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José Graziano da Silva has formally taken the helm of the Food and Agriculture Organization.
The new Director-General is pushing for a renewed focus on food security, offering to scale up FAO support available to low-income and food deficit countries — especially those facing protracted crises.
"We will create teams that draw together the Organization's skills in policy advice, investment planning, resource mobilization, emergency response and sustainable development," the Director-General said.
"Hunger eradication should not be separated from responses to other global challenges, such as reviving national economies, protecting natural resources from degradation, and mitigating and adapting to climate change," he added.
As Director-General, Graziano da Silva will aim for the eradication of hunger; sustainable food production and consumption; greater fairness in global food management; conclusion of FAO's organizational reform to improve efficiency, transparency and accountability; and expansion of partnerships and South-South cooperation.
The new Director-General succeeds Jacques Diouf of Senegal, who held the post from 1994 to 2011. He is the eighth person to head FAO. Graziano da Silva's term runs from January 2012 through 31 July 2015.
Graziano da Silva was responsible for leading the design and implementation of Brazil's highly-successful "Zero Hunger" programme in 2003. Prior to being elected to FAO's top post, Graziano da Silva was FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Latin America and the Caribbean between 2006 and 2011.
Sunday January 1, 2012/ FAO.
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