Handbook for Defining and Setting up a Food Security Information and Early Warning System

In March 2001, the Economic and Social Department of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations released this 135-page document. The handbook focuses on the Food Security Information and Early Warning System (FSIEWS), and includes treatment of the system's structure, advantages, and didactic approach. A FSIEWS "relies on existing monitoring systems for information on the availability of staple production, the stability of supplies, access for all to these supplies and the biological utilization of food." The handbook is divided into three main sections. The first offers an explanation of the FSIEWS method -- definitions, descriptions, and goals of the system. The lengthy second section characterizes the process involved with setting up a Food Security Information and Early Warning System, and provides helpful advice on troubleshooting problems that may arise in creating such a system. The final chapter explains the global importance of FSIEWS