FAOR

- FAORs are appointed by the Director-General to represent the Organization and manage the FAO Country Office and FAO activities in Member Countries.

- As the main point of reference for the coordination of all FAO activities in the country, they guide all units in FAO on country priorities and lead FAO’s response, ensuring focussed and timely interventions.

 - As members of the Multi Disciplinary Team (MDT), FAORs contribute with their expertise to the technical work of FAO in the relevant subregion. Click here for the relevant procedures.

- While for their work as members of the MDT the FAORs report to the SRC or Head of MDT, on all other matters they report to the RR. On particularly sensitive matters, FAORs may still liaise directly with the Director-General through the DDG/Operations.

- As members of the Security Management Team (SMT), the FAORs are responsible for the security, safety and welfare of FAO personnel and the protection of the Organization’s assets, property and any other material in the country, in compliance with the UN System-wide Minimum Operating Security Standards (MOSS). On security related issues, FAORs report to the Chief, CSDU in his/her capacity as the Organization’s Field Security Coordinator (FSC) and for day-to-day field security issues to the designated HQ Field Security Focal Point (FSFP). For full details regarding security related responsibilities of the FAORs, refer to the FAO Field Security Policy .

Subregional Coordinators (SRCs)

- Subregional Coordinators (SRCs) are appointed by the Director-General to coordinate the work of FAO at subregional level and to lead FAO’s response vis-à-vis Regional Economic Integration Organizations (REIOs) and other subregional institutions and media, as well as to manage the FAO Subregional Office.

- They are responsible for developing, promoting and overseeing strategies for addressing subregional food, agriculture and rural development priorities and for implementation of subregional programmes/projects. They guide all FAO staff in the Subregional Office (SRO) on advocacy, policy, security and general managerial issues.

 - Usually, the SRCs are also the FAOR in the country hosting the SRO and, in some cases, they also cover other countries under multiple accreditation.

- As Heads of the respective Multidisciplinary Teams (MDTs), SRCs provide functional guidance on subregional priorities to FAORs in their capacity as members of the MDT. They also ensure the provision of timely technical support to member countries in the subregion, either from the MDT or from other sources (Regional Office or HQ).

- While SRCs do not have a direct line of command over the FAORs, they maintain a functional relationship with them on programmatic and technical matters. SRCs have no role in administrative management/servicing of the country offices in the subregion.

Heads of MDT (HMDTs)

In the case of SLS and SNO, which are co-located with a Regional Office (RO), the DRRs are also designated Heads of MDT. As such, they carry responsibilities similar to those of SRCs indicated above.

Regional Representatives

- Regional Representatives (RRs) are appointed by the DG to represent, advocate for, and communicate on behalf of FAO with region-wide organizations including the Regional Economic Integration Organizations (REIOs), region-wide entities of the UN system, regional development partners and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), media and other regional stakeholders.

- They are responsible for leading FAO’s response to regional priorities for food security, agriculture and rural development through the identification, planning and implementation of FAO priority activities in the region.

- They support regional policy dialogue on food security, agriculture and rural development issues, facilitate the emergence of regional partnerships and support capacity development and resource mobilization for food security, agriculture and rural development in the region.

- As Heads of the Regional Office (RO), and assisted by the Deputy Regional Representative (DRR), RRs lead the contribution of the RO to the FAO programme and budget process and support the food security agriculture and rural development aspects of aid coordination, including joint UN strategy and programme development at regional level.

- As Chairperson of the Regional Management Team (RMT), RRs supervise the Regional Technical Officers (RTOs) and SRCs/HMDT and lead the process of reviewing programmatic and managerial issues arising in the region.

- As from January 2010, the RRs have become the budget holders for Regular Programme resources allocated to the FAO country office network in the respective regions, and are responsible for the proportionate allocation of these resources to the FAORs. In this capacity, they ensure that i) general management and administrative support and guidance are provided to the country offices in the region; and ii) financial commitments and expenditures are adequately controlled and within established limits, including certification of availability of funds.

- RRs supervise the network of FAO country offices in the region and, in consultation with OSD, contribute to the formulation of operational and administrative procedures and policies concerning decentralization.

- The role and responsibilities of the RRs are likely to expand further in the years ahead as the decentralization process progresses. The RRs are expected to play an increasingly important role in shaping the broader policy agenda of the Organization through the preparation and management of Regional Conferences.

Office of Support to Decentralization (OSD)

- OSD assists the DDGO in providing oversight, guidance and support to the Decentralized Offices (DOs) Network, and in ensuring synergy and coordination among DOs and with Headquarters Departments and Offices.

- During the biennium 2010/2011, OSD will provide a help-desk function to the Regional Offices in the discharge of their new responsiblities vis-à-vis country offices in their respective region.  

Deputy Director-General/Operations (DDGO)

- The Deputy Director-General Operations (DDGO) is responsible for developing, promoting, overseeing organizational results and for facilitating the adherence by staff at all locations to FAO’s corporate policies, standards and procedures.

- The DDGO guides Heads of DOs on the integration of global priorities into corporate, regional, subregional and country programmes and projects.