PRESS BRIEFING BY FAO ON YEAR OF MOUNTAINS

PRESS BRIEFING BY FAO ON YEAR OF MOUNTAINS

Noting that nearly all of the world's current conflicts were being fought in mountainous regions, Jacques Diouf, Director-General of the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the United Nations this afternoon stressed the importance of brining peace to those areas in order to ensure food security for impoverished and hungry people all over the world.

Speaking at the global launch of the International Year of Mountains,

Dr. Diouf pointed out that mountain ecosystems are the source of one-half of the planet's fresh water, as well as home to rich and diverse varieties of plant and animal life.  Each day, however, extreme poverty among people living in mountainous areas and armed conflicts taking place in their shadows put these resources, which are largely irreplaceable, at risk.

Twenty-three of the twenty-seven existing conflicts, he said, were being fought in mountainous areas.

"Conflict may be the single greatest obstacle to achieving our goals", he said, describing the International Year as a means to raise awareness, so the plight of mountains, and the people living near them, were taken into account when sustainable development policies were being adopted.

"Without peace", he continued, "we cannot ensure secure food supplies.  Without peace, we cannot even consider sustainable development."

The declaring of 2002 as the International Year of Mountains evolved from the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro.  That conference's Agenda 21 contained a chapter -- Chapter 13 -- on the blueprint for sustainable development, for which the FAO has become the lead agency.

While the FAO will collaborate with other United Nations and intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Dr. Diouf said national governments were crucial in implementing policies for the protection of mountain ecosystems.  Further, it was important in the coming years to get more involvement from the people who lived in the mountains.

"Without their help", he said, "there could be no long-term solution".

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