should limit itself to an appraisal of the general internal balance of the program and the budget as presented in these documents and of their consistency with the overall objectives of FAO.
However, in the course of the discussion, a number of observations were recorded which the Council thinks it appropriate to forward to the Conference:
The delegates from Cuba and the Philippine Republic were of the opinion that the funds allotted for the nutrition activities of FAO are rather insufficient as compared with the appropriations for other fields of action.
The representative of the United States of America assumed that the Director-General would work in close co-operation with other international organizations. He referred specifically to the specialized agencies and the regional commissions of the Economic and Social Council. The French delegate, likewise, drew attention to the useful assistance that might be obtained from other technical or scientific organizations, such as the International Wine Office and the International Office of Epizootics.
Concern was expressed by the United Kingdom delegate and the representative of the International Federation of Agricultural Producers at the proposal that the Yearbook of Food and Agricultural Statistics should no longer be published annually.
The European members of the Council were unanimous in suggesting that the Conference should give special consideration to the desirability of continuing the FAO European Bulletin or, at any rate, of some such means of making the activities of the Organization better known among European countries.
In this connection, the French delegate thought that the cost of publications might be considerably offset by the development of better sales policies and by opening such publications to commercial publicity under proper safeguards.
In connection with the appropriation for the regular session of the Conference to be held in 1949, attention was drawn to the fact that the Conference itself should decide whether that session should be held at Headquarters or in some other city, and the Council agreed that this question should be inserted in the provisional agenda of the 1948 session of the Conference.
The representative of the International Federation of Agricultural Producers drew the attention of the Council to the interest which the FAO Program of Work would elicit among the members of the Federation, and thought that the latter would probably wish to place their views before the Conference regarding items of the program which were of particular concern to agricultural producers. In particular, he felt that insufficient emphasis had been placed on cooperation as a means of improving the condition of rural populations. He agreed with the representatives of Brazil and the Netherlands in thinking that a more important place might be given to rural welfare in FAO activities.
A number of other observations were made, particularly in connection with the reduced program of statistical publications and the need for enlisting the co-operation of technical experts from the various member countries.
On the whole, the Council is gratified to record its appreciation of the work done by the Director-General within such a limited time, in drafting his Program and Budget for 1949, and of the new emphasis placed upon the development of regional activities. The Council therefore adopts the following resolution:
THE COUNCIL
having considered the FAO Program of Work for 1949 and the Draft Budget for the same year
recommends to the Director-General that these two documents be transmitted to member governments and to the Conference.
With reference to the proposals submitted by the Committee on Financial Control with a view to balancing the Budget, the Council agrees to recommend that the difference of $378,000 between the expenditure budget and the total income to be collected from member governments and from miscellaneous anticipated receipts should be realized by the transfer of a corresponding amount from the arrears of contributions which have been collected during the first half of 1948 in respect of the second financial year.
However, as the Committee on Financial Control rightly pointed out, this is an interim arrangement. The Committee suggested that if, in order to bridge the gap between income and expenditure, an upward readjustment of the scale of contributions is adopted, it should not become operative before 1 January 1950.
On this problem of bridging the present gap between the total budget and the aggregate contributions from member governments, the Council adopted the following resolution:
THE COUNCIL
notes that in the present circumstances the income of the Organization may remain below $ 5,000,000, which is the figure originally approved for the Annual Budget of FAO,
is of the opinion that a detailed study should be made of all ways and means whereby such a deficiency could be made good without jeopardizing the activities of the Organization,
suggests that to achieve this end, consideration might be given to methods of increasing subsidiary receipts and to the financial implications involved in selecting a suitable site for the Organization's headquarters,
recommends that no general upward readjustment of contributions should be made for the purpose of balancing the budget unless no other solution can be found.
3. Audited Accounts of the Second Financial Year
In conformity with Regulations XVIII and XX of the Financial Regulations, the Council has considered the Audited Accounts of the Second Financial Year, together with the Auditors' Report thereon. Here, again, it was assisted by the previous examination carried out by the Committee on Financial Control and recorded in the latter's report.
The Council, having noted that a study is being made by the Committee of certain points raised in the Auditors' Report regarding minor matters of financial procedure and that a subsequent report of the Committee will comment thereon, adopts the following resolution:
THE COUNCIL
recommends that the Conference, after taking note of the Auditors' Report, approve the final accounts of the second financial year, showing a surplus of $ 145,400.50.
These accounts, as well as the Auditors' Report, are being submitted to the Conference under Document C48/5.
4. Other Administrative and Financial Matters
The Council wishes to draw the attention of the Conference to the very comprehensive and satisfactory presentation of the financial situation of the Organization which is included in the report of the Committee on Financial Control as well as to the various recommendations included in that report regarding the payment of contributions by member governments.
Finally, the Council adopts the following resolution:
THE COUNCIL
approves the draft rules of procedure for the Committee on Financial Control as proposed by that Committee;
approves the action taken by the Director-General to modify the FAO pay scale in order to meet the increased cost of living, as suggested by the Committee;
commends to the attention of the Conference the recommendations of the Committee regarding the problem of a staff pension plan;
notes that a study is being made by the Committee of the procedures to be followed in winding up the annual accounts of the Organization;
approves the report of the Committee on Financial Control and recommends to the Director-General that it be transmitted to member governments and to the Conference.
5. Appointment of an Additional Member to the Standing Advisory Committee on Agriculture
The Council approves the appointment of Mr. ALFREDO SACO of Peru as a member of the Standing Advisory Committee on Agriculture.
6. Site of Permanent Headquarters of FAO
The Council heard a statement by the Chairman of the Site Committee concerning the progress being made and approved the suggestions of the Working Party to the effect that work should now proceed in gathering all available data on the five sites under consideration: Copenhagen, Geneva, New York, Rome, and Washington.
