CIGR Newsletter No 34
CRIPPLING FAO ? NO !
Our profession "agricultural engineering" and consequently the agricultural engineers are also subject to the ups and downs of changing market demands, and which substitutes that can be used. And like any other service and commodity, marketing is a key to better sales and value. The market surpluses of foods in North America, Europe and on some world stock markets from time to time have considerably decreased the interest for agricultural engineering in these parts of the world. No need for further increased production means low level of investments, and consequently a lower level of demand for agricultural engineering services. Job opportunities within the supply businesses for agriculture have decreased a lot, and so have the jobs in public service as extension specialists. Even research and higher education are in the end all hit by the backwave following. But other parts of the world fight with rapidly increasing population, decreasing area of arable land and available water for irrigation. It suffices to mention China, India, Indonesia. Others are doing their very best in a situation dominated by a partial breakdown in infrastructure and organisation of the society, as in many of the developing countries and the former Soviet Union. Here we also see that the need for agricultural engineering is endless, and that research and education for this has high priorities, to the extent that there are resources to put into it. The current situation in the Peoples Republic of China reflects this. Only in Beijing 1,000 new agricultural engineers graduate annually, and they are not the only ones.
In this situation of grave needs for our profession in the developing part of the world, short of infrastructure, energy supply, water supply, tillage and harvesting equipment, transportation, storage, processing and marketing facilities, all of this needing custommade upgrading to fit the socioeconomic needs it is frustrating to learn that FAO will decrease their low level of staff inside Agricultural Engineering. It is still not final, but this is the proposal pending. It means that the organisation that in common for the UN system shall supervise and stimulate all developing nations, and those industrial countries able to aid in that process, will not have people with whom we can communicate. They will not see which shortcomings can easily be solved by more appropriate engineering, and where the total system does not work well because the need for energy, infrastructure, equipment, management or something else is not met.
We cannot let this happen. Please, all of you, find your national representation to FAO, and tell them about all that will not happen if they cut back on such a crucial part of FAO. If you are in need of name and address to use, contact our General Secretariat.
Egil Berge,
President.
