Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
03ROME5655
2003-12-19 10:55:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Rome
Cable title:  

REPORT OF THE 32ND FAO CONFERENCE, INCLUDING THE

Tags:  EAGR AORC ETRD EFIS SENV EAID FAO WFP 
pdf how-to read a cable
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS ROME 005655 

SIPDIS


FROM THE U.S. MISSION TO THE UN AGENCIES IN ROME

USDA FAS FOR U/S PENN, JBUTLER, MCHAMBLISS, LREICH
STATE FOR IO A/S HOLMES, IO/EDA, OES/O, OES/E, E, EB;
AID FOR EGAT, DCHA/OFDA, DCHA/FFP
PASS USTR AND PEACE CORPS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAGR AORC ETRD EFIS SENV EAID FAO WFP
SUBJECT: REPORT OF THE 32ND FAO CONFERENCE, INCLUDING THE
CONTIGUOUS 125TH AND 126TH FAO COUNCIL SESSIONS

REF: (A) ROME 4556, (B) ROME 4833, (C) ROME 4879,

(D) ROME 5176, (E) ROME 5195, (F) ROME 5507,
(G) STATE 324909, (H) STATE 325961, (I) 01 ROME 5954

-------
Summary
-------

UNCLAS ROME 005655

SIPDIS


FROM THE U.S. MISSION TO THE UN AGENCIES IN ROME

USDA FAS FOR U/S PENN, JBUTLER, MCHAMBLISS, LREICH
STATE FOR IO A/S HOLMES, IO/EDA, OES/O, OES/E, E, EB;
AID FOR EGAT, DCHA/OFDA, DCHA/FFP
PASS USTR AND PEACE CORPS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAGR AORC ETRD EFIS SENV EAID FAO WFP
SUBJECT: REPORT OF THE 32ND FAO CONFERENCE, INCLUDING THE
CONTIGUOUS 125TH AND 126TH FAO COUNCIL SESSIONS

REF: (A) ROME 4556, (B) ROME 4833, (C) ROME 4879,

(D) ROME 5176, (E) ROME 5195, (F) ROME 5507,
(G) STATE 324909, (H) STATE 325961, (I) 01 ROME 5954

--------------
Summary
--------------


1. At the November 26 - December 11 meetings of the FAO
Conference and FAO Council, member governments debated
international anti-hunger, food policy and agricultural
trade issues and agreed on a budget and important
institutional reforms.


2. In his statement on the State of Food and
Agriculture, USDA Under Secretary J. B. Penn, who led the
US delegation, highlighted the contributions to food
security of new technologies to increase agricultural
productivity, appropriate national policies and
infrastructure, and trade liberalization. In addition,
U/S Penn participated in a ministerial roundtable on
agricultural trade policy developments after Cancun. He
also presided at a USG-sponsored side-event on Using
Science and Technology to Improve Water Management in
Africa, and a meeting with Ambassador Hall and Latin
American ambassadors on school feeding programs.


3. Among its substantive accomplishments, the Conference
endorsed an improved reporting mechanism to track
countries' efforts to meet World Food Summit (WFS) goals.
It approved a resolution calling for intensified efforts
against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing
and approved a cooperation agreement between FAO and the
International Organization of Epizootics.


4. The Conference reached consensus on several critical
institutional questions. Member governments decided to
limit the term of FAO directors general to six years,
renewable once for an additional four years. They
approved a program of work and budget totaling
$749 million for the 2004-5 biennium--representing a
substantial nominal increase in dollar terms over the

$650 million budget of the previous biennium, but falling
$51 million short of the amount identified by FAO as
needed to cover lost purchasing power due to inflation
and exchange rate fluctuations. To help protect the
organization against the latter, members adopted a "split
assessment" mechanism that henceforth assesses
contributions partly in dollars and partly in euros.


5. Members adopted a new methodology for equitable
geographic distribution of professional staff--modeled
after the UN system--that will maintain pressure on FAO
to hire more Americans. They also agreed to enlargement
of the Finance Committee to eleven members, thereby
assuring a seat for the number-two donor, Japan. The US
was re-elected to the Executive Board of the World Food
Program (WFP) and to the FAO Finance Committee. The
principled but flexible USG stance at the Conference
generated goodwill, and will make it easier to exercise
leadership within the FAO. We have already made headway
in gaining support for an independent external evaluation
of the organization to identify its areas of strength and
comparative advantage. End summary.

