"In several countries, the national Thematic Groups of the UN System Network have worked along side the National Alliances. Being specialized platforms that group UN agencies and other actors working in specific food security issues and rural development, it makes sense that a strong synergy on the ground be sought."
In this interview Mrs. Eva Clayton former FAO Assistant Director General and Special Adviser on the World Food Summit Follow-up and Secretary of the International Alliance against Hunger (IAAH) shares the achievements made by the initiative, talks about the links between the Alliance with the UN System Network and makes recommendations to her successor as she steps down from her position in FAO.
Three years have passed since the launching of the International Alliance against Hunger and much has been gained so far. Could you talk about the mayor milestones this initiative has achieved?
Conceived as a voluntary association of international organizations (UN agencies, international non-governmental organizations) and National Alliances against Hunger (NAAH) which share a common commitment to the rapid eradication of hunger in the world and which recognize that their actions will be all the more effective by working together, the principles and aims of the International Alliance against Hunger are focused on four major themes: Advocacy, Accountability, Resources Mobilization and Coordination .
Referring to advocacy activities, during World Food Day 2003, when the theme was dedicated to the “International Alliance Against Hunger”, a call to action was made to encourage all those concerned about the problem of hunger to join forces in a common effort. From that year on, the IAAH has actively participated in each WFD celebration here at the FAO headquarters and also at country level in various countries through the National Alliances. For the presentation in Rome of the report of the UN Hunger Task Force, in January 2005, the IAAH promoted advocacy for the Millennium Development Goals, issuing a press statement with contributions from the Rome-based food organizations and civil society.
Public awareness and advocacy activities also included participation, in January 2005, in the World Social Forum, at the invitation of the Brazilian Civil Society Alliance CONSEA. The International Alliance also supported the efforts of its partners during the Polycentric World Social Forum 2006 in both Mali and Venezuela . Partners' strong participation during the G8 Meeting in Scotland in 2005 included Action Aid International's “Get on Board” campaign and the UK Food Group's “Make Hunger History Campaign”.
Regarding Accountability, the IAAH reports on its activities and achievements quarterly to the IAAH Working Group and annually to the Committee on World Food Security. In addition, the IAAH information and communication tools provide major vehicles to ensure accountability vis à vis a broad array of stakeholders. The IAAH Secretariat maintains and updates an electronic inventory of existing National Alliances and continues to publish a newsletter with information on events and activities of NAAH. The website, established in 2005, publishes information on the activities and events of the IAAH partners and of the National Alliances.
What about resource mobilization and coordination?
The IAAH has facilitated mobilization of resources for hunger and poverty reduction, especially for more and better resources for agriculture and rural development. IAAH is not a funding source itself, but works with others in identifying resources. Twinning arrangements between established National Alliances or International Partners and emerging National Alliances have been put in place and facilitate sharing of experiences, talents, and resources. Two such arrangements have been developed and are now in place: the U.S. Alliance to End Hunger with the Ghanaian Alliance, and the Government of Brazil-CONSEA with Haiti . Several other alliances have now asked to start a similar process.
Coordination by the Rome based UN Organizations has facilitated provision of technical support for the creation of selected National Alliances and for their operationalization within already existing programmes. The IAAH has stimulated cooperation between FAO and WFP on school feeding programmes and the FAO Special Programme on Food Security (SPFS) school gardens initiatives in Haiti , Mozambique and Angola .
The IAAH Secretariat has prepared joint Statements signed by the heads of the Rome-based organizations. A Joint Statement by the UN Food Agencies was prepared in 2004 in foolow-up to the Geneva Declaration signed by the UN Secretary-General, Presidents Jacques Chirac of France , Luis Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil and Ricardo Lagos of Chile, in which they called for alternative resources and greater coordination and coherence. Similarly, a joint letter was sent in 2005 to FAO, IFAD, WFP and IPGRI Country representatives, encouraging them to support and cooperate with National Alliances
and national Thematic Groups of the UN System Network on Rural Development and Food Security
in their countries of assignment.
The work of National Alliances within the countries seems to be at the centre of the International Alliance against Hunger. How many National Alliances are there and what kind of work do they usually carry out?
