FAO bestows B.R. Sen Award to two of its most outstanding experts in Asia in recognition of their tireless efforts on
food security policy and nutrition work in Bangladesh
10/06/2015, Rome, Italy – FAO’s work with the Government of Bangladesh to improve food security and nutrition policy and practices has resulted
in two FAO specialists receiving the Organization’s highest achievement awards in back-to-back years, FAO announced
today.
Lalita Bhattacharjee, an FAO nutrition specialist working toward improvements in nutrition policy and practices in
Bangladesh, has won the 2014 FAO B.R. Sen Award, while Ciro Fiorillo, an FAO manager and agricultural and development
economist, has received the 2013 B.R Sen Award for exceptional leadership provided to the National Food Policy Capacity
Strengthening Program in Bangladesh. The work of both officials was supported by resource partners the EU and USAID.
The B.R. Sen Award was established by FAO in 1968 to honour the hard work of staff in the field and in recognition of
the role of former Director-General B.R. Sen (1956 – 1967), who transformed FAO from a study organization to a
development agency. Although the award is annual, the winners are announced during the FAO Conference, held every two
years, and underway this week in Rome.
2014 B.R Sen Award – Improvements to nutrition from policy level to the home
Bhattacharjee, a national of India and holder of a PhD in Foods and Nutrition, has worked across multiple levels of
policy and society in Bangladesh helping to create and strengthen a sense of ‘nutrition orientation’ in household food
security, horticulture and integrated agriculture and health based interventions.
“Lalita Bhattacharjee has exuded passion and practical expertise in bridging the gap between science, local knowledge
and policy,” said Hiroyuki Konuma, FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for Asia and the Pacific.
“Her tireless work with policy makers and communities on improved nutrition outcomes has been of particular benefit to
households, women and children,” said Konuma. “As lead FAO Nutritionist in Bangladesh, Bhattacharjee has been a leader
of the national debate on nutrition as a development objective placing the issue of ‘food-based nutrition’ high on the
agriculture, food and nutrition policy agenda.”
Bhattacharjee’s work included the development and promotion of improved local nutritious recipes to enhance dietary
diversity directly, as well as helping to shape a generation of food-based nutrition leaders/change agents among
government ministries, academia and research institutions. Bhattacharjee personally mentored multi-sectoral ‘thematic
teams’ within government to analyze the relationship between policies and nutrition outcomes. The manual of
complementary food recipes was launched by the prime minister of Bangladesh and is now being used as a training tool at
sub national and community levels.
2013 B.R. Sen Award – Pragmatic policy developments and partnerships to end hunger and malnutrition
Fiorillo, a national of Italy and holder of a PhD in Agricultural Policy, led a team of 25 national and international
FAO professionals that jointly provided technical and capacity development support to the Government of Bangladesh and
its partners in establishing a leading example of comprehensive policy assistance that inspired the formulation and
implementation of FAO Strategic Objective 1 which aims to end food insecurity and malnutrition.
“Fiorillo’s outstanding managerial, motivational and technical skills delivered high quality and timely support that
concretely and pragmatically responded to national needs in building up a concerted multi-disciplinary effort and
formulating a comprehensive food security policy, which was further translated into an investment plan and attracted
large external funding resources for implementation,” said Konuma. “His work led to the establishment of partnerships
and shaped shared visions between government, civil society, research institutions and development partners that allowed
Bangladesh to become the first country in Asia to adopt a Country Investment Plan for Agriculture, Food Security and
Nutrition. This is recognized regionally and globally as a leading example of how institutional and policy reforms can
advance towards eradicating hunger and malnutrition.”
Fiorillo’s work involved setting-up a composite institutional mechanism for inter-sectoral and multi-stakeholder
collaboration and coordination at political and technical levels bringing together 17 divisions from 14 ministries,
civil society organizations as well as private sector and development partners. He led an extensive research programme
of USD 1.7 million, engaging 130 national civil society organizations in producing 60 policy-focused research projects
as knowledge for national multi-stakeholder dialogue to inform policy formulation, investment planning and monitoring.
Bangladesh now has a comprehensive food security and nutrition policy, and a Country Investment Plan for Agriculture,
Food Security and Nutrition, that has enabled the government to mobilize nearly USD 8 billion between 2010 and 2013,
more than a third of which has come from international donors.
ENDS