--------------
Overview
--------------


6. The 32nd ministerial-level meeting of member
governments of the UN Food and Agriculture Agency (FAO)
was held in Rome from 29 November to 9 December 2003.
This marathon gathering, known as the FAO Conference,
sets the organization's budget and policy direction for
the coming biennium (2004-5). The Conference stretched
over nine working days. Up to three sessions ran
concurrently, in addition to various committees, working
groups, roundtables and side events. A 3-day preparatory
meeting of the organization's 49-member executive body,
the FAO Council, preceded the Conference. An additional
Council meeting was held afterwards on December 11,
principally to elect new members and officers of the
Finance and Program Committees. The US was represented
by officials from USDA, State and the US Mission; the
full delegation list is given in ref I. This cable
covers highlights of the FAO meetings that were of


particular relevance and interest to the US. The full
set of meeting documents is available from the Council
and Conference links on FAO's home page, www.fao.org.

--------------
FOOD AND AGRICULTURAL POLICY ISSUES
--------------

--------------
U/S Penn's Statement
--------------


7. In his Conference plenary remarks, U/S Penn noted
mixed progress towards achieving the WFS goal of halving
the number of hungry people by the year 2015. He
stressed that one of the most effective ways to reduce
global hunger is raising agricultural productivity
through science and technology. Countries must be
willing to accept sound scientific principles, and
technologies must be assessed objectively for benefits
and risks based on science -- not on fear, rumor or
politics. Penn noted that countries must have the
appropriate policies and infrastructure to succeed.
Sustained growth is correlated with open markets and open
economies. He stated that international trade can and
must play a central role in addressing the world's food
security needs, reiterating the USG commitment to
achieving an international agreement toward liberalizing
agricultural trade.


8. U/S Penn underscored the USG commitment to combat
hunger and poverty. He made special mention of US
development aid and humanitarian relief in Afghanistan
and Iraq, thanking FAO for its help in reconstructing of
agricultural and water infrastructure and enhancing food
security in those countries. Penn stated that FAO's
leadership could play a pivotal role in feeding the
world, but to achieve real progress the organization must
have a clear vision that enables it to prioritize its
efforts and take advantage of synergies with other
organizations. Such partnerships will make scarce
resources go further, particularly in helping countries
make the transition from emergency to rehabilitation.
Penn called on FAO to show leadership in operating an
efficient and effective organization, ensuring equitable
geographic representation in recruitment of professional
staff and hiring well-qualified field personnel.

--------------
Ambassador Hall's Statement
--------------


9. Earlier, during the 125th Council discussion on
World Food Summit follow-up, Ambassador Hall highlighted
the need to improve monitoring of progress in national
implementation of the WFS Plan of Action. Drawing on his
travels to food-insecure areas around the globe, he
commented on FAO's work in the field. He praised the
efforts of the FAO representative in DR Congo,
contrasting this with poor performance by the FAO
representation in Ethiopia. The Ambassador lamented the
lack of a rigorous performance evaluation mechanism for
FAO field representatives whereby accomplishments are
duly recognized and underperformance is swiftly
addressed. He stressed the need for FAO to cooperate
closely with other agencies such as WFP and the
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
He provided examples of how food aid can complement and
serve as a catalyst for sustainable agricultural
development, easing the transition from external famine
relief to the rehabilitation of domestic agriculture.


10. Ambassador Hall reiterated the importance the US and
G-8 attach to food security, along with famine prevention
and response. He made note of recent US congressional
approval of a flexible approach to famine and an
additional $220 million to this end. The Ambassador also
called attention to a recent study by the Netherlands
government of its extrabudgetary cooperation program with
FAO (ref E). He underscored the USG interest in joining
with other member states in a discussion of the lessons
learned from and the broader implications of the Dutch
report. He concluded that the challenge before member
states is to take a clearer look at the mandate, capacity
and strengths of FAO.


