LE DIRECTEUR GENERAL: Excellences, Mesdames, Messieurs les délégués et observateurs, Mesdames, Messieurs, c'est pour moi un grand honneur, en ma qualité de Directeur général de cette Organisation, de déclarer ouverte la vingt-sixième session de la Conférence et de souhaiter la bienvenue aux distingués délégués et observateurs. Ainsi assemblés en cette auguste aréopage, vous êtes la FAO, vous formez une sorte de sommet mondial de l'agriculture. Vous êtes l'expression de la volonté collective de la communauté internationale tout entière de relever le défi de la faim et de la malnutrition. Vous êtes le lieu où peuvent se concilier les intérêts parfois divers sinon divergents du monde rural à travers un dialogue franc et la recherche de l'intérêt commun par la voie du consensus.
Avant tout, je voudrais vous souhaiter un excellent séjour dans la ville éternelle où nous allons célébrer avec reconnaissance 40 ans de présence et d'un appui jamais démenti à la FAO de la part de notre pays hôte. Lorsque vous monterez pour cela au Capitole, lundi, songez un instant que vous serez au centre névralgique d'une puissance qui, il y a plus de 2000 ans, avait déjà su réguler les flux agricoles dans tout le bassin méditerranéen.
J'exprime à vous tous et toutes, participant à cette Conférence, les voeux les plus sincères pour le succès de vos délibérations et le souhait que les travaux se déroulent dans un climat d'harmonie, d'entente et que ses conclusions puissent être arrêtées par consensus dans le souci d'imprimer à la FAO l'impulsion dont elle a besoin pour accomplir sa lourde tâche.
Cet esprit de concorde est plus nécessaire que jamais. Regardons autour de nous: la situation économique et sociale de nombreux pays est plus critique aujourd'hui qu'il y a dix ou vingt ans; les situations d'urgence et d'extrême misère continuent à nous interpeller. Mais la conscience de l'interdépendance entre nations est aussi plus vivace que jamais. Le défi à relever n'est pas perdu d'avance. La recherche de la démocratie et de la pluralité d'expression dans de nombreux pays, la mise en place de modèles plus participatifs d'organisation des sociétés ne peuvent ouvrir en un jour les jardins de l'Eden. Ce sont cependant des pistes prometteuses dont on ne saurait surestimer l'importance.
L'abandon progressif de formes extrêmes de l'intervention étatique au profit d'une plus grande ouverture sur les forces du marché - à pondérer cependant par des mécanismes correcteurs de rééquilibrage au profit des plus vulnérables - peut revitaliser des pans entiers de l'économie mondiale. Dans tous les cas, et il n'y a point là miracle, la réussite présuppose que l'homme soit avant tout le sujet central de toute politique. Un philosophe grec, Protagoras, notait déjà, cinq cents ans avant notre ère, que l'homme est la mesure de toute chose. L'homme est aussi la mesure du développement. C'est dire l'importance de la tâche qui est devant nous. Il nous faut, en particulier, assurer qu'au-delà des moyens techniques mis
en oeuvre, le programme de travail que vous arrêterez pour la FAO restera centré sur l'homme, acteur de son propre développement. Pour ce qui me concerne, je souhaite que tous nos travaux soient imprégnés de cet esprit où la technologie n'est pas une fin en soi, mais au service de l'homme.
INTRODUCTION - PROCEDURE OF THE SESSION
INTRODUCTION - QUESTIONS DE PROCEDURE
INTRODUCCION - CUESTIONES DE PROCEDIMIENTO
1. Election of Chairman and Vice-Chairmen of the Conference
1. Election du Président et des Vice-Présidents de la Conférence
1. Elección del Presidente y de los Vicepresidentes de la Conferencia
DIRECTOR-GENERAL: The first item on your Agenda is the election of the Chairman. In conformity with Article XXIV of the General Rules of the Organization the Council has proposed the candidature of His Excellency Malik Abdul Majid, Federal Minister for Food, Agriculture and Cooperatives of Pakistan. The report of the Council on this subject is submitted to the Conference in document C 91/LIM/1. Will the Conference endorse this nomination?
I declare His Excellency Malik Abdul Majid elected Chairman of the Twenty-sixth Session of the Conference. I wish to extend to him my sincere congratulations. I am happy to greet him as a distinguished authority of that great agricultural country which is Pakistan, a country with an impressive record of achievement in agricultural development due to its laborious people and wise leaders. Excellency, we are very proud to have you in our midst and I am sure the deliberations of this Conference will benefit greatly from your knowledge of the issues before it. Your experience and leadership qualities are well known. May I also assure you that both my colleagues in the Secretariat and myself will be at your disposal to assist in carrying out the task now entrusted to you.
