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RESULTS OF THE INTER-PARLIAMENTARY CONFERENCE ON "ATTAINING THE WORLD FOOD SUMMIT'S OBJECTIVES THROUGH A SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY"
(Rome, 29 November - 2 December 1998)

Resolution adopted without a vote by the Inter-Parliamentary Council
at its 164th session (Brussels, 16 April 1999)


The Inter-Parliamentary Council,

Having taken note of the results of the Inter-Parliamentary Conference on "Attaining the World Food Summit's objectives through a sustainable development strategy", which was organised by IPU with the support of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and hosted by the Italian Parliament in Rome from 29 November - 2 December 1998,

Recalling that at its 161st session (Cairo, September 1997) the Inter-Parliamentary Council decided to organise a Specialised Inter-Parliamentary Conference in Rome with the aim of reviewing and promoting, at parliamentary level, the implementation of commitments made by the States at the World Food Summit (Rome, November 1996),

Satisfied that the relations of close collaboration and interaction between IPU and FAO were further strengthened in the course of the Conference preparation, thus attesting to the efficiency of the Co-operation Agreement signed between the two Organisations in August 1997,

Believing that the reflection and dialogue started at the Parliamentarians' Day on the occasion of the World Food Summit and continued during the Inter-Parliamentary Conference in Rome should be further pursued by IPU, taking into account the multidimensional nature of food security issues,

  1. Commends the results of the Specialised Inter-Parliamentary Conference in Rome which fully achieved its aims, as is reflected in its Final Document adopted by consensus at the closing session;
  2. Thanks the Italian Inter-Parliamentary Group and the Italian authorities for their warm welcome to the delegates and for the excellent working conditions on the premises of the Italian Chamber of Deputies where the Conference deliberated on the first day of its work;
  3. Expresses gratitude to FAO which hosted the second part of the Conference proceedings and contributed to the success of the Conference in many other ways;
  4. Thanks the Conference participants, observers and keynote speakers for their efforts to ensure that the Conference was conducted in a constructive and fruitful atmosphere;
  5. Calls on all National Groups to see to it that the results of the Conference are given proper attention by their respective parliaments and governments, particularly the parliamentary bodies dealing with issues of food and agricultural development, and that the greatest publicity is provided to the Conference recommendations by disseminating them to media, special interest groups and relevant non-governmental organizations;
  6. Endorses the content of the Conference Final Document, and urges national Parliaments to make full use of it with a view to playing a more proactive role in the implementation of State commitments made at the World Food Summit;
  7. Encourages all National Groups to give practical follow-up to the Conference recommendation that parliaments should harmonise existing laws and, as appropriate, adopt new legislation so as to develop a comprehensive legislative framework conducive to the achievement of food security for all;
  8. Mandates the IPU Committee for Sustainable Development to consider food security as an integral part of its work and to prepare reports and statements on specific issues relating to food security for the attention of the United Nations system;
  9. Requests the IPU Committee for Sustainable Development to elaborate proposals on ways of further advancing institutional links between IPU and FAO including the holding of joint events and activities;
  10. Supports the idea that IPU should work with the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and FAO on normative aspects of the right to food, and entrusts the IPU Secretary General with taking practical steps in this regard;
  11. Entrusts the IPU Secretary General with exploring possibilities for co-operation with the World Trade Organization, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development on trade and financial issues relating to food security.


Note: you can download a complete electronic version of the brochure "Results of the 101st Conference and related meetings of the Inter-Parliamentary Union" in PDF format (file size approximately 570K). This version requires Adobe Acrobat Reader, which you can download free of charge.Get Acrobat Reader

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