Recent Drops In The Stock Market Essays - Stock Market, Capitalism

Recent Drops In The Stock Market Recently, the stock market has been very unstable. After a period of extremely good business and market highs, it seems we are experiencing just the opposite. The market has become increasingly unsure and risky, even with well known companies. I believe the shift in the stock market is based partly with the oil crisis caused by OPEC and partly with constant bad reports presented by companies. Maybe if assessment firms gave good reports more often than bad ones, the market would go up. The market is such a roller coaster now that it is virtually impossible to predict even the most trustworthy stocks like Wal-Mart or Yahoo!. For instance, the technology company Sony, which just released a new video game system, has dropped like a rock on the market. In three days, their stock dropped over six points. Considering they have a brand new, highly recommended gaming system, shouldnt their stock be going up? They claim to have under-shipped, but what kind of excuse is that? The public knows that a large and powerful company like Sony has the

Deferred Tax Essay Example

Deferred Tax Essay Example Deferred Tax Essay Deferred Tax Essay Financial statements The article Its time to simplify tax financial reporting was written by Terry J. Ward in the year 1996. The article was published on November 11 in the Audit and Accounting Forum section in the newspaper the Accounting Today. It focuses on controversies that surrounded the reporting of income tax on financial statements. For example, in early 1950, there was an argument that suggested that companies should allocate an amount of income tax expense across accounting periods to account for timing differences between reported and taxable income. The Financial Accounting Standards Board issued Statement 109 that required assets and liabilities to interperiod income tax allocation (Ward, 1996). The statement was not operational because one could neither verify nor disprove any revenue tax distribution and it was not useful to investors or lenders. Studies have shown that deferred tax allocation reduces the usefulness of accounting information because it violates the costs and benefits cons train principles. The Flow-through approach is simple and saves companies the additional record keeping cost associated with deferred tax allocation (Ward, 1996). Reporting of income tax should be simplified, useful to all parties that use and meet all the standards of the FASB. The reporting of income tax should me be simplified (Ward, 1996). Reporting deferred tax in the financial statement is not simple because of it is complex and not logic to estimate taxable or deductible amount in future years. For example, only deferred tax expense is presented in the Income Statement while in the Balance Sheet two categories are presented that is net current and net non-current amount. Moreover, it not logic to use losses of past years to offset the profit of another year as per the use of loss carryback and loss carryforward. Therefore, a person cannot tell what the future holds only God knows. Estimate the net operating loss is difficult because two years are carried back and twenty years are passed forward. Deferred tax violates the cost and benefit constraints standards of the FASB (Ward, 1996). Tax benefit realization will be limited if loses carried back or carried forward period is brief. Moreover, if the significant deductible temporary difference is expected to reverse in a single year or when the enterprise operates in a traditionally cyclical business, these factors will also limit the realization of tax benefit. Additionally, the unsettled circumstances that are unfavorably resolved will adversely affect the forthcoming operation and profit level on continuing basis in the future. Financial reporting Accounting for income tax is not of any importance to its various users especially the lenders and investors (Ward, 1996). Creditors and investors are not interested in the future information of the company but are rather interested in how the firm has been and is performing in their decision making. Moreover, core aspects are left behind while computing the income tax. For example, according to IFRS, some potential liabilities are not recognized whereas, GAAP uses an impairment approach for deferred tax asset. Also, it is hard for some uninformed investors or lenders to understand the deferred tax while presented in the various books of record. I agree with the writers opinion that financial reporting should be simplified. Simplified financial reporting will ensure that people are able to compute and understand the financial information. Different approaches should be established to protect the various firms in the industry. For example, small companies should use the simplest method available. I believe when reporting financial information relevant information concerning the business should be presented to the appropriate people as per the FASB principles. References Ward, J. T. (1996 November 11). Its time to simplify tax financial reporting. Accounting Today. Page 18-19

Colleges Where 75% of Students Score 30 - 36 on the ACT

Colleges Where 75% of Students Score 30 - 36 on the ACT When youre considering to which college or university to apply, sometimes its helpful to browse through schools who have students scoring similarly on the ACT as you did. If your ACT scores are completely lower or higher than 75% of the students who were accepted to a particular school, perhaps youd be better off searching for a school where students are more in your range, although exceptions are certainly made all the time. This is a list of colleges and universities where 75% of the accepted students scored above or at a 30 - 36 composite score on the ACT. What does this mean? The following schools are accepting students who are scoring at the top of the ACT range! If you have scored between 30 – 36 and all your other credentials fit – GPA, extracurricular activities, recommendation letters, etc. – then perhaps one of these schools would be a good fit. Please keep in mind that this list is for the composite ACT score – youll see ACT scores a bit lower on particular sections (English, Mathematics, Reading, Science Reasoning), but the composite scores are always between 30 - 36. More ACT Score Information How to Understand Score PercentilesAverage National ACT ScoresACT Scoring 101: Scaled Vs. Raw 1. Amherst College Amherst, MassachusettsWebsite: amherst.