Relevant to sector: UN ECOSOC
Summary
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
FAO's field of action touches on the most basic of human rights and needs - that of freedom from hunger - as well as on crucial sectors of the world economy - agriculture, forestry and fisheries.
url: http://www.fao.org/
Fact sheets on FAO Programmes at: http://www.fao.org/about/en/
Related Bodies and Agencies
Aim & Objectives
FAO's mandate is to raise levels of nutrition, improve agricultural productivity, better the lives of rural populations and contribute to the growth of the world economy.
Relevant treaties: http://www.fao.org/Legal/treaties/treaty-e.htm
Core Values
The Human Right to Adequate Food.
Certain fundamental values underlie the Constitution, which Members accept on joining the Organization and which are enunciated in the Oath of Office by which the staff of the Secretariat are bound:
- Commitment. With broad global membership, the Organization is dedicated to promoting the common welfare through cooperation among nations; integrity and devotion to this ideal are required of those who serve in the Secretariat.
- Independence. FAO provides a forum in which Members seek to broaden consensus, and an impartial Secretariat is key to assisting them in achieving this.
- Partnerships. FAO belongs to a global family of institutions in the UN system dedicated to the promotion of international economic and social cooperation and brought into relationship with the UN itself under the provision of Article 57 of the Charter, and its staff belong to an International Civil Service that is loyal to common principles.
- Competence. FAO is expected to be a centre of excellence in its field, with a Secretariat dedicated to securing the highest standards of efficiency and technical competence.
- Equality. FAO is committed to the promotion of the full and equal participation of women in development and to the achievement of gender balance in the staff of the Secretariat.
- Diversity. FAO's strength derives from, among other things, respect for diverse approaches and paths to a common destination; its Secretariat therefore recruits personnel on as wide a geographical basis as possible.
- Unity. By coming together in the Organization, nations affirm their belief in the need for collective action and their willingness to take it, and the Secretariat accepts loyally to carry out the decisions of Members.
Activities
Strategic Themes
See The Strategic Framework for FAO 2000-2015
and Strategic Framework 2010-2019.
Relevant Trends and Forces
A number of major trends and forces can be considered likely to have a bearing on FAO's future work. They can be summarized as follows:
- Increased emphasis on the state's principal role as that of providing a policy and regulatory framework conducive to sustainable development
- Continuing globalization and liberalization of trade, including food and agricultural trade
- Growth in the number of countries in the middle-income group, and increased reliance on regional and subregional groupings
- Persistence of poverty and mounting inequality - a widening of the gap between the affluent and the poor
- Continued risk of disaster-related and complex emergencies
- Changing demands on agriculture, fisheries and forestry in increasingly urbanized societies
- Changing dietary patterns and increasing public awareness of food (safety and quality) and environmental issues
- Increasing pressure on natural resources and competition for their use
- Steady progress in research and technological development, and continued inequality in access to its benefits
- Increasing impact of information and communications technology on institutions and societies
- Changes in the nature and the composition of funding for agricultural development
- Changing role and public perceptions of the UN system
