News archive 2011

The continuing boom in ecotourism has the potential to save endangered forests or destroy them, depending on how effectively tourism expansion is managed, an international partnership for forest conservation and improvement cautioned today as the world celebrates the World Tourism Day and the International Year of Forests.

Wangari Maathai dedicated her life to saving the planet from environmental degradation and improving the well being of people, not only in Kenya, but around the world.

“Adequate and predictable” financial resources are needed to resolve the crisis in the Horn of Africa, according to FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf. It is necessary to sustain the political momentum to create a famine-free Horn of Africa.

FAO is seeking donor support to address the most time-critical needs of millions of rural families in Pakistan, where heavy monsoon rains have destroyed or damaged 73 percent of crops and 67 percent of food stocks in affected districts of Sindh province and have killed nearly 78 000 head of livestock. Millions of people are destitute and face an uncertain and food-insecure future.

Gambia's Community Forestry Policy, put in place with support from FAO, has won silver in the 2011 Future Policy Awards as one of the world's most inspiring and innovative forest policies. The country has developed and implemented the first policy and legislation framework in Africa that provides local populations with secure and permanent forest ownership rights.

FAO and African leaders are working together to move quickly to adopt a "climate-smart" approach to agriculture to fight the impacts of climate change and increasing scarcity of natural resources. The approach aims to sustainably increase agricultural productivity and build resilience to environmental pressures, helping farmers adapt to climate change, while at the same time reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

FAO's new www.EndingHunger.org website has received special mention for excellence of content and humanitarian value at the ninth edition of Premio Web Italia.

Countries need to pay more attention to fire management on lands bordering forests in order to prevent the 95 percent of wildfires that originate from human activities in forests and adjacent areas, an international partnership for forests warned today.

World food prices remained virtually unchanged between July and August 2011 according to the FAO Food Price Index. The Index averaged 231 points in August compared to 232 points in July. It was 26 percent higher than in August 2010 but seven points below its all-time high of 238 points in February 2011.

At the launch of a new Global Soil Partnership for Food security and Climate Change Adaptation FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf warns that pressure on the world's soil resources and land degradation are threatening global food security. A renewed international effort is needed to assure sufficient fertile and healthy soils for today and future generations.