I now invite His Excellency to take his place on the podium and to assume the Chairmanship of this Session.
Applause
Applaudissements
Aplausos
Mr Malik Abdul Majid took the chair
M. Maiik Abdul Majid assume la Présidence
Ocupa la presidencia el Sr. Abdul Majid
Address by the Chairman of the Conference
Discours du Président de la Conférence
Discurso del. Presidente de ia Conferencia
CHAIRMAN: Excellencies, Mr Director-General, Distinguished Deiegates, Ladies and Gentiemen, it is indeed a matter of great honour and pleasure for me to be amongst you this morning in the opening session of the Twenty sixth FAO Conference. On behalf of the Government and people of Pakistan, and on my behaif I would like to extend to all of you warm greetings and good wishes on this auspicious occasion. I feel highiy priviieged on my election as Chairman of the Twenty-sixth FAO Conference and I am extremely grateful for the honour that you have collectively bestowed upon me and my country for conducting the proceedings. I am confident that with your cooperation, wisdom, experience and advice, we will together be able to steer the proceedings of this Conference to a successful conclusion.
Let me also at the outset commend the FAO Secretariat for the excellent job done by it in preparing comprehensive and informative documentation on the various Agenda Items. This will facilitate meaningful deliberations on a wide spectrum of significant issues before the Twenty-sixth FAO Conference.
Ladies and Gentlemen: Four decades ago the nations of the world pledged to free mankind from the scourges of poverty, hunger and malnutrition through the auspices of the FAO. Ever since its establishment, this Organization has worked assiduously in coordinating global, regional and national efforts to accomplish the cherished goal of food security for mankind. The task before the FAO has become more difficult considering the need to cater to a population explosion which shows no signs of abating. Added to the population time bomb are the serious problems of malnutrition, depletion of the resource base and environmental degradation. The FAO can take both pride and satisfaction that it has continued to play a constructive and pioneering role in devising methods to alleviate these problems afflicting a major portion of the world community.
Our world has witnessed rapid changes in the past fifty years. The problems confronting it now are not those that were faced by our predecessors. In the race between population growth and food production, human ingenuity has so far had an upper hand. Although this aspect should encourage us to plan for the future with hope and optimism, we need to appreciate the fragility of this balance. Consequently, there is an urgency to evolve individually, and collectively, comprehensive measures to effectively solve the twin problems of rapid population increase and erosion of the natural resource base. In its endeavour, I feel that FAO has a fine record of accomplishment. It has achieved this by coordinating efforts for increasing production at the international level and in spearheading sustainable developmental programmes. We indeed are grateful to this Organization and should further strengthen it particularly at this crucial juncture by extending our unstinted cooperation, and by removing various constraints hindering its effective operations. Indeed we can do no less because we have pledged ourselves to FAO's goals to: raise the levels of nutrition and standards of living of our peoples; improve the production and distribution of all food and agricultural products; and improve the condition of our rural masses.
Distinguished Delegates: The world in which we live today is not the world of isolation. We all are closely linked in this era of information technology and of mutual inter-dependence. We have to share our successes and failures and have to be active partners in our quest for the decent survival of the human race. We know that the world food situation is extremely precarious. Drought has damaged crops in some countries; production prospects in others have worsened; the world cereal output is expected to be three percent lower than last year. We know that the food supplies in Africa have deteriorated and agricultural production has declined.
In Latin America and the Caribbean, agricultural production growth has also slipped from an already modest level. The overall picture in the developing countries continues to be gloomy.
I would also like to refer at this juncture to the ominous phenomenon of environmental degradation which unfortunately is finding threatening manifestations in the form of global warming, deforestation, desertification, atmospheric pollution, water and soil contamination and natural resources base erosion. If we do not tackle this phenomenon, I am afraid the situation by the end of this century might well become irremediable. We have, therefore, to utilize our resources in a prudent and rational manner, and not hamper the regeneration capacity. Generational equity considerations and self-discipline would enable us to leave a good heritage of natural resources for posterity. The developed countries in this regard have to take a lead in enabling the developing countries to incorporate environmental considerations in their developmental programmes. FAO should also play a pivotal role in coordinating action at national, regional and international levels for fuller integration of the environment in the development plans.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we will know more about the state of food and agriculture when we come to deliberate in detail on this subject during the Commission Sessions. What I want to say now is that we have seriously to consider some things more than merely arranging supplies to the deficit parts of the world. With the passage of time the problems are bound to increase in multiple proportions. The Director-General, Dr Edouard Saouma, in his address to the Ninety-ninth Session of the FAO Council rightly observed that There are times when the course of history moves so fast that mankind cannot keep up and would like to mark the time to draw breath. In this situation, the programmes of FAO assume greater importance. Similarly, the programmes of other international agencies concerned with population, health, nutrition levels, marketing and the environment become more relevant. We have to develop such policies, plans and international cooperation which will ensure a square meal a day everywhere in the world without regard to colour, creed or nationality.