--------------
Agricultural Trade Negotiations After Cancun
--------------


11. The FAO Conference was the first major international
gathering of agriculture ministers since the WTO meeting
in Cancun. Agricultural trade issues therefore featured
prominently in the ministerial segment of the Rome
meeting--in plenary statements by delegation heads, in a
ministerial roundtable, and in plurilateral and bilateral
side-meetings. In his remarks to the Conference plenary,
U/S Penn expressed USG disappointment with the outcome of
the WTO ministerial in Cancun. He stressed the need to
continue to work together in good faith to make progress,
calling for commitment, hard work and flexibility on the
part of WTO members.


12. Fifty-nine heads of delegation participated in the
December 2 Roundtable on "Developments in the WTO
Negotiation on Agriculture and Implications for Food
Security -- including the Work of FAO." The key
conclusions of the discussion were compiled by the
Italian and Chilean agriculture ministers (who served as
co-chairs) and were reported back to the Conference.
There was general disappointment with the failure to
achieve concrete results in Cancun. Several delegations
said Chairman Derbez's text could be the basis for
resumed negotiations. Delegations underscored the
commitment made at WFS to strive to ensure that food,
agricultural trade and general trade policies are
conducive to fostering food security through a fair,
market-oriented trade system. Participants reaffirmed
their commitment to the Doha Development Agenda mandate
in agriculture regarding market access, export subsidies,
and trade-distorting domestic support.


13. Many roundtable participants stressed the crucial
role of open and fair trade for food security, but felt
that trade alone is not sufficient to guarantee it.
Delegations expressed the need to maintain the
multilateral nature of trade agreements, and some
mentioned the risks of resorting to bilateralism. All
participants stressed the need for flexibility in the
ongoing negotiations. Some indicated the need to balance
market access with the need to maintain a viable
agricultural sector. Some called on developed countries
to grant tariff and quota-free access to the products of
least-developed countries. Several asked that the
negotiations pay attention to market distortions for
products of special interest, such as cotton. Some
stressed the importance of non-trade concerns and the
multifunctional role of agriculture. All delegations
expressed appreciation for FAO's trade-related activities-
-information, policy advice, impact analysis of various
policies--and called for strengthened support for
capacity building to enable developing countries to
participate more effectively in the multilateral trading
system.


14. WTO and trade issues were also the principal topic
of discussion at two plurilateral events hosted by New
Zealand and Canada, respectively, and a series of
bilateral meetings U/S Penn held with counterparts from
Australia, the European Commission, Germany, Italy (see
ref F),Japan, Netherlands, South Korea, and Thailand.

-------------- --
US Event on Agricultural Science and Technology
-------------- --


15. The USG sponsored a side event on December 2 on
"Using Science and Technology to Improve Water Management
in Africa." This was a follow-up to USDA Secretary
Veneman's June 2003 Ministerial Conference and Expo on
Agricultural Science and Technology. In addition, it
dovetailed with the FAO focus on water as a critical
resource for agricultural development. The presentation
at the FAO Conference reviewed the challenges faced in
Africa to increase access to water for agricultural
needs. It considered lessons learned from specific
projects and highlighted successful water management
practices and technologies applicable to the region. The
event was opened by U/S Penn and introduced by FAO
Assistant Director General for Agriculture Louise Fresco.
Namibia's Minister for Agriculture, Water and Rural
Development, Helmut Angula, described his country's


experiences. For a private-sector perspective, the
General Manager of Valley Irrigation of Southern Africa
(Pty) Ltd. provided a case study from Botswana. FAO's
Director of Land and Water Development reviewed his
agency's involvement. The event was attended by several
African cabinet ministers and attracted a sizeable
audience of Conference delegates and FAO professionals.

--------------
Other Highlights, Roundtables and Side Events
--------------


16. Off-Key Keynote Speech: The first morning of the
Conference featured a keynote speech by former Malaysian
Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad. The Asian leader
charged that the WTO negotiations are about enriching the
already rich: "the rich want the poor to open up their
countries so they can be fully exploited." He criticized
multinational corporations and foreign direct investment
(FDI),calling for world tax on corporate profits, the
proceeds of which would fund agricultural infrastructure
development in poor countries. Then, apparently
unmindful of any inconsistency, Mahathir explained how
FDI had helped Malaysia make impressive strides to raise
employment and living standards. He concluded, tongue-in-
cheek, by saying that his call for a world tax in a
speech before a group in China was met with total
silence.