7. Date and Agenda of Next Session
The Council decides to hold its Fourth Session beginning on 8 November 1948, and adopts the following provisional agenda for that Session:
Adoption of agenda
Approval of minutes
Procedural preparations for the Conference
Recommendations to be made by the Council in compliance with the Rules of Procedure in connection with the election of officers, the admission of observers, the election of new members, and similar matters.
Report of Policy Committee on Production and Distribution and Preparation for Annual Review
Report of Committee on Permanent Site of Headquarters
Report of Committee on Financial Control
Other matters requiring attention in preparation for the Conference:
Activities of FAO since the Second Session of the Council
Constitutional and administrative matters
Relationship with United Nations and other international organizations
Other business
The Council further decides that the Policy Committee on Production and Distribution will meet in Washington on 1 November 1948.
MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL OF FAO
1948 | 1948–49 | 1948–49–50 |
Australia | China | Brazil |
Denmark | Cuba | Canada |
Egypt | Czechoslovakia | Chile |
France | Netherlands | Italy |
India | Philippine Republic | Union of South Africa |
Mexico | United Kingdom | United States of America |
REPRESENTATIVES, ALTERNATES, AND ADVISERS OF THE MEMBERS OF THE COUNCIL
CHAIRMAN OF THE THIRD SESSION: P.R. Viljoen
AUSTRALIA
James U. Garside, Commercial Counselor, Australian Embassy, Washington, Representative
BRAZIL
Newton de Castro Belleza, Chairman, Commission of International Agricultural Relations, Ministry of Agriculture, Representative
CANADA
G.S.H. Barton, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Representative
George R. Paterson, Agricultural Counselor, Embassy of Canada, Washington, Alternate
CHILE
Higinio González, Counselor, Delegation of Chile to the United Nations, Representative
CHINA
C.M. Chen, Senior Adviser to Ministry of Food, Washington, Representative
S.E. Koo, Ministry of Food, Associate
S.C. Chang, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Adviser
C. Twanmo, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Adviser
CUBA
Enrique Pérez-Cisneros, Commercial Attaché, Embassy of Cuba, Washington, Representative
CZECHOSLOVAKIA
Josef Hanc, Minister Plenipotentiary, Embassy of Czechoslovakia, Washington, Representative
Jan Patek, Counselor, Embassy of Czechoslovakia, Washington, Associate
Imrich Sebes, Agricultural Attaché, Embassy of Czechoslovakia, Paris, Adviser
DENMARK
A.P. Jacobsen, Agricultural Adviser, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Copenhagen, Representative
Søren Sørensen, Agricultural Counselor, Embassy of Denmark, Washington, Associate
EGYPT
Mahmoud Bey Zaki, Undersecretary for Supplies, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Representative
Anwar Niazi, Embassy of Egypt, Washington, Alternate
FRANCE
P. July, Member of the National Assembly, Representative
M. Cépède, Secretary, FAO National Committee, Alternate
G.H. Janton, Ministry of Economic Affairs, Associate
INDIA
N.G. Abhyankar, Food Attaché, Embassy of India, Washington, Representative
ITALY
G. Ugo Papi, Secretary-General, FAO National Committee, Representative
G.V. Soro, Embassy of Italy, Washington, Alternate
Paolo Rogers, Italian Technical Delegation, Washington, Associate
MEXICO
Agustin Ochoa, Commercial Attaché, Embassy of Mexico, Washington, Representative
Adolfo Alarcón, Agricultural Attaché, Embassy of Mexico, Washington, Alternate
NETHERLANDS
C.H. Bogaardt, Chief, Foreign Relations Section, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food Supply, Representative
J.B. Ritzema van Ikema, Agricultural Attaché, Embassy of the Netherlands, Washington, Representative
PHILIPPINE REPUBLIC
José Teodoro, Jr., Commercial Attaché, Embassy of Philippines, Washington, Representative
UNION OF SOUTH AFRICA
P.R. Viljoen, High Commissioner of the Union of South Africa, Ottawa, Representative*
W.A. Horrocks, Commercial Secretary, Legation of the Union of South Africa, Washington, Alternate
UNITED KINGDOM
Sir Ralph Enfield, Chief Economic Adviser, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Representative
G.R. Oake, British Supply Office, Washington, Alternate
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Edward G. Cale, Associate Chief, International Resources Division, Department of State, Representative (Acting)
Albert J. Loveland, Under Secretary of Agriculture, Department of Agriculture, Adviser
Fred J. Rossiter, Associate Director, Office of Foreign Agricultural Relations, Department of Agriculture, Adviser
William A. Jump, Director, Office of Budget and Finance, Department of Agriculture, Adviser
Ursula Duffus, Division of United Nations Economic and Social Affairs, Department of State, Adviser
James O. Howard, Office of Foreign Agricultural Relations, Department of Agriculture, Adviser and Secretary of Delegation
REPRESENTATIVES OF UNITED NATIONS AND SPECIALIZED AGENCIES
UNITED NATIONS
Helen Seymour, Acting Director, Joint Division of Co-ordination and Liaison
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANISATION
R.W. Cox, International Organizations Section
INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND
Gertrud Lovasy, Balance of Payments Division
INTERNATIONAL REFUGEE ORGANIZATION
William W. Dick, Deputy Chief, United States Office
WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION
G.E. Hill, Acting Director, New York Office
REPRESENTATIVES OF OTHER INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
ORGANIZATION OF THE AMERICAN STATES
J. Colom, Director, Division of Agricultural Co-operation
INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF AGRICULTURAL PRODUCERS
Andrew Cairns, Secretary-General.