Ladies and Gentlemen, we have a heavy agenda before us. I will not therefore take more of your time. Before concluding, however, I would like to stress that as fellow human beings we ought to try to be more humane in our plans and programmes aimed at bettering the lot of human kind. It is only through collective and mutually complementary efforts that we can free this world from the ravages of hunger and malnutrition. FAO provides us with a viable forum for estimating our preferences and needs, identifying problems and developing implementable action plans. Let us focus our energies constructively through this august body and extend it all possible moral and monetary support.
Let me once again thank you for reposing your confidence and trust in me. I assure you that by the grace of Allah, and with your cooperation, we will be able to carry out meaningful deliberations and jointly make the Twenty-sixth Conference of FAO a great success.
Thank you.
Applause
Applaudissements
Aplausos
2. Appointment of General Committee and Credentials Committee
2. Constitution du Bureau et de la Commission de vérification des pouvoirs
2. Nombramiento del Comité General y del Comité de Credenciales
CHAIRMAN: Ladies and Gentlemen, we move to the work of the morning. First of all, there are the elections of the Vice-Chairmen and other members of the various Committees. As you well know, Rule VIII of the General Rules of the Organization provide that the Nominations Committee shall propose to the Conference firstly the candidates for three posts of Vice-Chairmen of the Conference; secondly the seven Member Nations of the General Committee of the Conference required under Paragraph 1 of Rule X of the same General Rules; and, thirdly, the nine members of the Credentials Committee as laid down in Paragraph 3 of Rule III of the General Rules.
The Nominations Commitee, which is making these proposals, was elected by the FAO Council at its Hundredth Session held from 5-7 November in accordance with the provisions of the relevant paragraphs of the General Rules of the Organization. This Committee met on Friday, 8 November, and drew up its recommendations for the posts just mentioned.
I shall now ask the Chairman of the Nominations Committee, Mr Amor Ben Romdhane of Tunisia, to place before the Conference the nominations agreed by this Committee, starting with the three Vice-Chairmen of the Conference.
Amor Ben ROMDHANE (Président, Commission des candidatures) (Langue originale arabe): M. le Président, je voudrais, avant de vous faire rapport sur les activités de la Commission des candidatures, dire quelques mots à la Conférence générale.
Je suis très heureux de prendre la parole pour exprimer, au nom de mon pays la Tunisie et au nom du Groupe des 77, nos félicitations les plus sincères, M. le Président, pour votre élection à la direction de la vingt-sixième Conférence générale.
M. Malik Abdul Majid est un homme connu pour sa vaste expérience et ses grandes connaissances. L'expérience de M. Abdul Majid couvre différents domaines, puisqu'il connaît parfaitement le secteur agricole, c'est également un homme de terrain, et il est membre du Parlement pakistanais, ce grand pays agricole qui a de vastes ressources à la fois humaines et naturelles. Je ne manquerai pas de dire que M. Malik Abdul Majid a une très longue expérience dans le corps diplomatique, puisqu'il a été pendant très longtemps l'Ambassadeur de son pays auprès du Royaume du Maroc.
Son élection à la présidence de la vingt-sixième session est de bon augure pour les activités de cette session et nous donne l'espoir que les résultats de cette session seront positifs et marqueront une nouvelle étape dans la vie de notre Organisation.
Je voudrais déclarer ici, M. le Président; notre entière disponibilité pour vous aider dans vos activités et nous sommes persuadés que votre grande expérience aboutira à la concorde entre tous les pays membres dans une Organisation forte et solide.
Je vais passer maintenant au point pour lequel vous m'avez demandé de venir à cette tribune, à savoir les candidatures pour les trois Vice-Présidences.
Conformément à l'Article VII-1 du Règlement général de l'Organisation, la Commission des candidatures soumet à la Conférence les candidatures ciaprès, tout en faisant ressortir qu'elles sont énumérées dans un ordre indifférent eu égard à la compétence des personnes concernées.