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 34 2. Bowdoin College Brunswick, MaineWebsite: bowdoin.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3175th Percentile: 33 3. California Institute of Technology Pasadena, CaliforniaWebsite: caltech.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3375th Percentile: 35 4. Colgate University Hamilton, New YorkWebsite: coldgate.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 32 5. Columbia University New York, New YorkWebsite: columbia.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3275th Percentile: 35 6. Cornell University Ithaca, New YorkWebsite: cornell.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 33 7. Dartmouth College Hanover, New HampshireWebsite: dartmouth.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 34 8. Duke University Durham, North CarolinaWebsite: duke.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 34 9. Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering Needham, MassachusettsWebsite: olin.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3375th Percentile: 34 10. Harvard University Cambridge, MassachusettsWebsite: harvard.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3275th Percentile: 35 11. Harvey Mudd College Claremont, CaliforniaWebsite: hmc.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3375th Percentile: 35 12. Johns Hopkins University Baltimore, MarylandWebsite: jhu.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 33 13. Massachusetts Institute of Technology Cambridge, MassachusettsWebsite: http://web.mit.edu/student/ ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3275th Percentile: 35 14. Middlebury College Middlebury, Vermont Website: middlebury.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 33 15. Northwestern University Evanston, IllinoisWebsite: northwestern.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3175th Percentile: 34 16. Princeton University Princeton, New JerseyWebsite: princeton.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3175th Percentile: 35 17. Rice University Houston, TexasWebsite: rice.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 34 18. Stanford University Stanford, CaliforniaWebsite: stanford.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3175th Percentile: 34 19. Swarthmore College Swarthmore, PennsylvaniaWebsite: swarthmore.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 33 20. Tufts University Medford, MassachusettsWebsite: tufts.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 33 21. University of Chicago Chicago, IllinoisWebsite: uchicago.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3175th Percentile: 34 22. University of Notre Dame Notre Dame, IndianaWebsite: nd.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3175th Percentile: 34 23. University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaWebsite: upenn.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 34 24. Vanderbilt University Nashville, TennesseeWebsite: vanderbilt.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3275th Percentile: 34 25. Washington University in St. Louis Saint Louis, MissouriWebsite: wustl.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3275th Percentile: 34 26. Williams College Williamstown, MassachusettsWebsite: williams.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3075th Percentile: 34 27. Yale University New Haven, ConnecticutWebsite: yale.edu ACT Composite: 25th Percentile: 3175th Percentile: 35

IKEA Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

IKEA - Case Study Example It calls the Netherlands its home and has its head quarters in the place called Lei den that is in the South of Holland. The person that is responsible for giving the world this fine brand and company for manufacturing designer label yet economically affordable furniture is none other than the companies founder Ingvar Kamprad. This man founded this company in the year 1943. He has since then had the help and support from a number of people who have helped bring the company to its internationally renowned status. The name given to this company has been thought of very carefully and hidden in the name are the roots on which this company has flourished and grown to what it is today. The word IKEA is actually comprised of acronyms that are that each alphabet is the initials of the name of the founder and his home town village. That would be Ingvar Kamprad, and home village, Elmtaryd, Agunnaryd. The president of this company is currently Anders Dahlvig along with another name that is Hans Gydell, president of the inter IKEA group. Being a company that deals in the production and sale of low cost home products Ikea is a privately owned company, it is an internationally known and an international company. ... Founded in the year 1943 this company has grown to a world widely famous consumer and household goods producing company and has done so with the hard work and efforts of a number of key people. This company was founded in Sweden to be more exact it was founded in Almhult, Smaland. It calls the Netherlands its home and has its head quarters in the place called Lei den that is in the South of Holland. The person that is responsible for giving the world this fine brand and company for manufacturing designer label yet economically affordable furniture is none other than the companies founder Ingvar Kamprad. This man founded this company in the year 1943. He has since then had the help and support from a number of people who have helped bring the company to its internationally renowned status. The name given to this company has been thought of very carefully and hidden in the name are the roots on which this company has flourished and grown to what it is today. The word IKEA is actually comprised of acronyms that are that each alphabet is the initials of the name of the founder and his home town village. That would be Ingvar Kamprad, and home village, Elmtaryd, Agunnaryd. The president of this company is currently Anders Dahlvig along with another name that is Hans Gydell, president of the inter IKEA group. IKEA 4 IKEA The owner and the franchiser of the IKEA trademark and the concept behind IKEA itself if the company Inter IKEA systems that has the words B.V after it as well. This company that is Inter IKEA systems has its offices and head offices situated primarily in the Netherlands, in Sweden and also in the country Belgium. Several other companies which have complex kinds of ownerships have the

