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UN Specialised Agencies

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN works to alleviate poverty and hunger by promoting agricultural development and better nutrition.  It aims to improve global ‘food security’ so that all people have access to the food they need for an active and healthy life at all times.

WAGGGS has actively cooperated with FAO for many years and was granted Liaison Status in 1968.

WAGGGS and FAO have jointly created the FAO/WAGGGS Nutrition Medal for Girl Guides and Girl Scouts working on food and nutrition projects. The FAO/WAGGGS Nutrition Medal was presented on World Food Day 1995 in recognition of WAGGGS’ key role in improving nutrition and supporting the FAO’s goal to eradicate hunger and malnutrition for those living in extreme poverty worldwide. 

All Member Organizations can apply for a medal under the Award Scheme by demonstrating that it has implemented an outstanding project in the field of food and nutrition improvement and education. You can download the form the apply for the FAO/WAGGGS Nutrition Medal. You can request the form in Word format from Vanessa Greig on vanessa@wagggsworld.org.

The UN team, Rome collaborates with FAO in disseminating educational materials and carrying out projects related to FAO’s Feeding Minds, Fighting Hunger initiative. The initiative gave rise to a national project on nutrition issues by the Italian Scouting Federation involving 180,000 Scouts and Guides. 

FAO and WAGGGS collaborate on the joint youth education project ’The Right to Food: A Window on the World’. Have a look at the online version of the Right to Food - A Window on the World or download it from the resources section. Due to this success, FAO and WAGGGS signed a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen collaboration on information and awareness-raising among young people about food security, health and nutrition, the Right to Food, environmental protection and HIV/AIDS prevention. 

WAGGGS also works closely with the International Alliance against Hunger, a voluntary association of national and regional alliances of both developing and developed countries, international institutions and individuals working towards eradicating hunger and poverty. The UN team, Rome has been actively involved in the International Alliance against Hunger and the follow-up of the World Food Summit ‘five years later’.

The FAO is currently compiling a directory of worldwide initiatives on the fight against hunger. WAGGGS members are asked to submit information to Bernadette Fischler at the World Bureau, Email: bernadette@wagggsworld.org or Fax: +44 (0) 20 7431 3764.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)

 

The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization was created to contribute to peace and security in the world by promoting collaboration among nations through education, science, culture and communication.

Its activities promote education for all, cultural development, protection of the world’s natural and cultural heritage, international cooperation in science, press freedom and communication.

UNESCO promotes not only formal education systems, but also informal and non-formal education.  It also emphasises that any approach to education should be geared to full development of the individual throughout life.

The UN team, Paris works closely with UNESCO, with which WAGGGS enjoys ‘relations’ which means that they can attend meetings but that they have no voting rights.

The UN team, Paris also works with the Collective Consultation of NGOs on Literacy and Education for All; the Collective Consultation of NGOs on Youth; and the Collective Consultation of NGOs on Women, Girls and Gender Equality.

WAGGGS is exploring the possibility of launching an international education project with UNESCO in the near future.

World Health Organization (WHO)

The World Health Organization co-ordinates programmes aimed at solving health problems and the attainment by all people of the highest possible level of health*. It works in such areas as immunization, health education and the provision of essential drugs.

*Health, as defined in the WHO constitution, is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

WAGGGS and WOSM jointly published a book Facts for Life in cooperation with the UNESCO, UNICEF and the World Health Organization. The book aims to help reduce the death toll of children in the world by exploring issues such as safe motherhood, child growth, immunization, home hygiene, malaria and AIDS.

The UN team, Geneva attends meetings at WHO. The WAGGGS Team in New York has representation at the regional office in the Americas — PAHO.

The World Health Organization agreed to be one of WAGGGS’ partners for the WAGGGS Initiative on the Prevention of Adolescent Pregnancy.

The World Bank Group

The World Bank is one of the world’s largest sources of development assistance. It provides loans and technical assistance to developing countries to reduce poverty and advance sustainable economic growth.

It works in 183 countries, funding 164 education projects in 82 countries, with the primary focus of helping the poorest people and the poorest countries.

The World Bank is also a cosponsor of UNAIDS and has committed more than US$1.7 billion to help combat the spread of HIV/AIDS around the world. It also invests heavily in people through health, nutrition and population projects in the developing world.

Five young WAGGGS’ representatives attended a World Bank Consultation ‘Youth Development and Peace’ in Paris in September 2003.  The purpose of the Consultation was to give the World Bank input from young people into its planning for its Children and Youth Strategy and to present to the World Bank Chairman a series of priority actions. WAGGGS representatives came from the UK, Australia, Sri Lanka, Antigua and Barbuda and Jordan.

In 2006 WAGGGS’ representatives attended the pre-launch discussion of the ‘World Development Report 2007: Development and the Next Generation’ published by the World Bank together with the Commonwealth Secretariat. On this occassion WAGGGS explored possibilities of co-operation on projects with the World Bank to follow-up this report.