M. Gérard Khojane, Ambassadeur et Représentant permanent du Lesotho auprès de la FAO; M. Gonzalo Bula Hoyos, Ambassadeur et Représentant permanent de la Colombie auprès de la FAO; M. Arpád Szabó, Ambassadeur et Représentant permanent de la Tchécoslovaquie auprès de la FAO.
Applause
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Aplausos
CHAIRMAN: Thank you very much, Mr Romdhane, for your announcements. Ladies and Gentlemen, you have just heard the proposal from the Nominations Committee in respect of the three Vice-Chairmen of this Conference. Are there any objections?
Applause
Applaudissements
Aplausos
From your applause I take it that there are no objections and that the Conference approves these names. Therefore, I will consider these proposals adopted.
It was so decided
Il en est ainsi décidé
Así se acuerda
We now move to the appointment of the General Committee and the Credentials Committee. I would once again request our worthy Chairman, Mr Romdhane, to announce the nominations of membership of the General Committee which will be followed by the Credentials Committee.
Amor Ben ROMDHANE (Président, Commission des candidatures) (Langue originale arabe): Conformément à l'Article X du Règlement général de l'Organisation, la Commission soumet à la Conférence les candidatures suivantes: Allemagne, Chine, Etats-Unis d'Amérique, France, Liban, Maroc, Panama.
CHAIRMAN: You have just heard the names of the General Committee. Are there any objections? If not, I would request all members of the Conference to applaud to confirm that they agree with these nominations. If there are no objections, then I will consider these Member Nations to be duly elected to serve on the General Committee of the Conference.
Applause
Applaudissements
Aplausos
It is now my privilege once again to request the Chairman of the Nominations Committee to go to the next point and announce the names of the Credentials Committee.
Amor Ben ROMDHANE (Président, Commission des candidatures) (Langue originale arabe): Les neufs pays membres de la Commission de vérification des pouvoirs, conformément à l'Article III du Règlement général de l'Organisation, sont les suivants: Algérie, Autriche, Canada, Chypre, Ethiopie, Grèce, Honduras, et Hongrie et Thaïlande.
CHAIRMAN: The nine members of the Credentials Committee, in accordance with Rule III, are as follows: Algeria, Austria, Canada, Cyprus, Ethiopia, Greece, Honduras, Hungary, and Thailand. Are there any objections to the names which have just been announced? If there are no objections I shall consider those nine Members Nations duly appointed to Constitute the Credentials Committee of the Conference.
Applause
Applaudissements
Aplausos
Ladies and Gentlemen, this completes the Report of the Nominations Committee, and I would like to thank Mr Ismael Diaz Yubero and his Committee for all their good work on their behalf and my own. Thank you very much.
Before we continue with the business of the day, the Minister for Agriculture for Bangladesh has asked for the floor.
Major General Majid-Ul-HAQ (Bangladesh): Mr Chairman, Mr Director-General, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am delighted to extend my warmest felicitations to Your Excellency, Mr Malid Abdul Majid, Minister for Food and Agriculture of the Government of Pakistan, on behalf of Bangladesh and of the members of the Asia Group attending this Twenty-sixth Session of the Conference of FAO. You, as soldier, politician, turned diplomat, are well known to us as a regular participant in the Inter-Parliamentary Union Meetings, as a member of the Pakistani Parliament. You have made great contributions in promoting the effective role of IPU. You, a distinguished agriculturalist, have made significant and important contributions to the field of agriculture in your own country. Your
election to the Chairmanship of the Twenty-sixth Session of this Conference, we feel, is a fitting tribute to your qualities, your erudition, and your devotion to your cause. I am sure that through your leadership this Twenty-sixth Session of the Conference will successfully conclude its deliberations.
I also congratulate the elected Vice-Chairman and the members of the various Committees of this Conference.
Once again, your Excellency, Chairman, Mr Malik Abdul Majid, you have our support, and we assure you of our cooperation throughout the Conference and thereafter. We wish you Godspeed.
CHAIRMAN: Thank you very much. Several other Heads of Delegation have requested to speak. First, I shall give the floor to the Head of Delegation of Cameroon.
John NIBA NGU (Cameroon): Thank you very much for giving me the floor, Mr Chairman, at this very exceptional meeting which marks the Fortieth Anniversary of the transfer of FAO to Rome.
