50 Years of Successful Partnership: The Joint FAO/IAEA Division

October 2014 will mark the long lasting 50 years of partnership between the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and its partner in the UN system, the IAEA. Established in 1964, the objective of the Joint FAO/IAEA Division of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture was to use the talents and resources of both organizations to broaden cooperation between their member countries in applying nuclear technology and related bio technologies to develop improved strategies for sustainable agricultural development and food security. From research laboratories to global agrarian systems, nuclear techniques play a vital and distinct role in agricultural research and advancement. They are used in a wide range of applications, from food preservation to crop production and from soil management to animal disease control. The collaborative work of the Joint Division has over the years helped countries solve practical, as well as costly, problems in a variety of areas. The work addresses the application of isotopes and radiation technology in areas such as soil fertility, irrigation, and crop production; plant breeding and genetics; animal production and health; insect and pest control; the control of food contaminants and other food safety issues; and food preservation. These activities are conceived, planned and executed only once they have been reviewed and endorsed by the IAEA's and FAO's governing bodies. The joint partnership has witnessed numerous successes, which if not addressed would have had disastrous worldwide implications. These successes include: • Global freedom from rinderpest • The use of mutation induction to develop crop varieties with resistance to the wheat rust disease Ug99 • The eradication of the tsetse fly in Zanzibar Island, Tanzania • The establishment of the regional analytical laboratory network for food safety • Water-saving agriculture in seven African countries For almost five decades, the activities supported by the Joint FAO/IAEA Division worldwide have contributed prominently to Member States by helping them to sustainably increase agricultural production, food security and food safety. This model of cooperation within the UN system will undoubtedly continue to produce successes in the years to come.