Iceland and FAO

The origin of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) can be traced to the economic conference called by the Allied nations which started in Hot Springs in Virginia, USA, on May 18th 1943. At the conference Ambassador Thor Thors was the chairman of the Icelandic delegation. The Hot Springs conference adopted the text of the FAO Charter and elected an interim Council of the Organization. The Charter was formally signed by representatives of member countries in Quebec, Canada, on October 16th 1945; by Ambassador Thors on behalf of Iceland.

The FAO, which is one of the specialized Agencies of the United Nations, has 187 member countires, of which 49 have a seat on the FAO Council. The European countries have been allocated 10 seats on the Council. One of the European seats is occupied by the five Nordic Countries, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden according to a three-years rotation scheme. The Nordic countries have a close cooperation and policy coordination on FAO matters.

The Icelandic Minister for Foreign Affairs appoints the Icelandic National FAO Committee. In recent years, the Secretary-General of the Ministry for Agriculture has been Chairman of the Committee, lately Mr Björn Sigurbjörnsson. Since 2005 the committee is chaired by Mr Gunnar Snorri Gunnarsson, Secretary-General of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Other members are Mr Guðmundur B. Helgason, Secretary-General of the Ministry for Agriculture and Mr Vihjálmur Egilsson, Secretary-General of the Ministry for Fisheries.

Icelandic participation in the work of the FAO took a new turn at the FAO World Food Summit in Rome on November 13th to 17th 1996, attended by numerous Heads of Government including Mr Davíð Oddsson, Prime Minister of Iceland. The world leaders adopted the Rome Declaration and an Action Plan calling for food security for all.

Following the Summit the Icelandic Goverment laid the groundwork for increased involvment in FAO matters. Iceland´s Ambassador in Paris, Mr Sverrir Haukur Gunnlaugsson, was appointed his country´s first Permanent Representative to the FAO in 1998, but the Paris Embassy had for years been accredited to the Organization. His successor in Paris, Mrs Sigríður Ásdís Snævarr, was Permanent Representative to the FAO 1999-2003.

Iceland took the Nordic seat in the FAO Council for the first time in November 1999. During the three year period Mr Jón Erlingur Jónasson was Resident Representative for FAO matters in Rome, which included chairing the active Nordic cooperation.

In cooperation with the FAO and the Government of Norway, the Icelandic Government sponsored a Conference on Responsible Fisheries in the Marine Ecosystem October 1st to 4th 2001. The Reykjavík Declaration reiterated the commitment of nations to conduct fisheries in a responsible and sustainable manner.

In 2003 the position of the Permanent Representative to the FAO was moved to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Reykjavík and Mr Sveinn Á. Björnsson became the Permanent Representative on May 6th, based in Reykjavík.

Within the framework of the FAO, Iceland is working on serveral issues in the field of fisheries, agriculture and development cooperation. Lately, fisheries have become an increasingly important issue within the FAO. The organization is the only world-wide forum for fisheries and plays therefore an important role for all nations depending on fisheries. The Icelandic Government strives for an international consensus on fisheries and fisheries management in line with the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries. The FAO is therefore one of the most important forum for multilateral cooperation in this field. Iceland has participated actively in the work of the FAO Committee on Fisheries (COFI) and its Sub-committee on Trade.

Several important fisheries issues are now being discussed at the FAO, such as Marine Strategies of member countries, the Ecsystem Approach in fisheries, the struggle against Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated fisheries (IUU), the FAO Compliance Agreement, a special effort to enhance the quality of information gathering on fisheries and the state of fish stocks, a discussion on closed areas and goverment subsidies in fisheries.

After years of consultation a considerable progress was made at the COFI Meeting in March 2005, attended by Mr Árni Mathiesen, Icelandic Minister of Fisheries, when the Committee adopted guidelines on Ecolabelling of fish and fishery products. The guidelines provide a framework for the Ecolabelling.

The Icelandic Government emphasizes the importance of good cooperation between the FAO and other multilateral organizations, such as the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the Convention on International Trade in Endengered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES).

Recently, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs has worked on facilitating a programme of training courses within the FAO FishCode framework in cooperation with the FAO Fisheries Department and the UN University Fisheries Training Programme in Iceland. It is planned to conduct the courses in partner countries and adjust them to local needs and conditions.

The cooperation between the FAO and Small Island Developing States is of special interest to the Goverment of Iceland, as well as cooperation with partner countries of the Icelandic International Developing Agency (ICEIDA).

The Director-General of the FAO, Dr. Jacques Diouf, visited Iceland in November 2004, and held meetings with Mr Árna Mathiesen, Minister of Fisheries and Mr Guðni Ágústsson, Minister of Agriculture. Among discussed issues were ideas on cooperation between the FAO and Iceland, the importance of responsible management as the basis of sustainable fisheries, monitoring of catch, safety issues and the possibility of a cooperation between the FAO and the UN University Fisheries Training Programme in Iceland.

In June the Director-General attended a Nordic Ministerial Meeting, at the invitation of the Swedish Goverment. Permanent Representative Sveinn Á Björnsson attended the meeting of behalf of Iceland. Among the topics for discussion was the FAO draft report on the UN Millenium Development Goals.

On August 1st 2005 the Icelandic Goverment established a Permanent Mission of Iceland in Rome to the United Nations Agencies in the city. Mr Guðni Bragason was appointed Permanent Representative.