Mate Selection Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Mate Selection - Essay Example (Greenberg, et. al., 2011, p. 73) Communication also involves sexual communication. Intimacy also plays a big role in the success of a relationship. An individual who would like to let another person be a part of his or her life for a long period of time will search for someone who can share his or her views on sex. I think an example of this can be found in the movie The Mirror Has Two Faces starring Barbra Streisand as Rose and Jeff Bridges as Gregory. In this movie, Rose is a plain-looking but witty and charming woman who had been single all her life and would like to find a handsome man to marry. Gregory, on the other hand, is a smart and sexually active professor who is trying to find a life-partner who is plain and not sexually attractive. Because sex is always appealing to him, Gregory is usually in a dilemma with sexually attractive partners because he gets easily distracted and loses focus. The two eventually marry but later separate because Rose is dissatisfied with the lack of intimacy in the marriage. Even if they were able to consequently resolve their sexual problem during the movie, their obvious miscommunication was the main reason for their separation. Another example, this time in real-life, is what happened to someone I know. He is American and married a Japanese woman. After having their child, the wife started sleeping in the child’s room more often than sharing her husband’s bed. The couple also did not have sex as often as they did before. After a year, the American husband filed for divorce. Now, he is married to an American woman who enjoys drinking, rock music and sex like he does. He says it is like being married to himself. An example of a successful relationship based on communication is that of the longest married couple in America. John and Ann Betar of Connecticut celebrated their 80th wedding anniversary in November 2012. (Sher, 2013) When

The Process Of Sending And Receiving Messages

The Process Of Sending And Receiving Messages Business Communication is the process of sending and receiving messages. Effective communication, however, occurs when individuals achieve a shared understanding, stimulate others to take actions, and encourage people to think in new ways. Communication occurs in many forms. You can pick up the phone and have a conversation with your supervisor or leave her a voice-mail message if she is unavailable. You can choose, instead, to write her a memo and send it by e-mail. Beside, she can respond to your message in the form of her choice. Communication can be formal or informal, spoken or written, and internal or external. In every part of business organization, communication provides the vital link between people and information. The ways we communicate is a learned style. As children we learn from watching our parents and other adults communicate. The communication Process consists of a message being sent and received. The message may be verbal or non-verbal. The same basic principles apply whether humans, animals, other forms of life, or combinations of these are involved. Your challenge, as an instructor, is to not merely communication with your students but to communication effectively. Whether you are speaking or writing, listening or reading, communication is more than a single act. The sender has an idea, Senders are individuals who react to situations from a unique vantage point, interpreting ideas and filtering experiences through their own perception. Unique to individual senders, and integral to all the communication they engage in, is a background of accumulated attitudes, experiences, skills, cultural conditioning and individual differences that influences how they communicate. The sender encodes an idea or feeling in words or signs that the receiver will recognize and transmits this message to the receiver. The sender transforms the idea into a message, when you put your idea into a message that your receiver will understand, you are encoding, deciding on the messages form (word, facial expression, gesture), length, organization, tone, and style- all of which depend on your idea, your audience, and your personal style or mood. The sender transmits the message, to transmits your message to your receiver, you select a communication channel such as the telephone, a letter, a memo, an e-mail- even a facial gesture. The receiver decodes or interprets the message to achieve understanding. In doing this, the receiver is also acting as an individual from a unique vantage point, interpreting the idea according to a particular personal perception of the message. The channel and medium you choose depend on your message, the location of your audience, your need for speed, and the formality of the situation. This perception is the result of the receiver unique background of experiences, beliefs, concerns and many other factors. The receiver gets the message, You have no guarantee that your message will actually get through. The receiver may not hear you, for communication to occur, your receiver must first get the message. If you send a letter, your receiver has to read it before understanding it. If youre giving a speech, the people in your audience have to be able to hear you, and they have to be paying attention. The receiver interprets the message, Your receiver must cooperate by decoding your message, absorbing and understanding it. Then the decoded message has to be stored in the receivers mind. If all goes well, the message is interpreted correctly; that is, the receiver assigns the same basic meaning to the words as the sender intended and responds in the desired way. The receiver reacts and sends feedback to the sender, Feedback is your receivers response, the final link in the communication chain. After getting the messages, your receiver responds in some way and signals