17. Director General's View: In remarks at the opening
of the Conference, DG Jacques Diouf recalled the latest
figures indicating that there are 842 million
undernourished people in the world. In the past decade,
the number dropped by only 19 million. At this rate the
WFS goal of halving the number of hungry people by 2015
cannot be attained. Diouf stressed the need to mobilize
the political will of national decision-makers, the
energy of civil society and bilateral and multilateral
resources. "The existence of hunger in a world of plenty
is not just a moral outrage, it is also the result of
short-sighted economic policy." The DG recapped reforms
undertaken by FAO since 1994, including a 30% reduction
in staff. He noted that the organization's budget was
cut in 1996-97 and has not increased in real terms since
then. He warned against further reductions. At the
closing session, Diouf returned to the hunger theme and
the necessity of making faster progress. He thanked
member governments for their efforts to reach consensus
on the program of work and budget. He reiterated FAO's
intention to increase cooperation with governments,
development partners and financial institutions to secure
the necessary investments for sustainable agricultural
and rural development.


18. Other roundtables and Side Events: There were two
additional roundtables that provided an opportunity for
heads of delegation to engage in probing discussions.
One covered the Role of Water and Infrastructure in
Ensuring Sustainable Food Security. Another dealt with
the Dimension of Food Safety in Food Security. There
were another eleven side events presented by the
Secretariat, member governments or NGOs. Among the

SIPDIS
topics discussed were HIV/AIDS, small island developing
states, the International Treaty on Plant Genetic
Resources for Food and Agriculture, linking relief to
rehabilitation and development, South-South cooperation,
and community development to fight hunger.

-------------- --------------
Discussion on School Feeding with Latin Americans
-------------- --------------


19. On December 2, Ambassador Hall hosted at the US
Mission a meeting for U/S Penn with ambassadors and
permanent representatives from Chile, Dominican Republic,
El Salvador, Honduras, Panama, Peru, and the Deputy
Director General of the Inter-American Institute for
Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA). This was arranged in
response to an earlier request from Grulac ambassadors
(ref C). The ambassadors discussed the importance of
school feeding as a development tool and their interest
in being able to maintain and enlarge programs they are
supporting from their own and US resources. U/S Penn
reviewed the state of FY2004 funding for the Global
Initiative and the McGovern-Dole Food for Education
Initiative.


--------------
Media Coverage
--------------


20. US Mission hosted a press conference for U/S Penn,
with essential support from Embassy Rome's Public Affairs
Section. Seven journalists, both Italian and
international, attended and heard from the Under
Secretary about his purpose in attending the FAO

SIPDIS
Conference and other subjects of importance to the USG,
specifically agricultural trade. This resulted in at
least two stories, both favorable, from Associated Press
and Reuters.

--------------
Other Substantive Issues
--------------


21. The Conference endorsed or approved a long list of
reports from various technical subsidiary bodies. Among
the topics that attracted USdel interest were:

-- IUU Fishing: The Conference approved a resolution,
proposed by New Zealand with input from Australia, US and
others, that calls for intensified efforts to combat IUU
fishing.

-- 2004 International Year of Rice: Delegates were
informed of FAO's plans for public events to call
attention to the importance of rice in the food security
of a majority of the world's population.

-- Forest Governance: Brazil unexpectedly used a Council
discussion of the Program of Work and Budget to state for
the record that FAO should not undertake work on issues
related to forest governance. USdel worked in the
Council's drafting committee to ensure that Brazil's
erroneous assertions on the lack of international
agreement on forest governance were attributed only as
the views of one regional group, thereby minimizing the
impact of these statements on FAO's Program on Forest
Policies and Governance.

--------------
INSTITUTIONAL REFORMS
--------------

--------------
Term Limits for Director General
--------------


22. DG term limits, one of the most important
institutional governance issues before the Conference,
were--by design--scarcely mentioned during the official
meetings. Anxious not to re-open an acrimonious debate
that might raise particular sensitivities among African
supporters of the current (Senegalese) Director General,
delegates had tacitly agreed to maintain public silence
on the subject. The draft resolution amending the FAO
Constitution to reinstitute a term limit on DGs was
adopted without comment by a vote of 105 in favor, 0
opposed, and 1 abstention (Botswana). The amended text
reads as follows: "There shall be a Director-General of
the Organization who shall be appointed by the Conference
for a term of six years. He shall be eligible for
reappointment only once for a further term of four
years." The resolution also specifies that the revision
will apply at the election at the 33rd Conference in
2005, and governs the mandate of DGs from 1 January 2006.
The resolution is silent on the applicability of term
limits to the incumbent.

