CL 128/10




Council


Hundred and Twenty-eighth Session

Rome, 20-25 June 2005

REPORT OF THE 31st SESSION OF THE
COMMITTEE ON WORLD FOOD SECURITY (CFS)
Rome, 23-26 May 2005


Table of Contents



IN REVIEWING THIS REPORT, THE COUNCIL MAY WISH TO GIVE PARTICULAR CONSIDERATION TO THE RECOMMENDATIONS CONTAINED IN
PARAGRAPHS 9, 15, 17-20, 26-28


I. ORGANIZATIONAL MATTERS

1. The Committee on World Food Security held its Thirty-first Session from 23 to 26 May 2005 at FAO Headquarters in Rome. The session was attended by delegates from 113 out of 136 Members of the Committee, by observers from 3 other Member Nation of FAO, the Holy See, by representatives from 2 United Nations Agencies and Programmes; and by observers from 4 intergovernmental and 22 international non-governmental organizations. The report contains the following annexes: Appendix A - Agenda of the session; Appendix B - Membership of the Committee; Appendix C - Countries and organizations represented at the session; Appendix D - List of documents, Appendix E - Outcome of the Multi-stakeholders Dialogue on Arrangements for the Special Forum to be held at the 32nd CFS, 2006. The full list of participants is available from the CFS Secretariat.

2. The Session was opened by Mr. Salif Diallo, Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Fish Resources of Burkina Faso as Chairperson of the CFS. Subsequent sessions were chaired by Mr Soren Skafte (Denmark), Mr Yahya Al Araimy (Oman), and Mr Anton Kohler (Switzerland).

3. The Director-General welcomed the Special guests that were invited to attend the CFS and delivered his statement which underlined his concern regarding potential non achievement of the WFS targets. His Excellency, Blaise Compaoré, President of Burkina Faso, delivered the keynote address in which he highlighted the need for recognizing measures towards food security as a path out of poverty. His Excellency Armand de Decker, Minister of Development Cooperation of Belgium, delivered an address focusing on official development assistance with particular reference to food security.

4. The Committee appointed a Drafting Committee composed of the delegations of Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Iran, Republic of Korea, Libya, Malaysia, Netherlands, Norway, South Africa, Spain, Tanzania and the United Kingdom, chaired by Mr James Melanson (Canada).

5. On the occasion of the CFS, the Secretariat organized the following Special events:

    1. Impact of Climate Change and of Pests and Diseases on Food Security and Poverty Reduction
    2. Impact of Conflicts and Governance on Food Security and FAO’s role and adaptation for achieving the MDGs
    3. Green Revolution in Africa.

II. ASSESSMENT OF THE WORLD FOOD SECURITY SITUATION FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS

6. The Committee commended the Secretariat for the improved format and content of the assessment document CFS:2005/2 including its thematic approach, specifically focusing on coping with key shocks to food security.

7. During the discussion of the document concern was expressed that at the current rate of progress the WFS goal of halving the number of the world’s hungry by 2015 will not be attained.

8. Particular note was taken of the impact of the Tsunami disaster on food security in the affected countries and the key role played by FAO and other agencies in the recovery phase.

A. RECOMMENDATIONS

9. Considering that the fight against hunger demands an integrated set of actions which simultaneously addresses the causes of transitory and chronic food insecurity, within the framework of development policies, the Committee made the following recommendations:

For Governments:

FAO should

III. ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE 2006 MID-TERM REVIEW
OF THE WORLD FOOD SUMMIT PLAN OF ACTION

A. Reporting format for the follow-up of the implementation of the world food summit
plan of action

10. The Committee considered Item III (a) of the Agenda on the basis of document CFS:2005/3.

11. Following the preparation of national reports in 2004 on the progress of implementation of the WFS Plan of Action, the Committee requested that the Secretariat convene a regionally balanced working group of experts to review options for a revised Reporting Format.

12. The Committee underlined the importance of a good Reporting Format in facilitating an accurate assessment of the implementation of the WFS Plan of Action and in showing where countries, regions, and the world as a whole stand in reducing poverty and hunger in line with the WFS objectives and the MDGs. The Committee appreciated that the Reporting Format suggested by the group of experts reflected an improvement in terms of clarity, and reduced number of indicators.

13. The Committee recognized that the new Reporting Format will need to be sent to member countries by September 2005. This will allow countries time to prepare national reports and submit them by April 1st, 2006, in order to be considered in the synthesis report. While it was recognized that extensive testing would be desirable, it was acknowledged that this would not be possible given the time constraints.

