Transcript Presentation to FAO NC of the Czech Republic

FAO Sub-regional Office
for Central and Eastern Europe
The Role and Mandate
of FAO in CEE
Improvement of Information Exchange between Education institutions
in the SEE Region
1-3 June, Godollo
Benczur utca 34, H-1068 Budapest, Hungary
Tel: +36 1 4612000 Fax: +36 1 3517029
[email protected]
The establishment of SEUR


In the Third Millennium, FAO
has committed itself to play a
renewed role in Europe,
specially focusing on some of
the problems brought about by
political events in the Region
over the past decade.
A key move was the
establishment of the Subregional Office for Central and
Eastern Europe (SEUR) in
Budapest in 1996, staffed by a
core team of specialists, with
expertise in various areas
relevant to the development
and transition needs of Central
and Eastern European
Countries (CEECs).
FAO Member Countries
in Central and Eastern Europe
FAO SEUR covers 20 member
countries:
Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia
and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia,
Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia,
Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia,
Moldova, Poland, Romania, Serbia
and Montenegro, Slovakia, Slovenia,
Ukraine.
Belarus applied for membership in
2004.
Observer: Russian Federation.
The Mandate of SEUR
The FAO Sub-regional Office for Central and Eastern Europe (SEUR),
closely working with the Regional Office for Europe (REU) and relevant
Technical Departments at Headquarters, is responsible for:
• monitoring and reporting to Headquarters the major developments and trends
in the Central and Eastern European Sub-region,
• identifying priority areas of action for the Organization in the Central and
Eastern European Sub-region, with particular emphasis on the World Food
Summit follow-up,
• providing technical assistance to Member Countries within the areas of
technical expertise available,
• promoting and implementing the Agreement on Technical Cooperation
between Countries in Transition and other Partnership Programmes,
• providing support services as appropriate to FAO’s activities in the Subregion.
FAO’s priorities in the CEE
According to the FAO Regional Conference for Europe
FAO’s priorities in the CEE up to 2007 are:
•Poverty reduction, through support to sustainable rural livelihoods
and food security
•Food safety and quality
•Sustainable management of natural resources
•Institution and capacity building to support the process of transition
to market economies in the rural sector
Organizational Structure of FAO SEUR

Office of the Sub-regional Representative (SEUD)

Multidisciplinary Team (SEUM)
Operates in close coordination with the respective technical departments of
Headquarters as well as with the relevant units of the Regional Office
for Europe