--------------
Budget
--------------


23. The proposed FAO budget for the next biennium
generated hours and indeed days of discussion. Opening
debates revealed a wide divergence among member
governments, ranging from demands for real growth (many G-
77 delegations) to calls for further adherence to a Zero
Nominal Growth scenario (US) or less (Japan).
Complicating the discussion was the deep erosion of FAO's
purchasing power in the past two years due to the strong
decline of the dollar against the euro. The Secretariat


painted a bleak picture of layoffs and significant
program cuts under all but the most generous budget
scenarios. A friends-of-the-chair group met late into
the night to discuss the alternatives. In the end,
consensus was reached on a budget of $749 million for
2004-5. In nominal dollar terms, this is $97.2 million
more than the budget for 2002-3, but according to FAO it
represents a decline in real terms of $51 million.


24. The approved budget provides funding of $14.1
million for the amortization of employees' after-service
medical care. In adopting the budget in plenary, member
states also agreed by consensus that the approved budget
level would include the necessary costs for security
upgrades. In addition, the budget appropriation
resolution includes a provision to invite the Secretariat
to make proposals to the Finance Committee for the
reallocation of arrears to cover one-time costs for staff
redeployment and separation. The referenced arrears are
the unspent balances of the $100 million Helms-Biden
arrears payment made by the US in 2002; the USG will need
to review and thoroughly scrutinize any such proposals.
The Finance and Program Committees were also tasked to
allocate the cut in purchasing power among FAO programs.
This is to take place at the Committees' May sitting.

--------------
Split Currency Assessment
--------------


25. The Council and Conference devoted long hours to a
proposal to assess contributions partly in dollars and
partly in euros. (At current exchange rates,
approximately 54% of FAO's expenditures are in euros and
46% are in US dollars, while under the existing system
100% of contributions are assessed in dollars.) In
September 2003 the Finance Committee had recommended the
adoption of a split assessment methodology. The US
agreed not to block the consensus in the Finance
Committee, but entered the Council and Conference
discussions on split assessments with serious questions
regarding how a new split assessment methodology would be
implemented. We had particular problems with the
Secretariat's proposed methodology, which used multiple

SIPDIS
exchange rates and would have given the organization
opportunities to profit through arbitrage at the expense
of members.


26. The US also insisted that the overall budget level
remain a separate decision of the membership, independent
of any decision regarding split assessments. Other
delegations, particularly the Grulac countries, had
strong initial reservations about split assessments.
During the course of the Conference, the Secretariat
provided detailed briefings on the rationale and
operation of a split assessment methodology. In
bilateral discussions, the Secretariat also agreed to US
requests for a simpler methodology that would be applied
to partial payments and treatment of arrears. Following
these discussions, the Conference agreed to the adoption
of split assessments, effective January 2004.

-------------- --------------
Geographical Distribution and Employment of Americans
-------------- --------------


27. Another issue from the September 2003 Finance
Committee--that of a new methodology to determine
equitable geographic distribution of professional staff--
gained unexpected momentum at the Council and Conference.
The current system is based on members' assessed
contributions and relies on an arbitrary and archaic
grade-weighting scheme that dates from the 1950s. In
September the Finance Committee could not come to
agreement on a new methodology and suggested that the
125th Council might create a working group to study the
matter further. The Council agreed to establish such a
working group. Under strong pressure from the G-77, it
also decided that the group should begin its work
immediately and report to the Conference within a few
days.


28. After three meetings, the working group reported to
the Conference that it had not come to consensus. G-77
members of the working group were firmly behind a
methodology--patterned after that of the UN Secretariat--


that included percentages for membership, population and
assessed contribution. The European Regional Group
thought the whole issue required more study. The US
insisted that talk of a new methodology was premature,
pending presentation of a concrete action plan by the FAO
Secretariat to address the concerns of countries under-

SIPDIS
represented under the current system. The Conference, at
the urging of the G-77, asked the working group to try
again to come to a conclusion.


