FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva will be away from Rome during the next few weeks. During this period he will be involved in a range of activities taking place away from FAO Headquarters.

Initially, the Director-General will fly to Dili, Timor-Leste, for his first visit there since he took office. In Asia’s youngest country, he will launch the National Action Plan on the Zero Hunger Challenge - the first one to be signed at a country-level - as part of the following-up of one of FAO’s Regional Initiatives in the Asia-Pacific.

Also in Dili, the Director-General will participate in the Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP), which will be chaired by Timor-Leste for the next two years.  FAO has recently strengthened its cooperation with this group on the development of food and nutrition security, among other areas.

The Director-General will be involved in a number of official engagements during the month of August, when  he will participate in a workshop on biogas and family farming, which will be held at the Itaipu Dam, one of the biggest dams in the world  (a joint Project managed by Brazil and Paraguay).

Also in Brazil, FAO will be signing an agreement with the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFGRS), one of the country’s top universities, which will involve establishing cooperation mechanisms and exchanging documents and research material.

From Brazil, Mr. Graziano da Silva will be back to the Asia-Pacific region in late August, where he will take part at two UN High-Level Meetings.

First, he will attend the 6th Global Forum on the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), to be held in Bali, Indonesia. UNAOC is an initiative of the United Nations Secretary-General supported by 114 states and 25 international organizations, which aims to develop innovative models for alleviating identity-based tensions around the world.

Then, in early September, the Director-General will participate in the United Nations Conference on the Small Island Developing States (SIDS), in Apia, Samoa. In this meeting, which will discuss “the sustainable development of small island developing States through genuine and durable partnerships”, he expect to further develop FAO’s view and mandate on the Blue Growth initiative, in the context of our blue economy approach, as well as to discuss climate change issues.

Moreover, during that time, the Director-General will pay official visits to Singapore, India and Malaysia before heading back to Rome in the second week of September.