David Wilcock
The FIVIMS Secretariat has much to report to you since it has been a while since our last issue of FIVIMS News.
Most of you should have received this issue as a Word file attached to a message distributed by the new e-mail list-serve established a few days ago by the Secretariat. The list-serve will give us an easy means to distribute information relevant to FIVIMS to members of our FIVIMS network. Anyone who would like to distribute such material should send it to the Secretariat at [email protected] or reply to [email protected]. The messages send to the list are routed to the FIVIMS secretariat and not to the list. If appropriate the Secretariat will subsequently forward the messages to the list. If you would like to share something via the FIVIMS mailing list, send us your ideas and we can discuss via e-mail.
Please send us your ideas and comments we can discuss via e-mail.
Much has been happening in the world of FIVIMS in the past six months: different countries have been taking steps to establish or strengthen their national FIVIMS, important FIVIMS co-ordination meetings have been held in Asia and Latin America, and a very successful 4th International meeting of the IAWG was recently held in Indonesia. These events and more are reported in the articles that follow.
Two FIVIMS issues for your consideration:
1. Which countries already have functioning national FIVIMS? This has been the subject of recent debate in FIVIMS meetings. The subject was raised in a paper entitled “What is a FIVIMS?” prepared for the recent Indonesia meeting of the IAWG. A number of countries have food and nutritional information or surveillance systems that they feel go a long way towards fulfilling the key functions that have been laid out for a national FIVIMS. Readers with views on particular national systems, after reading the Guidelines for National FIVIMS and the more recent “What is a FIVIMS?” paper, are invited to share those views with the Secretariat or the broader membership through the list-serve. If there is sufficient interest, we can organise a moderated e-mail conference on this topic. Remember, national FIVIMS do not have to be called FIVIMS to qualify!
2. Success stories in the use of improved information in action programs to reduce food security and vulnerability. The Secretariat is requesting newsletter readers to consider documenting this type of success story and sending the information to the Secretariat for further distribution. We would be happy to work with readers to further develop these stories which can then be used in a variety of ways ranging from reporting to governing bodies to illustrations in IAWG FIVIMS technical guidelines. Send us your ideas, whether local or national!
