ROME, ITALY — The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) governing council on April 26 approved two new strategies aimed at strengthening FAO's partnerships with civil society organizations on the one hand and the private sector on the other. 

The strategies provide a framework for FAO's work with private and civil society partners in pursuit of the organization's strategic objectives and the eradication of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition.

Thanking the council for its approval, Director-General José Graziano da Silva said, "We have repeated many times that it is possible to end hunger only if we work together. These strategies show that we are committed to working with partnerships."

FAO sees broader, improved partnerships as essential in achieving its objectives, especially in the light of its new emphasis on decentralization. 

"Ending hunger cannot be done by any individual organization alone," Graziano da Silva has said on many occasions. The collaboration and support of other actors is vital. 

Approval of the strategies will allow FAO, especially in the field, to better establish partnerships with civil society and the private sector.  A key element will be to ensure that key stakeholders from civil society and private sector actors in the field of food security are identified and involved at country level in support of FAO's efforts.

Both strategies identify six main areas of collaboration (policy dialogue; normative work; technical and field programs; advocacy and communication; joint use and mobilization of resources; and knowledge sharing) and two main levels of interaction (global level and decentralized level).  

The two strategies are the result of extended consultations with member states, key external stakeholders and FAO staff, both at headquarters and in the field. Consultative meetings, bilateral discussions and informal sessions were held to discuss the documents and are reflected in the final documents.

FAO's new, revised strategic framework for the next decade includes five strategic objectives:

1. Contribute to the eradication of hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition.
2. Increase and improve provision of goods and services from agriculture, forestry and fisheries in a sustainable manner.
3. Reduce rural poverty.
4. Enable more inclusive and efficient agricultural and food systems at local, national and international levels.
5. Increase the resilience of livelihoods to threats and crises.