Dag Hammarskjöld Library at Uppsala University
FAO
- © United Nations
Food and Agriculture Organization of
the United Nations
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, FAO -established in 1945, is one of the largest specialized agencies within the UN system.
It is the leading agency for agriculture, forestry, fisheries and rural development.
The FAO works to eliminate hunger and malnutrition by improving agricultural productivity and the conditions of rural populations, coordinating the efforts of governments and technical agencies thus contributing to an expanding world economy.
The FAO's functions also include collecting and dissemenination of information, research, educational programmes, promotion of the conservation of natural
resources and sustainable development, technical assistance, and emergency relief.
The FAO is headquartered in Rome and has a system of regional and local offices worldwide. FAO is governed by the biennial FAO Conference of Member States which elects a Council to act as an interim body The Conference determines the policy of the organization, approves the budget and makes recommendations. The Director-General, elected for a six year term (eligible for reappointment), is head of the agency.
Documentation
The FAO Constitution.
The FAO official web site provides a multilingual overview of the FAO programs and activities, full text documents and reports and access to relevant databases.
The FAO publishes a number of annual reports posted online at the official web site under the section Publications.
The FAO has organized two global conferences aimed at the commitment to the fight against hunger, World Food Summit 1996 and 2002. Essential documents from the conferences are posted at the FAO official web site.
A summary of the work of the Food and Agriculture Organization for a given year with references to essential documents can be accessed through the Yearbook of the United Nations, Part Six: Intergovernmental Organizations to the United Nations. A complete collection of yearbooks is held by the Dag Hammarskjöld Library, Uppsala, and the Libraries at UN Headquarters in New York and Geneva. Since October 2008 the complete full text collection of The United Nations Yearbooks is available online at http://unyearbook.un.org/.
Databases and Indexes
A large number of databases relevant to the FAO programs are accessible through the FAO official web site, under Glossary of FAO Databases and Information Systems.
Statistical Databases are posted at the official web site.