FAO Council meets in Rome 23 to 28 November

The 115th Session of the FAO Council is meeting from 23 to 28 November at headquarters in Rome. The Council, made up of representatives from 49 of the Organization's member countries, is the executive organ of the Conference, FAO's supreme governing body.

Items on the agenda include a review of the world food and agriculture situation as well as financial, constitutional and legal matters. "The State of Food and Agriculture 1998" - FAO's annual flagship report analysing global and regional developments in food and agriculture - is scheduled to be released and discussed during the Council session.

Other agenda items include reports on the follow-up to the World Food Summit and negotiation on the international undertaking on plant genetic resources. The Council will also set a date for nominations for the office of Director-General of FAO. The term of office of the Organization's current leader, Dr Jacques Diouf, expires 31 December 1999.

26 November 1998

FAO's Special Relief Operations Service plans aid to flood-stricken in the Sudan

Submerged sorghum and date palm in the Sudan
FAO /20925/J. Breen
Extensive flooding throughout the Sudan in September is reported to have affected over one million people in the country. Even before the floods hit, much of southern Sudan was struggling to recover from food emergencies caused by continuing civil strife and a poor 1997 harvest.

The recent flooding has left some 100 000 persons homeless and has submerged or destroyed vast areas of cultivated land. FAO has estimated the immediate needs for agricultural recovery at US$2 800 000. The Organization's Special Relief Operations Service (TCOR) plans to help affected populations through technical assistance projects, including: repair to small irrigation pumps, emergency desilting of irrigation canals, provision of wheat, bean, fodder and vegetable seeds, and emergency preparation of nurseries to replace date palm and citrus trees lost in the floods.

26 November 1998

Members of the world's parliaments meet in Rome

Over 130 parliamentarians from 62 countries will meet in Rome from 29 November to 2 December to provide further support to the commitments of the World Food Summit in combating hunger and malnutrition.

One of the major objectives to which countries pledged their commitment at the close of the Summit in 1996 was to reduce the number of undernourished people in the world from 800 million in 1996 to 400 million or less by the year 2015.

The visiting parliamentarians will hold a specialized Inter-Parliamentary Conference on "Attaining the World Food Summit's objectives through a sustainable development strategy". The Conference is organized by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) with the collaboration of FAO and the Italian Parliament, and the contribution of Italy's Foreign Ministry.

17 November 1998 

Intergovernmental meetings on meat and hides and skins in South Africa

 

Skins are hung out to dry after flaying and washing
FAO/17516/R. Faidutti
The Intergovernmental Group on Meat held its 17th session in Cape Town, South Africa from 12 to 14 November. The group brought together experts from around the world to review the current world meat situation, look at the short-term outlook and consider medium-term projections for meat to 2005. Other major items on the agenda included developments in biotechnology and their potential impact on the livestock and meat sectors. Click here for meeting papers.

A Sub-Group on Hides and Skins met immediately before the Meat group, also in Cape Town. Delegates reviewed the current market situation and assessed short-term prospects for supply, demand and trade of hides and skins and their derived products. A new edition of the World Statistical Compendium for Raw Hides and Skins, Leather and Leather Footwear was presented at the meeting. Click here for meeting papers.

17 November 1998 


New Desert Locust Bulletin issued

The latest FAO Desert Locust Bulletin reports that locusts in northern Sudan and possibly northern Mali are concentrating and forming small bands and swarms. Little or no breeding has been detected in other areas, including Mauritania, Niger, northern Somalia, Pakistan and India. A few adults have been reported in the winter breeding areas along the Red Sea coasts of Saudi Arabia and Eritrea and numbers are expected to increase on the Red Sea plains over the period up to mid-December.

17 November 1998 

President of Iceland visits FAO

Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, the President of Iceland, visited FAO headquarters in Rome on 4 November. During his visit the President spoke about the importance of sustainable management of fish stocks, saying it is a "fundamental part of a global food strategy for the new century". He called for the conclusion of multilateral and regional agreements on preserving fish stocks outside the national boundaries of the 200-mile economic zones. The President stressed that "Iceland is probably the only developed country which has succeeded in building a highly profitable market-oriented fishing industry without ... destroying the fish stocks."

9 November 1998

Countries agree drafts of sustainable fishery documents

FAO Photo 19821
The drafts of three non-binding global documents aiming at more sustainable management of vulnerable fisheries resources were approved by representatives from 81 countries and the European Community at a meeting at FAO headquarters in Rome at the end of October. The draft documents "International Guidelines/Plan of Action for the Management of Fishing Capacity", the "International Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks" and the "International Plan of Action for Reducing Incidental Catch of Seabirds in Longline Fisheries" will be submitted to the FAO Committee on Fisheries in February 1999 for final adoption.

9 November 1998

Seed security in the wake of disaster the focus of international workshop

An international workshop on improving seed security in disaster-prone countries was held at FAO headquarters in Rome from 3 to 5 November. Seed emergency relief programmes are a common response to disasters such as war, drought or flood, that leave farmers without seed supplies. But inappropriate seed introduction has several potential negative effects - including yield reduction and vulnerability to pests and diseases. Locally adapted varieties may also be lost. The workshop looked at ways to help vulnerable countries prepare farmer seed systems to minimize the effect of disasters. The meeting is part of a project supported by the Government of Norway.

9 November 1998

Email conference on globalization of fish trade

FAO's Fish Utilization and Marketing Service is holding a six-week email conference on globalization in the fish trade (FTFS-L). Discussion papers on trade barriers, distribution of benefits from trade, and trade and food security are being issued to kick off discussion.

9 November 1998

Survey shows that women need better tools

Women weeding in Zambia
FAO Photo 19217

A new study by FAO and IFAD shows that many rural women are forced to use agricultural tools that are poorly designed and badly made. Surveys for the study carried out in Burkina Faso, Senegal, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe also showed that the women lack the income, credit and training needed to shift to more efficient and productive technologies. Among the groups consulted, it was generally agreed that women needed different tools to men and that manufacturers should differentiate between the sexes. But manufacturers and importers of tools seem to ignore the fact that, nowadays, the main users of their products are women.

9 November 1998

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