that response to you. Feedback is the key element in the communication process because it enables you to evaluate the effectiveness of your messages. If your audience does not understand what you mean, you can tell by the response and refine your message. Explain the communication process. How does one ensure that the intended audience has received the right message? As the product manager of a soon-to-be-launched product, explain the methods, the mediums, and the vehicles that you would use the communication with your target audience to persuade them to buy your product. Produce one (1) advertisement for your product. *Student may decide on whatever product that they wish. Formulating a message: Communication is a dynamic process. Your idea cannot be communicated if you ignore, fail, or skip any step in that process. Unfortunately, the process can be interrupted before it really begins-while you are trying to put your idea into words. Several things can go wrong when you are formulating a message, including indecision about the content of your message, lack of familiarity with the situation or the receiver, and difficulty in expressing ideas. Learn about your Audience: You want to create a bridge of words that leads audience members from their rent position to your point. Before you can do so, you have to know something about your audiences current position. What do they know? What do they need to know? If youre addressing strangers, try to find out more about them; if thats impossible, try to protect yourself into their position by using common sense and imagination. Knowing as much as you can about your audience puts you in touch with the needs youll want to satisfy. Different in perception: The world constantly bombards us with information: sights, sounds, scents, and so on. Our minds organize this stream of sensation into a mental map that represents our perception of reality. In no case is the map in a persons mind the same as the world itself, and no two maps are exactly alike. As you view the world, your mind absorbs your experiences in a unique and personal way. For example, if you go out for pizza with friend, each of you will notice different things. As you enter the restaurant, one of you may notice the coolness of the air-conditioning; the other may notice the aroma pizza. Overcoming perceptual barriers can be difficult. Try to predict how your message will be received, anticipate your receivers reactions, and shape the message accordingly-constantly adjusting to correct any misunderstanding. Try not to apply the same solution to every problem, but look for solutions to fit specific problems. Frame your messages in terms that have meaning for your audience, and try to find something useful in every message you receive. Language Problems: When you choose the words for your message, you signal that you are a member of a particular culture or subculture and that you know the code. The nature of your code-your language and vocabulary-imposes its own barriers on your message. For example, the language of lawyer differs from that of an accountant or a doctor, and the difference in their vocabularies affects their ability to recognize and express ideas. To overcome language barriers, use the most specific and accurate words possible. Always try to use words your audience will understand. Increase the accuracy of your messages by using language that describes rather than evaluates and presenting observable facts, events, and circumstances. Keep your Audience focused: You can also help your audience by eliminating any information that doesnt directly contribute to your purpose. Many business messages contain too much material. The sender, in hopes of being thorough, tries to explain everything there is to know about a subject, but most audiences dont need everything. All they need are a few pertinent facts, enough information to answer their question or facilitate their decisions. By keeping your messages as brief and as clean as possible, you make them easier to absorb. Show your Audience how new information relates to existing ideas: The mind absorbs information by categorizing it into mental files. If you want your audiences to understand and remember new ideas, you have to indicate how those ideas are related to the files that already exist in their minds. When the connection with familiar concepts is lacking, the new material tends to get lost, to become mentally misplaced, because it doesnt fit into your audiences filling cabinet. By showing the audience how new ideas relate to familiar ones, you increase the likelihood that your message will be understand correctly. Therefore, connecting new ideas to existing ones also helps make the new concepts acceptable. Minimize Noise: Even the most carefully constructed message will fail to achieve results if it does not reach your audience. As far as possible, try eliminate potential sources of interference. Then make sure your choice of communication channel and medium does not interfere with your message. Choose the method that will be most likely to attract your audiences attention and enable them to concentrate on the message. If a written document seems the best choice, try to make it physically appealing and easy to comprehend. Use attractive, convenient format, and pay attention to such details as the choice of paper and the quality of type. If possible, deliver the document when you know the reader will have time to study it. If the message calls for an oral delivery channel, try to eliminate physical barriers. The location should be comfortable and quiet, with adequate lighting, good acoustics, and few visual distractions. In addition, think about how your own appearance will affect the audience. An outfit that screams for attention creates as much noise as a squeaky air-conditioning system. Another way to reduce interference, particularly in oral communication, is to deliver your message directly to intended audience. The more people who filter your message, the greater the potential for message distortion. Facilitate Feedback: In addition to minimizing noise, giving your audience a chance to provide feedback is crucial. But one thing that makes business communication difficult is the complexity of the feedback loop. If you are talking face-to-face with another person, feedback