The Annual Consultation with the Norwegian delegation was held on 19 May 2017 at the FAO headquarters in Rome. FAO acknowledged the very generous contribution of USD 45 million to the operation of the new research vessel Dr Fridtjof Nansen. Norway and FAO also discussed the First Meeting of the Parties to the 2009 FAO Port State Measures Agreement (PSMA), and the First Meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group which will take place in Oslo from 29 May to 2 June 2017, with the participation of the Director-General of FAO. FAO expressed its appreciation to Norway for convening these...

FAO and the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE) in Costa Rica have reaffirmed their commitment to collaborate by signing an agreement to renew their partnership. CATIE is a key partner for FAO in Latin America and contributes to the increasing of FAO presence on the ground through delivery of joint capacity building and training and provision of high level local expertize for research studies.  FAO and CATIE’s partnership contributes to the better informed strategies, tools and methodologies to improve sustainable forest management in the context of climate change mitigation and helps to strengthen capacities at the national and...

16 May 2017, Vientiane (Lao PDR) – Contract farming can be an attractive option to farmers who want to assure market access and support production. The agroindustry and buyers can guarantee supply through contracts under specific conditions that suit them. CF often also leads to economies of scale, which can be of potential benefit for national economies. For this reason, 25 provincial and district agricultural officers and farmers, from four target provinces of Lao PDR, received training this week on CF practices from Dr Carlos A. da Silva,...

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva, on the occasion of his visit to Japan, attended the launch of the Parliamentarian Friendship League. The League is chaired by Yoshimizu Hayashi, former Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries from 2012 to 2015; he gathered together with over 40 parliamentarians to exchange views with the FAO Director-General. “FAO looks forward to working with the League to promote nutritious food including in neighbouring countries and regions" FAO Director General said, remarking the role of parliamentarians in the fight against malnutrition. Indeed, given their representative, legislative, budgetary and oversight responsibilities, FAO recognizes that Parliamentarians are best placed...

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Bank are strengthening their cooperation to end hunger and poverty at global and national levels. The two organizations will work closely together to support the member countries in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG's), improve rural livelihoods, enhance efficiency of food production and distribution, and ensure sustainable management of natural resources worldwide.