30th FAO Conference, Rome, November 1999
30th FAO Conference, Rome, November 1999
Statement by
H. E. Mr. Gudni Agustsson, Minister of Agriculture, Iceland
Mr. Chairman, Director-General, distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen.
I would like to begin by congratulating you, Mr. Chairman, and the Vice-Chairs, on your appointment. I would also like to congratulate Dr. Diouf on his re-election as Director-General of FAO and wish him continued success in his very important post.
It is indeed an honour for me to address this distinguished assembly as it prepares the organization to face the many daunting challenges of the new millennium. So near to an era that promises to hold unprecedented advances over the spectrum of human activity, we remain far from ensuring that the basic right to food is enjoyed by all. As we prepare to celebrate our entry into the third millennium, we should pledge to make the bright future we so easily envisage truly universal. Global food security must surely be a priority concern.
Three years ago, the World Food Summit set ambitious objectives in our fight against hunger. It is all too clear that we have to intensify our efforts if these goals are to be met and the number of undernourished significantly reduced on a sustainable basis, taking into account the need to conserve our precious natural resources. In this endeavour, we must guarantee the FAO sufficient resources of its own to carry out mandated activities and, more broadly, pursue a coherent strategy over the entire range of international cooperation. Only by doing so can we successfully address the development failures underlying the world's food security problem. We welcome development of the Strategic Framework that should chart the appropriate course.
The timing of this conference is significant in light of the upcoming launch of a new round of global trade negotiations, inter alia on agriculture. In this context, the multifunctional role of agriculture in our societies must be kept in the foreground. Agriculture forms the basis of domestic food security, preserves the environment and perhaps most fundamentally safeguards the very viability of rural areas.
This is not least of importance to my own country. Many people may be surprised to discover that there exists such a thing as agriculture in Iceland, an island situated in the far north corner of the North Atlantic Ocean, where the mean summer temperature is all of 10 degrees Celsius and wheat hardly reaches maturity. The fact is, however, that in Iceland there is thriving agricultural activity with such livestock products as milk and meat as well as garden and greenhouse vegetables. These are all products of the highest quality, produced in clean air, with pure water and almost without the use of chemical inputs. The greenhouses and in fact most of our homes are heated with geothermal water.
While there is no need to dwell on the constraints imposed by the vicinity of the Arctic Circle, it is not without its benefits. Our summers have no nights and the continuous light, together with ample rain, compensates for the moderate summer temperatures and gives farmers abundant high quality fodder for their livestock. Agriculture has kept our nation alive from the time Iceland was first settled 1100 years ago until the present dawn of the new millennium. We are fully committed to its preservation.
Mr. Chairman.
There were times during the Middle Ages when our nation suffered gravely from volcanic eruptions, much colder climate and severe pest epidemics. The catastrophic volcanic eruptions which took place in Iceland over 200 years ago not only shaded the sun over most of Europe, causing famine, but left Iceland with only some 40.000 survivors.
With new tools and technology Icelanders started to exploit the rich fishing grounds around the country. But the first half of this century saw the Icelandic fishing grounds over-crowded with foreign vessels. They came so close to our shores that it was said that they almost harvested our potatoes in their trawling nets! Since then we have gained control over our fisheries and learned how to manage this precious resource. The result is that our fishing industry is now truly sustainable and our fish catch is steadily increasing.
On the basis of personal income, standards of living and quality of life, Iceland now ranks among the top ten nations of the world. As fisheries are the mainstay of our high living standards, it has been suggested that other nations could learn from us how to successfully manage their fisheries.
We would thus like, in cooperation with FAO, to share our fisheries experience with others and learn from them in turn. Hopefully, we can achieve international consensus on how to tackle our common challenges. In this connection, it is my honour and privilege to inform you on behalf of the Minister of Fisheries and the Government of Iceland that we have decided to offer FAO to hold in the year 2001 an international conference in Iceland, tentatively titled "Sustainable Fisheries in the Ecosystem". We see this as both a timely and relevant initiative that should further the goal of sustainable utilization of marine resources and, in broader terms, sound management of the ocean ecosystem.
Mr. Chairman.
As you are no doubt aware, Iceland is now for the first time pursuing a seat on the FAO Council and has in this connection appointed a resident representative to the FAO in Rome. This is certain to lead to more active participation on the part of Iceland in the activities of the FAO, and we pledge to contribute constructively to their success.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.