On behalf of the African Group of FAO we present our very warm congratulations to His Excellency Malik Abdul Majid on his unanimous election to the highest office of this Conference - namely, Chairman, or M. le Président de la Conférence. We are very comfortable in the certainty that he will lead and guide our deliberations with all the necessary personality and charm. May God guide every word that you pronounce on our behalf.
Our congratulations also go to your team.
Sra. Rita MISHAAN ROSSELL (Guatemala): En nombre de mi país, y del Grupo Latinoamericano y del Caribe, permítame expresarle nuestra más sincera felicitación por su elección, así como augurar a Ud., y a quienes le acompañan en la Mesa, los mayores éxitos en la conducción de las labores de este 26 o periodo de sesiones de la Conferencia. Estamos seguros que con su sabiduría y conocimiento esta Conferencia alcanzará una meta exitosa para una unidad constructiva. Señor Presidente, puede estar seguro que el Grupo Latinoamericano y del Caribe está dispuesto a colaborar y cooperar para así facilitarle a Ud., y a todos los aquí presentes, el trabajo que hoy iniciamos.
Arpád SZABO (Czechoslovakia): Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen: On behalf of the European Member Countries of FAO, I have the honour to join my colleagues from the other Regions in welcoming and congratulating His Excellency Malik Abdul Majid, the Minister for Food, Agriculture and Cooperatives of Pakistan. We know that under his Chairmanship we shall have a successful and fruitful Conference.
On behalf of the European countries, I should like to assure you of the cooperation and constructive participation of the European Region in this General Conference in Rome. Again, our congratulations.
Abdullah AL-MUSAED (Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of) (Original language Arabic): Mr Chairman, Mr Director-General, Distinguished Delegates: On behalf of the Near East Region, which the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has the honour to chair at the moment, we would like to extend our congratulations to you on your election as Chairman and as a representative of our sister Islamic Republic of Pakistan. We are fully confident of your ability to lead the deliberations of the Conference, with all the wisdom and experience which we know so well from you both in diplomacy and in the agricultural sector.
I would also like to congratulate your Vice-Chairmen and we wish you all success in steering the deliberations of this Conference.
Geoffrey Lee MILLER (Australia): On behalf of the nine countries of the Southwest Pacific Group, Australia adds its congratulations to you on your election as Chairman. We are very pleased to see you elected to that important post as successor to the then Australian Minister, John Kerin. It is a great honour to you personally, and to your country, with the important place that you hold in world food and agriculture. We are confident that you will discharge your duties with distinction, and effectively promote the work of this very important Organization.
We also extend our congratulations to the Vice-Chairmen and the Chairmen of the Commissions.
CHAIRMAN: I thank all of you, on behalf of the Vice-Chairmen and Members of the Committees for providing support and encouragement to us with your professions of confidence and promised cooperation, which I shall surely need. I am very grateful. With your cooperation, I am sure we shall get this Conference running smoothly and reach good conclusions.
I have to make a slight departure from the normal procedure, because some other delegations have requested the floor. The first is one which I can hardly refuse. I give the floor to the Distinguished Delegate for India.
Balram JAKHAR (India): Mr Chairman, let me take this opportunity of congratulating you as both a neighbour and a personal friend. I know that you have the heart of a farmer, and hold strong beliefs in brotherhood and the well-being of all. I wish you all success.
Duane ACKER (United States of America): On behalf of the North American Region we extend to you and the elected Vice-Chairmen our sincere congratulations. You, Mr Chairman, represent a country which I have had the privilege of visiting, with many excellent scientists and leaders with whom I have had the privilege of working. We know that we will have outstanding leadership from you in this Conference. We believe that under your Chairmanship this Conference will be a very constructive benchmark for the future success of FAO.
CHAIRMAN: Once again I express my gratitude to all the leaders who have spoken congratulating me, the Vice-Chairmen and the members of the various Committees. On both my own behalf and theirs I offer you my thanks.
Some of my friends have mentioned the agricultural activities and problems of Pakistan. We have activities, but we also have some problems as do all developing countries. Therefore, if nothing else I certainly appreciate what are the problems in the state of agriculture, the prices, the imports and so on in my country. All this applies to many countries, I am sure, especially to the developing countries. We hope that by the end of this Conference we will be able to make some recommendations, take some decisions which will ameliorate the plight of at least those farmers and farming communities which are deprived and which have a very low income.
This first session of the Conference is now adjourned until 15.00 hours.
The meeting rose at 11.00 hours.
Le séance est levée à 11 heures.
Se levanta la sesión a las 11 horas.
