News and Press Releases
Publication: Establishment of Bay Homo Community Conservation Area South Pentecost, Vanuatu
2014 Strategy for the Development of Eco-cultural Tourism in South Pentecost
30.01.2015 Vanuatu
FAO is assisting the Government of Vanuatu and the land owners and communities of South Pentecost with the establishment of a Community Conservation Area. South Pentecost is famous for its cultural land dive activities, which is said to be the forerunner to bungy jumping. The land dive is a unique selling point to attract tourists. However, the commercialization of land diving has led to debates around the cultural activity losing...
Visiting students learn about food systems in Samoa
27.01.2015 Samoa
College students from the United States visited the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Sub-regional office to learn about food systems and the role of FAO in Samoa. The students who are majoring in economics are from Linfield College, Oregon in the USA.
FAO Sub-Regional Coordinator for the Pacific, Mr Gavin Wall commented on long-term commitment to mainstreaming food security and nutrition. “Achieving food security for all is...
Viet Nam Launches National Zero Hunger Challenge
National plan of action will guide actions, policies aimed at eradicating hunger
14.01.2015 Ha Noi, Viet Nam
The National Zero Hunger Challenge (ZHC), a major initiative to eradicate hunger in Viet Nam, was launched today by the Government of Viet Nam in collaboration with the United Nations, including FAO. The launch, led by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dũng along with the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Cao Duc Phat, and other leaders of line ministries symbolized the Government of Viet Nam's commitment to achieving Zero...
Nature Conservation project in Fiji bears results
23.12.2014 Fiji
Forests and trees are essential for sustainable food production systems, both on farms and in the wider landscape. However, forested ecosystems continue to suffer due to overexploitation mainly for timber, firewood, slash and burn agriculture, fires and other unsustainable land-uses. Expanding and consolidating protected areas is crucial to conserve threatened plant and animal life and to reduce land degradation.
The Forestry and Protected Area Management (FPAM) project is funded by the...
Regulators from the region meet to discuss new food standards
23.12.2014 Kokopo, Papua New Guinea
Regulators from the region meet to discuss new food standards
Delegates from around the region recently gathered at the FAO/WHO Codex Coordinating Committee for North America and the South West Pacific (CCNASWP) in Kokopo, Papua New Guinea from 23 -26 September 2014.
Codex Alimentarius (Latin for food code) is a collection of food standards, guidelines and codes of practice aiming at protecting the health of consumers and ensuring fair practices in food...
The UN has declared 2015 the International Year of Soils. The year launched on World Soil Day with events in Rome, New York and Santiago de Chile, in an effort to raise awareness and promote more sustainable use of this critical resource.
Director-General José Graziano da Silva describes soil as a "silent ally" and said not enough attention is being paid to this important resource.
Healthy soils are not only the foundation...
Ten years after the Asian tsunami, the region is better prepared to cope with natural disasters
22.12.2014 Bangkok, Thailand
But more needs to be done to further enhance resilience
Ten years after the world’s worst natural disaster in living memory roared across the shorelines of South and Southeast Asia, countries in the region are better prepared to deal with tragedies like the Indian Ocean Tsunami, but there is still room for improvement, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said today.
In December 2004, the tsunami claimed the lives of more...
Nepal launches National Zero Hunger Challenge to eradicate hunger by 2025
19.12.2014 Kathmandu, Nepal
The Government of Nepal, with the collaboration and support of the United Nations, today launched a national Zero Hunger Challenge, a major initiative to eradicate hunger in the Himalayan country by 2025.
The National Zero Hunger Challenge (NZHC) was launched today, on behalf of the Nepalese Prime Minister Sushil Koirala, in the nation’s capital, by Minister for Urban Development Dr. Narayan Khadka. Also participating in the launch was Hari Prasad Parajuli, the...
Rice exports surged in 2014 setting a new record – FAO
18.12.2014 Bangkok, Thailand
Bumper crops and a surge in demand for rice, particularly in the Far East, have resulted in 2014 recording the highest rice export figures ever, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported today.
While final figures won’t be confirmed until early next year, FAO’s last quarterly report for 2014, the Rice Market Monitor, indicates much of the forecast growth in 2014 global trade in rice is likely to be due...
Asia’s graduating scientists urged to solve problems of future food insecurity
17.12.2014 Bangkok, Thailand
Nearly 300 of Asia’s brightest, newly graduated university students and doctoral candidates could one day find the answers to feeding an ever growing world, a senior official with the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said today.
Hiroyuki Konuma, FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Asia and the Pacific made the remarks during his graduation address as key graduation speaker at the 122nd Graduation Ceremony of the Asian Institute of Technology...