is immediate and clear. However, if you are writing a letter, memo, or report that will be read by several people, feedback will be delayed and mixed. Some of the readers will be enthusiastic or respond promptly; others will be critical or reluctant to respond, and revising your message to take into account their feedback will be difficult. When you plan a message, think about the amount of feedback you want to encourage. Although feedback is generally useful, it reduces your control over the communication situation. You need to know whether your message is being understood and accepted, but you may not want to respond to comments until you have completed your argument. If you are communicating with a group, you may not have the time to react to every impression or question. Answer for question 2: As a Product Manager of my product which is going to be launch soon, my product is a smart mobile phone IPhone 5.This product can used by different age only for teenagers. This product can communicate with others country by using Face Time. This product is invisible because it is made by class. The product is using Os 5 software that created by me. To promote my product I will use methods, mediums, and vehicles. I will ask the producer to make some cloth banner or PVC banner or leaflet (with really a big font and a logo about my product, my contact number and name) and displaying it at strategic locations. I also will obtain the license from the city council before posting the advertisement. Thus, through this method, I will make sure them to buy my product. The mediums or channels that Im going to use to promote my product are internal communication, external communication and also individuals contact. The Methods that use to promote my product: The first method that use to promote my product is by Flyers. Nowadays, people will use flyers to introduce your business and to announce new offers or promotions. Flyers and leaflets are great way to promote businesses of all sizes. Flyer printing can be a great promotional tool for telling people about the products and services you offer. A flyer or a leaflet is a tangible sales promotion tool that will help your business to stick in the mind of the consumer. The second method that use to promote my product is online advertising. Nowadays internet are famous among teenagers because teenagers is a very fast learner. Online advertising is a very good method because everyone will know what you post such as, Facebook, Twitter, Google, Yahoo, MSN and others. The third method that use to promote my product is by Radio. Did you what is radio? Radio is a common thing that human will use it for everyday because radio will give us a lot of information about general knowledge. Through radio I can advertise my product to world wide. The fourth method that use to promote my product is Hot air balloon. Hot air balloons catch attention because their huge and they fly. The cost of a hot air balloon is quite cheap. I will promote hot air balloon before my product is launch. The fifth method that use to promote my product is Exhibition. Exhibition will get or got in anywhere in the world wide. Exhibition is the place for business man to promote he or her products at there. Flyers : Flyers dont cost as much as other advertising methods but can effectively get your message across to your target audience. By using flyers the clients will recall you about the product and promote awareness. Flyer printing can be a great promotional tool for telling people about the products and services you offer. A flyer or a leaflet is a tangible sales promotion tool that will help your business to stick in the mind of the consumer. There are many different size for flyers. There are many printers that produce flyers in different sizes with the most popular sizes being A4, A5, A6 and DL. Online Advertising: Online advertising will need internet to transfer the advertisement into a post and send it to everyone in world wide. Online advertising is a very good method because everyone will know what you post such as, Facebook, Twitter, Google, Yahoo, MSN and others. The customer or client can order my product or ask / get information about my product, it can help me to attract customer. I also will use online advertising to promote my product through world wide and let everyone know about my product. Radio: Radio is a type of communication to human. Radio can let human by getting some daily news, general knowledge and others information. If the customer is interested in the radio advertisement, he or she will wrote down or listen the information carefully. Lastly, through radio I can advertise my product to world wide and others know about my product. Hot air balloon: Hot air balloon is an object that being release in the sky and it will be floating anywhere in the sky. Hot air balloons catch attention because their huge and they fly. Anything that is visible to the eye and flying is always a novelty but for it to be considered more than just a novelty lies in how the things look like. There are many different shapes for a hot air balloon, such as love shapes, round shapes and others shapes. These types of advertising balloons are becoming increasingly popular as they never fail to catch the eye of any spectator young or old from the road. One advantage of following an advertising balloon campaign is that it can be easily managed. All you will need is having your own balloon with your logo or brand made or rented all you are all good to go. All these make such balloons a very valuable advertising tool that businesses just cannot lay by the wayside. Exhibition: Exhibition is the place that the business man or a producer will promote he/her product at there. you can use your event to hire your product more effectively than many businesses will do at a trade show. Think about the different display options that you can hire to show your products to potential customers at the trade show. Conclusion: In my opinion, Iphone 5 is very cool and have a lot of function which is interest by the youth and teenagers. For the moment, the interest of the youth towards the Iphone 5 is tremendous and they cannot wait for it. Lastly, I hope so my Iphone 5 can satisfied the user and the sales of the Iphone 5 can hit the target sales when it is being launched.

