Posted 31 August 1999
The Thematic Group on Food Security in Viet Nam was established only in May 1999, but is already proving a dynamic forum for the country's main development partners. In this initial stage of its development, the Group - comprised of UN agencies, donors, NGOs - is currently determining possible courses of action in three key areas: advocacy and knowledge sharing to increase awareness about food security in Viet Nam; support to the development of a food insecurity and vulnerability information and mapping system (FIVIMS); and strengthening the technical capacity of the National Food Security Committee. A programme of work is being developed and will be reviewed and finalized at the Group's next meeting in September 1999.
The steady progress in the establishment of the Thematic Group reflects the strong collaboration built up between UN agencies in Viet Nam over the past twenty years. For further information, visit the United Nations Viet Nam Website.
The cultivation of traditional Andean crops offers real hope to food-insecure and impoverished populations in Peru. At a meeting of the Thematic Group in May 1999, the Ministry of Agriculture demonstrated its commitment to developing a national Strategy for the Use of Andean Crops as an essential part of the country's follow-up to the World Food Summit, and expressed interest in implementing action in the departments of Ayacucho, Huancaelica and Apurimac. As an outcome of the meeting, the Thematic Group in Peru has formed a sub-group to develop a project proposal for the Ministry of Agriculture, which will cover the production, consumption, processing and education aspects of traditional Andean crops.
Recent initiatives of the Thematic Group in Nicaragua highlight the effectiveness of the ACC Network to strengthen inter-agency ties and collaboration at country level. The Group, comprising a broad-based membership of UN agencies (FAO, UNDP, UNICEF, UNFPA, WFP and WHO), civil society and donors, has recently recruited a national consultant to prepare a comprehensive overview of food security in the country. Financed by UNDP, the document will be an important step towards strengthening the country's capacity to collect and analyse data on food security and guide future coordination of food security programmes in the country.
For further information on activities in Nicaragua, contact the FAO Representative, Mr. Ghyoot at: FAO-NIC@field.fao.org
The Special Programme for Food Security (SPFS) is an important focus for the work of the Thematic Group in Cambodia, which regularly discusses the results and progress achieved in its implementation.
One of the most effective features of the Programme's success in Cambodia has been the use of an innovative participatory agricultural extension approach, Integrated Farmer Field Schools (IFFS) whose basic concept of 'learning by doing' develops farmers' critical decision-making abilities and allows them some control of their own development. As Mr. Obaidullah Khan, Field Inspector of the SPFS observed, 'The Programme from its very inception has involved the line departments and more importantly, the foot soldiers at the provincial and district levels, including commune and village chiefs'. To date, 652 farmers have participated in the IFFS in five provinces and impact assessments demonstrate the importance of the IFFS approach in the introduction of production methods and techniques, and increased production, income and food security.
The Special Programme on Food Security (SPFS) was launched in Cambodia in 1997 and is now operational at 9 pilot sites in 5 provinces.
The newly created European Food Security Network (RESAL) promises to foster and reinforce food security interventions in the developing world. Set up by the European Commission, RESAL aims to support the Commission help beneficiary countries define national and regional food security programmes, as well as strengthen the integration of food aid and food security operations in development policies. To date, RESAL is comprised of 9 teams monitoring food security interventions in 20 priority countries in Africa (Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritania, Mozambique, Niger), Asia (Bangladesh), Europe (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia), the Near East (Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Yemen) and Latin America and the Caribbean (Bolivia, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua and Peru).
In future, RESAL will also serve as an interactive platform for the exchange of relevant information about food security between the relevant Commission services, EC delegations and food security units on the one hand and the beneficiary countries, donors and NGOs on the other.
The Internet has undoubted potential to promote knowledge and support education, extension and training in African development. Yet, although access to the Internet has spread rapidly throughout the Continent, it is still below the world average. A recent seminar, "The Internet as a Tool for Development" (Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, 5 - 16 July) helped promote the use of the Internet as a tool of economic and social development efforts in West Africa in particular. The event, organized by the UN Department of Public Information (DPI), with the support of the Organization Internationale de la Francophonie, attracted 23 specialists in the field of institutional communications from nine countries in French-speaking Africa - Benin, Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Senegal and Togo. Participants were trained to set up Web sites and present their institutions, and were introduced to information resources on the websites of the UN system and Francophone organizations.
Recent developments in Africa - including the convergence of television, telephone and computer - promise to provide completely new ways to deliver basic broadcast and communication services at a lower cost. For example, while a one-minute international fax call can cost up to $20 in some African countries, a one-page e-mail requires only a local call of a few seconds.
However, as a recent issue of "Africa Recovery" noted, expanding African content on the Internet is as important as widening access to it. The development of content is a two-way process: although access to global resources for those in Africa is important, enriching the Worldwide Web with Africa-related information is crucial for the promotion of indigenous content.
Partnerships for science were fostered recently at the recent UNESCO/ICSU World Conference on Science: Science for the 21st Century - a new commitment" (Budapest, June 26-July 1), which attracted a total of 1,800 science stakeholders from 155 countries. The participants - representing science communities, decision makers, civil society and numerous international organizations inside and outside of the UN system - debated major science and related societal issues and produced two documents, a Declaration and a Framework for Action, which promise to shape the course of science, research and science-society relations in the new century.
Knowledge sharing for sustainable development was a key focus for discussion with an emphasis on the need to bridge the North-South science and technology knowledge gap. Addressing a plenary session, ministers and heads of national delegations, insisted on the need to bolster funding and issued proposals on how best to promote research, co-operation and training for developing countries with a view to enhance the role of science and technology for development. The Declaration also underlined the moral obligation of governments and society at large to use natural and social sciences as tools to address the social, economic and environmental root causes and impacts of conflict.
In the closing ceremony, Mr Federico Mayor, Director-General of UNESCO re-iterated the needs of less developed countries in knowledge sharing, stating: "capacity building in the developing world must put emphasis on basic science more than on technology transfer, only this can put each country in charge of its applications of science and technology."