Policy Assistance Unit (SEUP)
Operates in close coordination with the Regional Office for Europe Policy
Assistance Branch (REUP) and Policy Assistance Division of the
Technical Cooperation Department.
Office of the Sub-regional Representative
(SEUD)
The Sub-regional Representative's office ensures the
efficient functioning of the Sub-regional Office and
oversees the utilization of the staff and resources
allocated to it; it participates in the development and
implementation of a coordinated and balanced
programme of work of the Organization and liaises
with national authorities and other segments of the
Organization.
Work Programme
Agricultural Information Management
Farm Management and Agribusiness
Food Standards and Nutrition
Land Tenure and Rural Development
Livestock Sector Development
Forestry
Policy Assistance
Library and Information Services
Agricultural Information Management
In close coordination with the Library and Documentation Systems Division (GIL) at
FAO Headquarters:
•promotes the development of national and sub-regional
agricultural information systems and networks compatible with
FAO’s information systems,
•advises agricultural research, education and development
institutions to use more efficiently FAO’s information systems,
databases and data banks,
•assists in the development and strengthening of the network of
WAICENT centers in the sub-region,
•works as WAICENT-Outreach contact person in Eastern
Europe,
•visits national AGRIS/CARIS centers in the sub-region to review their activities, needs, and advises them
on the problems limiting their input to the system,
•assists in the organization of, and lectures at, seminars, workshops and training sessions related to
WAICENT information services,
•organizes and maintains a modern agricultural Information Centre and Library suitable to the needs and
tasks of the Sub-regional Office.
Farm Management and Agribusiness
Working in close coordination of the
Agricultural Support Systems Division (AGS) responsibilities include:
• facilitatation, co-ordination and exchange of information,
• evaluation of performance of commercial farming and
agribusiness, food and product supply chains,
• development of policy guidelines and strategies,
• advice to member countries in human capacity building and
developing training programmes and materials,
relating to farm planning, management economics
and agribusiness development, focusing on farm and firm adjustments
and the improvement of commercial farming and agribusiness,
farm data systems, and related support services.
Food Standards and Nutrition
Working in close cooperation with the
Food and Nutrition Division (ESN) at
FAO Headquarters, the responsibilities
include:
•promotion of internationally accepted standards (e.g. Codex Alimentarius)
•support of Codex Alimentarius Contact Points in CEE,
•assistance in harmonizing national standards with international standards,
•assistance in the elaboration and implementation of the National Plan of Action
for Nutrition,
•facilitatation and implementation of food control systems,
•establishment of sub-regional directories of internationally accredited food
laboratories, national control services, national standardizing bodies,
•support of Food Composition Data-base Network for Central and Eastern
Europe (CEECFOODS),
•provision of technical backstopping for field projects in the Sub-region.
Land Tenure and Rural Development
Working in close coordination with the Land Tenure Service (SDAA) and Rural Institutions
and Participation Service (SDAR) of the Rural Development Division (SDA) at FAO
Headquarters, in support of central and eastern European development,
•Develops and organizes research and analysis related to land
tenure institution changes taking place in CEEC and CIS
countries with particular reference to land market institutions and
technologies associated with the development and management
of modern land information systems.
•Provides advice to FAO members on rural development, design
of poverty reduction, employment creation programs and
institutional restructuring including support for agricultural
cooperatives and farmers' organizations in co-operation with
technical units at HQ.
•Assists FAO members in the design and formulation of rural
development and implementation of decentralized institutions
and adoption of differentiated policies.
•Provides technical support for FAO field experts in the above
subjects, including field missions, project preparation and
supervision.
•Develops and prepare material and documents for technical
meetings.
Livestock Sector Development
Working in close coordination with the Animal Production and Health Division (AGA)
at FAO Headquarters, the Livestock Sector Development Officer:
•assists and coordinates a multi-disciplinary programme to
promote new developments of the livestock sector in countries
of the sub-region,
•cooperates in formulation of livestock development policies
with special emphasis on restructuring, modernization or
revitalization of the livestock sector,
•Supports capacity building in animal production and health
services,
•analyses the economic and technical constraints to developing
sustainable systems of animal production and associated
animal products processing industries,
•assists in the formulation of integrated livestock development projects and advises on all aspects from
production to consumption,
•cooperates with all relevant institutions and NGOs active in the sub-region, in particular the European
Association for Animal Production,
•promotes the organization of, and participates in technical meetings with livestock research and
educational institutions involved in the livestock sector,
•assists in the identification and formulation of technical assistance programmes and projects and
provides technical backstopping to the implementation of such projects.