Between 2003 and 2006, 94 countries expressed interest in forming a National Alliance Against Hunger. The IAAH Secretariat continuously supported members in their efforts, through facilitating contacts with UN Rome based Agencies at Headquarters and field level. IAAH helped NAAHs to grow by providing technical assistance, connecting NAAHs with already existing projects and initiatives run by UN agencies and international partners, as well as encouraging participation of local sections of its international partners in the National Alliances.
Among the 94 countries that expressed interest:
• 16 are now consolidated and are running activities for hunger and poverty reduction. Their membership, structure and activities vary from country to country according to local needs and traditions;
• 8 are organized and currently discussing common plans and activities to be implemented in the next year; and
• 24 are currently organizing, the potential members having met in order to re-affirm their interest and to explore common fields of work as well as possible future programs and activities.
How do members of National Alliances commit to their work?
Conceived as a voluntary association of national organizations, the National Alliances are requested to make a Pledge to End Hunger which helps them and the members, to identify and to assess concrete activities. In making a Pledge to End Hunger, an Alliance member is declaring a commitment to achieve a time-bound goal as its contribution towards eradicating global hunger. Members hold themselves accountable for achieving the goals which they set. It implies setting a goal or set of goals (wherever possible with quantified targets) to be achieved within a finite period. Each member must decide on the time horizon appropriate for each goal as some types of action require much more time to have an impact than others. However, it is suggested that the target period should not normally exceed three years, so as to keep a focus on immediate action. Each year a date should be set for reporting on progress.
What events are scheduled to take place this year?
In addition to the usual events supported by the International Alliance, such as World Food Day, we are encouraging our National Alliances to actively participate in one of our partner's campaigns against child hunger. World Food Programme is calling for a worldwide march against hunger known as “Walk the World” to take place this year on 21 May all over the world. During past editions, several National Alliances have already successfully participated in such events as a way of creating awareness about the fight against hunger.
Another important event will be the Special Forum that will be held during the Committee on World Food Security (CFS), in Rome , Italy from 18 to 22 September 2006 . The Special Forum was approved by the last session of the CFS consistent with the World Food Summit Plan of Action which calls for a mid-term review of progress made in reaching the WFS targets and MDGs. The Special Forum is meant to be a multi-stakeholder dialogue in which all actors can speak with equal voice, presenting achievements and progress made in reducing hunger and poverty in the world.
It is crucial that all stakeholders participate in this important event in order to build a solid basis for a strong global movement to eradicate hunger. This is an opportunity to reach out to other regional and national partners to prepare a concerted contribution for this Special Forum.
What relations has the International Alliance established with the UN System Network on Rural Development and Food Security?
In several countries, the national Thematic Groups of the UN System Network have worked along side the National Alliances. Being specialized platforms that group UN agencies and other actors working in specific food security issues and rural development, it makes sense that a strong synergy on the ground be sought. For instance, in Guatemala the Thematic Group forms part of the National Alliances while in Dominican Republic the Thematic Group is an active promoter of National Alliances. Topics dealt by Thematic Groups are wide-ranging and can be complementary to those tackled by the National Alliances such as assistance to the formulation of rural development policies and laws, coordination on specific issues related to rural development and support to specific projects or programs. Many Thematic Groups also have created strong linkages between sectoral programmes and multisectoral UN initiatives, such as the Common Country Assessment (CCA) and the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF), and some are supporting national governments in the preparation of Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs). The National Alliances could benefit greatly from these experiences.
After seeing the flourishing results of the International Alliance you are currently stepping down from your role as the Secretary of this initiative, what do you see the International Alliance evolving into and what recommendations can you give to your successor?
The work we have done over the past years has been very rewarding. It has been wonderful to see the International Alliance grow from mere expressions of interest to concrete active commitments. As I step down I will continue participating in the fight against hunger as part of civil society. As for the future of the National Alliances, I truly hope that along with the IAAH Working Group's help they will evolve into a strong effective global force for action to eliminate hunger and poverty.
I would recommend to my successor to actively engage staff, colleagues and external partners in the efforts to reduce hunger and poverty. Another essential aspect I would also suggest is to “Learn the FAO House” But above all I recommend him or her to have fun, enjoy the work and have a sense of achievement.
For more information on the activities of the National Alliances in the world, please visit the International Alliance website at http://www.iaahp.net
