Benjamin Davis, a 62-year-old FAO director, left on 30 September 2026 after 26 years when the UN food agency declined to renew his contract, citing impartialit…
A Spanish American economist who spent 26 years at FAO in Rome, rising to director of the Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division.
UN staff keep their private views, but may not take sides or express convictions publicly on controversial matters, alone or as a group.
A study of food availability in Gaza and its humanitarian-law implications. Davis says staff were told to take it down.
FAO estimated food availability at about 1,470 kcal per person per day during the blockade; 2,297 tonnes a day were needed.
Yes. The IPC Famine Review Committee confirmed famine (Phase 5). It was pushed back after the October ceasefire.
Silent staff gatherings for Gaza hunger victims. Hundreds at the peak; 30 to 40 a week by October 2026. Davis says he was accused of organising them.
Documents seen by Reuters cite breaches of impartiality standards. Davis rejects that.
"We don't allow you to play the game here of human rights... we have the human rights agency in Geneva." He named no one.
A large crowd of staff applauded Davis as he left FAO headquarters. He fears others who joined the vigils could face retaliation.
Internal review, the FAO/WFP Appeals Committee, then possibly the ILO Administrative Tribunal, which can award damages.
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