Food and Agriculture Organization Essay

* FAO emblem with its Latin motto, Fiat Panis (â€Å"Let there be bread†) * Organization type – Specialized Agency * Head – Josà © Graziano da Silva (current) * Established – 16 October 1945 in Quebec City, Canada * Headquarters – Rome, Italy * Parent organization – ECOSOC (The world’s economic, social and environmental challenges are ECOSOC’s concern. A founding UN Charter body established in 1946, the Council is the place where such issues are discussed and debated, and policy recommendations issued.) * Members – 191 Member Nations, two associate members and one member organization, the European Union. * Website – www.fao.org The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger. Serving both developed and developing countries, FAO acts as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and debate policy. It is also a source of knowledge and information, and helps developing countries and countries in transition modernize and improve agriculture, forestry and fishery practices, ensuring good nutrition and food security for all. FAO’s Goal Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), specialized United Nations agency whose main goal is to eliminate hunger on a world scale. The organization’s mandate is to: * raise levels of nutrition * improve agricultural productivity * better the lives of rural populations * contribute to the growth of the world economy History of FAO * 1943 Representatives from forty-four governments gathered at the Homestead Hotel, Hot Springs, Virginia (United States), from May 18 to June 3, commit themselves to founding a permanent organization for food and agriculture. * 1945 First session of FAO Conference, Quebec City, Canada, establishes FAO as a specialized United Nations agency. * 1962 The FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission established to set international food standards becomes operational. * 1976 FAO’s Technical Cooperation Program established to afford greater flexibility in responding to urgent situations. * 1981 The first World Food Day observed on 16 October by more than 150 countries. * 1986 AGROSTAT (now FAOSTAT), the world’s most comprehensive source of agricultural information and statistics, becomes operational. * 1994 * Special Program for Food Security (SPFS)   * Emergency Prevention System for Trans boundary Animal and Plant Pests and Diseases (EMPRES) * 1996 FAO hosts 186 Heads of State or Government and other high officials at World Food Summit in November to discuss and combat world hunger. * 1997 FAO launches campaign against hunger initiative TeleFood. TeleFood ’97 reaches a global audience of 500 million. * 2006 FAO unveils its high-tech Crisis Management Centre to fight bird flu and other animal health or food safety emergencies. The service monitors disease outbreaks and dispatches experts to any hot spot in the world in less than 48 hours. Representatives of 96 FAO member countries at the International Conference on Agrarian Reform and Rural Development, in Brazil, make a joint declaration recognizing the role of agrarian reform and rural development for sustainable development. * 2008 FAO holds a high-level conference on 3–5 June on the impact of climate change and the bio fuel boom on food security and food prices. Attended by 43 heads of state and 100 government ministers, the conference adopted a resolution to increase assistance and investment in developing world agriculture. * 2009 As the number of hungry reached 1.02 billion, FAO holds a World Summit on Food Security on 16-18 November to inject new urgency into the fight against hunger. Sixty heads of state and government and 192 ministers unanimously adopt a declaration pledging renewed commitment to eradicate hunger from the Earth at the earliest date * 2011 In a historic victory of veterinary science, FAO and OIE announced that thanks to a decades-long international cooperative effort, the fatal cattle disease known as rinderpest had successfully been eradicated in the wild. In July, FAO declared a state of famine in two regions of Somalia and appealed for US$120 million for response to the drought across the Horn of Africa. FAO Member countries elected Josà © Graziano da Silva of Brazil as Director-General, to take office in January 2012. Structure and Finance 1. Members – An intergovernmental organization, FAO has 191 Member Nations as of 2008, two associate members and one member organization, the European Union. 2. Governance – Representatives of members meet at the biennial FAO Conference to review global governance policy issues and international frameworks, as well as to evaluate work carried out and to approve the budget for the next biennium. The Conference elects Council Members, to serve three-year rotating terms to carry out executive oversight of program and budgetary activities. The Conference also elects a Director-General to a four year term of office, renewable once. The current Director-General, Josà © Graziano da Silva, assumed his functions on 1 January 2012 for a term which expires on 31 July 2015. 