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A. Nineteenth McDougall memorial lecture
B. Presentation of the B.R. Sen Awards for
1994 and 1995
C. Presentation of the A.H. Boerma Award
1994-95
D. Presentation of the Edouard Saouma Award
1994-95
E. FAO fiftieth anniversary declaration on
food and agriculture
F. In
memoriam
A. Nineteenth McDougall memorial lecture
1. The Nineteenth in the series of lectures at regular Conference sessions in memory of Frank Lidgett McDougall, a founding father of the Organization, was delivered by Prof. Gian Tommaso Scarascia Mugnozza, President of the National Academy of Sciences and Rector of the University of Tuscia, Viterbo.
B. Presentation of the B.R. Sen Awards for 1994 and 1995
2. The awards, honouring the name of the late B.R. Sen, Director-General of FAO from 1956 to 1967, are conferred annually. Each year, the award is given to the field officer who has made the most outstanding contribution to the country or countries to which he or she has been assigned.
3. The recipient of the 1994 award was Mr Seiichi Etoh, a national of Japan, and it was given in recognition of his major contribution to fisheries development in Eritrea. Through his own intense personal effort, professionalism and leadership, Mr Etoh had built up the Government's institutional and technical capacity to fulfil its overall programme for the sustainable rehabilitation of the fishery sector, introducing technical innovations in most aspects of fisheries development.
4. The Government of Eritrea, in endorsing the selection of Mr Etoh, recognized his diligence, exemplary sense of responsibility and impressive efficiency.
5. The award for 1995 was conferred on Mr Roberto Samanez-Mercado, a Brazilian national, whose outstanding contribution to the work of the Pro Tempore Secretariat of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, had ensured technical support in the areas of conservation, rational use and sustainable development of renewable natural resources and preservation of the Amazonian environment.
6. The Governments of Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, in supporting the choice of Mr Samanez-Mercado for this award, recognized his outstanding performance, dedication and commitment to the work of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty.
C. Presentation of the A.H. Boerma Award 1994-95
7. The A.H. Boerma Award is presented biennially to a journalist or journalists whose work has helped to focus public attention on important aspects of food problems and has stimulated interest in, and support for, measures leading to their solution.
8. On the ninth occasion, the award for 1994-95 was given jointly to Ms Fawzia El-Moualled from Egypt for her strong commitment and significant contribution over the past 40 years, both on radio and in print, to development issues, particularly with regard to the rural population; and to Mr Michael Pickstock from the United Kingdom for the dedication shown throughout his career to covering agriculture in developing countries, particularly with regard to increasing food production through sustainable agricultural development, and for his contribution to improving public awareness and understanding.
D. Presentation of the Edouard Saouma Award 1994-95
9. The Edouard Saouma Award is conferred biennially on a national or regional institution which has implemented with particular efficiency a project funded by the Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP).
10. The Award for 1994-95 was received by the representatives of three national institutions in Chile, India and Kenya for their outstanding contribution to the implementation of TCP-funded projects.
11. The "Instituto de Investigaciones Agropecuarias" (INIA) in Chile effectively introduced biological control technology against an immediate threat of Russian wheat aphid (TCP/CHI/0153) which could have led to annual damage in the vicinity of US$100 million. The institute was represented by Dr Gerding.
12. The "All-India Institute of Hygiene and Public Health" in India was represented by Dr Chakravarty. The project initiated a process that resulted in improved food quality and safety in Calcutta (TCP/IND/0155) and had been replicated in Indian cities.
13. The "Horticulture Crops Division of the Ministry of Agriculture" and the "National Horticultural Research Station" in Kenya were represented by Mr Muema. They had both succeeded in reverting a declining trend in the production of Asian vegetables and created a dynamic new sector satisfying both local demand and export requirements (TCP/KEN/0054).
14. All three projects succeeded exceptionally well due to the dedication, enthusiasm and drive of the national staff, and the commitment by their technical counterparts in FAO both in the field and at Headquarters. In their acceptance speeches, the three representatives from the national institutions selected for the award briefed the Conference on the achievements and catalytic effects generated by the TCP-funded projects and thanked the Organization for the valuable assistance they had received.
E. FAO fiftieth anniversary declaration on food and agriculture
15. The Conference recalled Resolution 4/93 on the Fiftieth Anniversary of FAO which had requested the Director-General to prepare a Declaration on Food and Agriculture which would reaffirm the dedication of Members to the principles on which the Organization was founded and noted that this Fiftieth Anniversary Declaration had been approved by the Ministerial Meeting on World Food Security at the Fiftieth Anniversary Commemorative Observance on 16 October 1995, World Food Day, in Quebec City, Canada. This Declaration is reproduced in Appendix D.
16. The Conference was informed of the activities of the Government of Canada, the Province of Quebec and the City of Quebec to mark the Fiftieth Anniversary of FAO and adopted the following Resolution:
FAO Fiftieth Anniversary Declaration on Food and Agriculture
THE CONFERENCE
Recognizing that FAO has commemorated its Fiftieth Anniversary on 16 October 1995, World Food Day,
Recalling Conference Resolution 4/93 and the deliberations on this subject by the Hundred and Eighth Session of the Council,
Noting the work done by the FAO Secretariat in the preparations for, and the contributions by the Members of the Organization in the debate, and the approval by the Ministerial Meeting on World Food Security in Quebec City of the Fiftieth Anniversary Declaration on Food and Agriculture,
Appreciating the initiative of the Government of Canada, the Province of Quebec and the City of Quebec in hosting and organizing commemorative events in October 1995 in Quebec City, Canada:
1. Expresses its gratitude to the Government of Canada, for the successful organization of commemorative events celebrating the Fiftieth Anniversary of the founding of FAO, particularly the Fiftieth Anniversary Commemoration at the Château Frontenac, the site of the founding of FAO on 16 October 1945;
2. Acknowledges with appreciation the contribution of FAO member countries, World Food Day Committees and focal points, and non-governmental organizations in organizing Fiftieth Anniversary/World Food Day activities with the theme, "Food for All";
3. Approves hereby the Fiftieth Anniversary Declaration on Food and Agriculture, also known as the "Quebec Declaration", reproduced in Appendix D to this report; and
4. Requests the Director-General to ensure wide public dissemination of the Fiftieth Anniversary Declaration, within the context of World Food Day 1996, in keeping with the importance of this Declaration in providing a framework for the future work of the Organization.
(Adopted 25 October 1995)
17. The Conference observed one minute of silence in memory of those staff members who had died in the service of the Organization since the Conference had last met. The names of the deceased staff members were read aloud and are contained in the Verbatim Records of the Conference.
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