(MENAFN-IANS) New Delhi, June 19 (IANS) The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the largest specialized agency of the United Nations focused on agriculture, food security and nutrition policies in the world, is made up of 194 member countries. However, controversy has surrounded the FAO since the election and re-election of Chinese Qu Dongyu as Director-General in 2019.
Recently, in a documentary, a former FAO member claimed that Chinese officials within the organization influence it to achieve geopolitical goals, thereby helping the Chinese government achieve its strategic goals through institutional means.
Qu Dongyu’s election in 2019 was marred by controversy. Prior to his candidacy for FAO, Dongyu served as vice minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs in China. His election saw significant diplomatic efforts by China to ensure his victory.
Reports indicate that developing countries have been pressured by China to disclose their voting intentions. Dongyu won decisively with 108 votes out of 191, but his victory was met with allegations that China had orchestrated it.
One accusation suggested that China had canceled a large African debt, prompting the country to withdraw its application to the FAO. Additionally, China reportedly threatened small developing countries burdened by Chinese debt with economic repercussions if they did not support Dongyu.
After the 2019 elections, FAO underwent significant restructuring and saw an increase in the number of Chinese nationals appointed as directors within its central departments, from two to six under the leadership of Qu Dongyu.
These officials would report their activities to the FAO at the Chinese embassy in Rome, where the FAO headquarters is located.
Paid by the Chinese government, they are supposed to promote Chinese political ideology on international platforms.
Notably, a Chinese national assumed leadership responsibility for the department responsible for overseeing agricultural production and pesticide management.
Under Dongyu’s tenure, a controversial change occurred when the FAO formed a partnership with pesticide manufacturers, contradicting his efforts to minimize reliance on pesticides as a last resort.
In October 2020, FAO signed a strategic agreement with Crop Life International (CLI), a trade association that advocates agricultural technologies including pesticides, even though CLI companies reportedly derive a significant portion of their sales from highly hazardous pesticides linked to environmental damage and poisoning of farmers.
The partnership has drawn strong reactions from environmental activists, with 352 civil society organizations and indigenous groups from 63 countries expressing their concerns to FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu.
Similar objections have been echoed by scientists, researchers and academics. However, Dongyu did not directly address these major concerns, prompting a global environmental justice coalition to urge FAO to end its alliance with CLI.
FAO’s collaboration with pesticide manufacturers and its authorization of pesticide shipments since 2020 was highlighted in an internal document.
It revealed the distribution of many dangerous pesticides in Asian and African countries, which are banned in Western countries due to their high levels of toxicity.
As of late 2019, more than 95.8 percent of pesticides approved and delivered by FAO to East African countries have been scientifically proven to cause serious damage to human health and ecosystems.
Half of these pesticides, authorized urgently to fight locust invasions, contain chlorpyrifos, a chemical known to cause brain damage in children and fetuses, and banned in the EU.
These revelations have raised ethical concerns about FAO’s management practices and China’s growing influence within the organization. Questions regarding the specificity of pesticide approvals remain unanswered by FAO.
FAO Director-General Qu Dongyu has faced further criticism from Western countries for suspending the UN Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) from conducting an independent review of his leadership until ‘after the next FAO elections, in July 2023.
Dongyu’s alignment with Chinese foreign policy in response to the global food crisis exacerbated by the Ukraine conflict has also been condemned by the West, further undermining the FAO’s effectiveness and credibility.
China’s interest in leveraging FAO’s influence in global food dynamics stems from its status as the world’s leading agricultural sector.
Beijing views control of the FAO as crucial to asserting its dominance globally, particularly in the culturally aligned regions of the South, and to advancing its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
The FAO Director-General’s initiatives, such as the Hand in Hand (HiH) Initiative and South-South Cooperation, are seen as serving China’s foreign policy objectives.
In 2021, an EU delegate expressed concerns that the HiH Initiative could monitor social unrest around the world, but requests for clarification from the FAO were rejected.
FAO’s lack of accountability reflects the Chinese government’s autocratic tendencies, which is alarming.
Additionally, the FAO is accused of obstructing the publication of leaked documents unfavorable to Chinese interests in the global market.
Under the leadership of Qu Dongyu and in the face of growing Chinese influence, the FAO appears aligned with Beijing’s national interests, prompting calls from the international community for greater transparency and ethical governance in global agricultural policies.
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