Compliance reviews

The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) is mandated to independently conduct compliance reviews of grievances related to FAO's environmental and social safeguards as part of the Organization’s Independent Accountability Mechanism (IAM). These reviews are a core part of FAO’s commitment to ensuring that all projects adhere to the Framework for Environmental and Social Management (FESM; entered into force in 2022) and the Environmental and Social Management Guidelines (ESMG; applicable to projects approved between 2015 and 2022). 
Compliance reviews provide an independent, transparent, and effective mechanism to review concerns of non-compliance with these standards. Through this process, OIG helps ensure that grievances unresolved at the project or decentralized office levels Grievance Redress Mechanisms (GRMs) are thoroughly examined, and that stakeholders are kept informed throughout the review. There are two conditions before OIG will begin the compliance review process.

1. The request must be brought by an eligible party; and
2. The grievance must be admissible.

Eligibility

Any individual or group directly affected by a project implemented by FAO is eligible to make a request a compliance review of their grievance from OIG. Individuals or groups requesting a compliance review should indicate the nature of their connection to the FAO implemented project to facilitate OIG’s determination of their eligibility to bring the grievance. The request for a compliance review may also be made a representative on behalf of an individual or group bringing forward the grievance.

Admissibility

A grievance must meet the following criteria to be admissible for a compliance review by OIG :

• The grievance must relate to a FAO project and potential non-compliance with FAO’s environmental and social obligations as set out in the FESM or the ESMG, as applicable.
• The requestor must demonstrate that good faith efforts were made to resolve the grievance at the project management or decentralized office level. If the grievance remains unresolved at that level, or if no acknowledgment of receipt is received within 7 days, it may then be submitted to OIG for review.
• The grievance must relate to projects supported by FAO or for which FAO's support has ended but its role can reasonably be considered a cause of the concerns raised.
• The grievance must not raise the same issue(s) with respect to the same project for which OIG has already conducted a review, unless significant new information is available or circumstances have changed.
• Allegations of fraud, corruption, incidents of SEA or other types of misconduct by FAO personnel, vendors, service providers, or operational partners are handled under a separate procedure by OIG and are not covered by the compliance review process.

How to file a request

Requests may be submitted to OIG through the strictly confidential channels listed below:

• By telephone via the FAO Hotline (worldwide numbers with interpretation available 24/7).
• Through the web form of the FAO Hotline.
• By email: [email protected].
• By mail or in person: 
  Office of the Inspector General 
  Building A, 4th floor
  Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
  Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, Rome 00153, Italy
  People who file grievances may request OIG to protect their names and identities.

Participation

External parties may apply to participate, at OIG’s discretion, in the compliance review process within 20 days of the publication of the grievance. Only applicants that are directly affected by the issues raised in the Request or those that demonstrate an ability to assist in determining if FAO is in compliance with its environmental and social safeguards (whether on a factual, scientific or legal basis) may be admitted to participate.

Links

Ongoing Compliance Reviews List