Policy Assistance
The Policy Assistance Unit (SEUP) operates in close coordination with the
Policy Assistance Branch (REUP) of the Regional Office for Europe and
the Policy Assistance Division (TCA) of the Technical Cooperation
Department and
•provides sector review and policy assistance, on request, to individual countries;
• assists in the identification/definition of national and sub-regional priority areas of action for FAO's biennial
programme of work,
• conducts country assessments of structural and sector adjustment programmes, strategies, plans, policies
and programmes for enhancing food, agriculture and rural development,
• assists FAO Member Nations of the Sub-region in reviewing sector policy options and choices, formulating
policies and strengthening national capacities to perform policy analysis, design and implementation
• ensures the necessary coherence and linkages between sector policy work and FAO's programme
development operational activities within the framework of each country's development plans and priorities,
• provides technical guidance and backstopping to agricultural policy analysis and planning projects in the
field and cooperates with the Agricultural Policy Support Service (TCAS), as appropriate, in implementing
training in agriculture policy and planning,
•prepares country economic and agricultural sector profiles; assists in FAO's programme development and
assists the Information and Procedure Unit (TCDI) in maintaining up-to-date information on political,
economic and social situations, including emergencies, for use in the preparation of country briefs or other
information material,
• organizes programme development missions and assists their governments in the reviews of their
technical assistance requirements.
Forestry
In close cooperation with the technical Divisions of the Forestry
Department the forestry officer:
•Analyze and disseminate information and data related to forest
resources, forest products markets and forest policies
•Develop and disseminate technical advice for sustainable forestry
management
•Advise member countries in effective forest policies and institutional
arrangements on the national and international level
•Support programmes and projects related to forestry and natural
resource management.
Active participation in the work of:
•FAO European Forestry Commission monitoring policy processes
and institutions, focusing on cross-sectorial approaches and the
regional integration of Eastern European countries into the
international forestry community
•UNECE Timber Committee in particular with regard to outlook and
analytical policy studies as well as to information and data gathering,
•Ministerial Conference on Protection of Forests in Europe with
regard to policy implications.
Library and Information Services
The Information Centre and Library of the Sub-regional Office, in close
cooperation and coordination with the Library and Documentation
Systems Division (GIL) provides the users free of charge with the
following services:
•use of the reading room
•approximately 1000 papers, mostly FAO publications
mainly about the following topics:
•
agriculture
•
farm management
•
livestock management and development
•
forestry
•
rural development
•
food and nutrition
•use of the FAO electronic information services
CD-ROM databases, online information services
•acquisition of FAO publications
•regular or individual queries on FAO publications
Projects
Significant progress has been made over the past recent years in
decentralizing operational responsibility for projects at the country level. In the
European Region, due to the lack of FAO Representations, the operational
responsibility for projects rests with the Regional Office. The average number
of projects which SEUR operates in the Region on a yearly basis is between
30 and 35.
Regional and national projects
The following projects have been recently approved by the Director General of FAO:
"Support to the formulation of a medium-term agricultural and rural policy framework"
Country: Ukraine
Project symbol:TCP/UKR/3004 (A)
Starting date: April 2005
Completion date: March 2006
"Assistance in piloting small-scale modern on-farm irrigation technologies - Phase II"
Country: MOLDOVA
Project symbol: TCP/MOL/3001 (A)
Starting date: March 2004
Completion date: January 2006
"Food safety capacity building"
Countries: Armenia and Georgia
Project symbol:TCP/RER/3003 (A)
Starting date: February 2005
Completion date: July 2006
"Strengthening food safety in South East European transition countries
- A regional approach to food legislation and control"
Countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, FYR Macedonia, Kosovo - Serbia and
Montenegro, Moldova, Romania
Project symbol:TCP/RER/3002 (A)
Starting date: December 2004
Completion date: May 2006
Major events in 2004-2005
The Sub-regional Office hosted and supported several significant international events, e.g.:
2005
Location
Title
20-21
June
Budapest,
SEUR
office
UNECE/FAO Workshop on policy consequences of the European Forest
Sector Outlook Study (EFSOS)
06-09
June
Durdevac
Croatia
Policy options for improved forest land use in South-East Europe
1-3 June
Godollo,
Hungary
Improvement of Information Exchange between Education institutions
in the SEE Region
6-7 May
Nitra,
Slovak
Republic
Development of Land Markets and Related Institutions in Countries of
Central and Eastern Europe
18-21
April
Zvolen,
Slovakia
Policy options for storm damage management - Workshop
autumn
Tbilisi,
Kiev
Two sub-regional workshops on FAO assistance aiming at the Forest
Sector
autumn
Budapest,
SEUR
office
Meeting of the UNECE/ FAO team of specialists on sustainable
development of the forest sector in Central and Eastern Europe and in
the CIS
SEUR on the Internet
http://www.fao.org/Regional/SEUR