29. In the end, the US was able to join consensus on a
resolution for a new methodology that uses the current UN
system with its weighting factors of membership,
population and contribution--but not post or grade-

weighting--and that also calls for an action plan for
under-represented countries. (The US would also remain
under-represented [below the desired target range] under
the new methodology, and there will therefore be
continued pressure to hire more Americans.) The EU,
having several over-represented countries and suffering
from coordination problems, was the last to join
consensus and did so finally with ill grace. The US--
which co-chaired the working group discussions but also
had a representative at the table to vigorously defend
our own interests--gained considerable goodwill from the
G-77 and others for its leadership in facilitating the
negotiation and working for--and ultimately achieving--
consensus.

--------------
Independent External Assessment of FAO
--------------


30. USdel made important headway in advancing a proposal
for an independent external assessment to define FAO's
areas of strength and comparative advantage. U/S Penn
and Ambassador Hall raised this point in plenary
statements in the Conference and Council. USdel followed
up in informal conversations with a number of influential
delegates. With the UK Permrep, we convened on the
margins of the Conference a meeting of like-minded senior
officials, both Rome-based and from capitals, to chart
the way forward. Interested partners in this concept
included Australia, Canada, Japan, Kuwait, Netherlands,
New Zealand, Peru, and the UK. Several of them pledged
their intellectual and financial support for an
assessment. We plan to include African and other Asian
delegations in the near future.

--------------
Other Institutional Matters
--------------


31. Finance Committee Enlargement: The Council
discussed an Asia Group proposal to enlarge the Finance
Committee from 9 to 11 members, by adding an additional
seat for Asia and for Europe. This ensured inter alia
that Japan--the number-two donor and generally a US ally
on budgetary questions--was re-elected to the Committee
for 2004-5. Although the US in general opposes committee
enlargements, we did not block consensus when the
proposal was about to be approved by the Council.


32. Elections: Aziz Mekouar, Morocco's Ambassador to
the US, was re-elected as Independent Chair of the FAO
Council. The Netherlands Permrep was elected to chair
the Program Committee (replacing Canada),and the
Peruvian Permrep was elected to chair the Finance
Committee (replacing Chile). The US Deputy Permrep was
elected to a seat on the Finance Committee. Angola,
Bangladesh, Syria, Netherlands and US were elected to the
WFP Executive Board, as was El Salvador, which said it
would rotate its seat with Guatemala and Nicaragua.

--------------
COMMENT
--------------


33. Delegates and senior Secretariat officials were
generally satisfied with the Council and Conference. A
number of difficult issues were resolved in an amicable
way, without the rancor that marked the previous
Conference, where the USG had to abstain in roll-call
votes on the budget and a key treaty (ref I). USdel was
successful in attaining key USG objectives. Important
issues regarding hunger, sustainable agriculture and


international agricultural trade were aired and debated
in a generally positive atmosphere, despite differences
of opinion. The indispensable role that FAO plays or
could play in these areas was underscored. We were able
to get our message--on trade, sustainable agriculture,
science and technology, FAO reform--to a very senior
international audience. We reinforced our objective of
promoting responsible, sustainable fisheries through the
adoption of tough language on IUU fishing.


34. Vital FAO institutional and governance issues--term
limits, budget, split assessments, geographic
distribution--were successfully resolved by consensus.
The re-institution of DG term limits sent a powerful
signal of the desire for a change in leadership in 2005.
The USG call for continued budgetary discipline was in
the end accepted, in part because we were able to show
some flexibility in covering exchange-rate losses and on
the issue of split assessments. In the new methodology
for geographical distribution of professional staff, we
were able to join consensus for reforming an outdated
system while keeping pressure on FAO to hire more
Americans. The ability to get real-time, updated
guidance from IO/S, OES/OMC and OES/ETC on fast-moving
issues at the Conference greatly contributed to USdel's
effectiveness.


35. The principled but flexible approach of the USG
during the Conference and Council generated goodwill and
has paved the way for the US to exercise greater
leadership in strengthening the focus and the
effectiveness of FAO. In that regard, we see the
expressions of interest from other key member states in
our proposal for an independent evaluation of FAO as
highly significant. Such an evaluation would facilitate
the difficult but essential task of setting clear
priorities for the organization for the coming decade.

HALL


NNNN
2003ROME05655 - Classification: UNCLASSIFIED