14. The Committee emphasised that the list of indicators and the narrative section in the Reporting Format are mutually supportive. It was suggested that the MDG indicators should be clearly identified in the Reporting Format. It was also pointed out that reporting on two important issues namely, that of governance contained in Commitment I, and that of inequality in income contained in Commitment II will rely on the narrative section. The Committee suggested that the number of indicators should be further reduced.

15. The Committee recommended:

B. ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE MID-TERM REVIEW IN 2006: MODALITIES FOR THE SPECIAL FORUM

16. The Committee noted the Summary by the Chairperson of the Outcome of the multi-stakeholder dialogue regarding the modalities for the Special Forum in 2006 (Appendix E of this report). At this special segment, representatives of 25 Non-Governmental and Civil Society Organizations had the opportunity to speak on equal footing with Governments during the discussions.

17. The Committee endorsed the following outcomes of the discussions:

18. The Committee suggested that each region consider including an Agenda item in their Regional Conference on the arrangements for the Mid-Term Review in 2006 of the World Food Summit Plan of Action, and that a multi-stakeholder dialogue process may be used when preparing for the Special Forum.

19. The Committee recommended the broadest possible participation of stakeholders in the preparations for and conduct of the Special Forum. It emphasized the importance of the participation of all relevant groups, including NGOs, CSOs and private sector associations.

20. The Committee recognized that additional resources would need to be identified for the preparatory process and conduct of the Special Forum.

IV. INTERNATIONAL ALLIANCE AGAINST HUNGER

21. The Committee acknowledged the progress made by the International Alliance Against Hunger (IAAH) in various countries, both in developing and developed, in building National Alliances involving a wide spectrum of government and civil society representatives.

22. Several Governments and representatives of NGOs/CSOs provided more details on the activities of the Alliance in their country or on key national programmes to fight hunger such as school feeding, food security programmes and awareness raising campaigns. Others informed the Committee of their willingness to establish an Alliance.

23. Rome-based agencies expressed their appreciation for the collaborations developed within the IAAH Working Group amongst FAO, IFAD, IPGRI and WFP and with the NGOs to discuss and work on achieving the World Food Summit and Millennium Development Goals. Representatives of NGOs and Civil society organisations and federations indicated their appreciation for the IAAH and their willingness to participate in it at both international and national levels. They highlighted the fact that the Alliance adds value to their own initiatives to fight hunger and poverty (awareness raising or advocacy campaigns, local projects).

24. It was recalled that the IAAH reports to the CFS and does not represent a parallel mechanism. The contributions from governments and NGOs emphasized the value of the approach of “working together” promoted by the IAAH.

V. OTHER MATTERS

A. ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE THIRTY-SECOND SESSION

25. The Committee agreed to hold its Thirty-second Session at FAO Headquarters in Rome at a time to be determined by the Director-General in consultation with the Chairman.

26. In accordance with the Rome Declaration, the Committee will undertake in 2006, “within available resources, a major broad-based progress assessment of the implementation of the World Food Summit Plan of Action and a mid-term review of achieving the target of reducing the number of undernourished people to half their present level no later than 2015.” Accordingly the next Session of CFS will undertake the mid-term review of the progress in the implementation of the World Food Summit Plan of Action.

27. As agreed during the 30th Session of the CFS, and reaffirmed at this Session, the Thirty-second Session will contain a two day Special Forum, following the precedent of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development, involving active participation from governments, relevant international organizations and actors of civil society relevant to the mandate of the Committee in the implementation of the WFS Plan of Action. This dialogue should also include the discussion of future actions to improve dialogue, consultation and understanding, and accelerate progress towards the objectives of the World Food Summit.

B. ANY OTHER BUSINESS

28. The Secretariat was requested to submit a document to the upcoming High-Level Plenary of the UN General Assembly on the Millennium Development Goals in September 2005, highlighting FAO's Contributions to the MDGs. In order to allow the Council to be informed of the contents of that contribution the Secretariat was requested to include an agenda item on this subject at the forthcoming June 2005 Council Session.


APPENDIX A

I. ORGANIZATIONAL MATTERS

a) Adoption of Agenda and Timetable
b) Statement by the Director-General or his Representative
c) Keynote Address
d) Membership of the Committee

II. ASSESSMENT OF THE WORLD FOOD SECURITY SITUATION

a) Global Assessment
b) Special Threats to Food Security

III. ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE 2006 MID-TERM REVIEW OF THE
WORLD FOOD SUMMIT PLAN OF ACTION

a) Reporting Format for the follow-up of the implementation of the
World Food Summit Plan of Action

b) Arrangements for a Special Forum to be held in the 32nd CFS
(multistakeholders dialogue)

IV. INTERNATIONAL ALLIANCE AGAINST HUNGER

V. OTHER MATTERS

a) Arrangements for the Thirty-second Session
b) Any Other Business
c) Report of the Session


APPENDIX B