3. Departments FAO is composed of eight departments: Administration and Finance, Agriculture and Consumer Protection, Economic and Social Development, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Forestry, Knowledge and Communication, Natural Resource Management and Technical Cooperation. 4. Offices Besides its headquarters in Rome, FAO is present in over 130 countries. The decentralized network includes five regional offices, 11 sub regional offices, two multidisciplinary teams, 74 fully fledged country offices (excluding those hosted in regional and sub regional offices), eight offices with technical officers/FAO Representatives, and 36 countries covered through multiple accreditation. In addition, the Organization maintains five liaison offices and four information offices in developed countries. 5. Programs and projects In 2010, FAO implemented programs and projects with a total value of US$903 million. About four percent are funded by assessed contributions through the FAO Technical Cooperation Program (TCP) and the Special Program for Food Security (SPFS). The remaining 96 percent are funded from voluntary contributions, through the Government Cooperative Program (44 percent), Unilateral Trust Fund (UTF) (six percent), and other forms of Trust Funds (46 percent) that include UN Joint Programs. * Right to Food Guidelines * Response to food crisis * FAO–EU partnership * Food security programs * Emergency response * Early warning of food emergencies * Integrated pest management * Trans boundary pests and diseases * International Plant Protection Convention * Global Partnership Initiative for Plant Breeding Capacity Building * Codex Alimentarius 6. Funding and expenditure FAO’s overall program of work is funded by assessed and voluntary contributions. The assessed contributions are member countries’ contributions, set at the biennial FAO Conference. The FAO regular budget for the 2010-2011 bienniums is US$1 billion. The voluntary contributions provided by members and other partners support technical and emergency (including rehabilitation) assistance to governments, as well as direct support to FAO’s core work. The voluntary contributions are expected to exceed US$1.2 billion in 2010-11. Budget FAO’s Regular Program budget is funded by its members, through contributions set at the FAO Conference. This budget covers core technical work, cooperation and partnerships including the Technical Cooperation Program, knowledge exchange, policy and advocacy, direction and administration, governance and security. This overall budget covers core technical work, cooperation and partnerships, leading to Food and Agriculture Outcomes by 71%; Core Functions by 11%; the Country Office Network by 5%; Capital and Security Expenditure by 2%; Administration by 6%; and Technical and Cooperation Program by 5%. FAO’s activities comprise four main areas: * Putting information within reach. FAO serves as a knowledge network. We use the expertise of our staff – agronomists, foresters, fisheries and livestock specialists, nutritionists, social scientists, economists, statisticians and other professionals – to collect, analyze and disseminate data that aid development. A million times a month, someone visits the FAO Internet site to consult a technical document or read about our work with farmers. We also publish hundreds of newsletters, reports and books, distribute several magazines, create numerous CD-ROMS and host dozens of electronic forum. * Sharing policy expertise. FAO lends its years of experience to member countries in devising agricultural policy, supporting planning, drafting effective legislation and creating national strategies to achieve rural development and hunger alleviation goals. * Providing a meeting place for nations. On any given day, dozens of policy-makers and experts from around the globe convene at headquarters or in our field offices to forge agreements on major food and agriculture issues. As a neutral forum, FAO provides the setting where rich and poor nations can come together to build common understanding. * Bringing knowledge to the field. Our breadth of knowledge is put to the test in thousands of field projects throughout the world. FAO mobilizes and manages millions of dollars provided by industrialized countries, development banks and other sources to make sure the projects achieve their goals. FAO provides the technical know-how and in a few cases is a limited source of funds. In crisis situations, we work side-by-side with the World Food Program and other humanitarian agencies to protect rural livelihoods and help people rebuild their lives.