ABSTRACT
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is the largest of the United Nations (UN) organizations, with a total biennial budget of around US$2.4 billion and a regular staff of around 3,500. The FAO reform process has potentially far-reaching implications for the relationship between the different players, the functioning of the organization, and its mission. This chapter focuses more on the reasons why that process was instigated and the roles of the various players in provoking and shaping it. Besides those players directly involved in the governance or functioning of FAO, a number of other stakeholders play a role, sometimes controversial and often critical, in shaping its activities and outputs. Most important amongst these are nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and the private sector. A new results-oriented strategic framework is central to the reform plan, although in practice FAO is still struggling with the concept and implementation of a results-based management approach and the culture change it demands.
