World Food Day 2020: time to reflect and pay tribute

Food is essential for life. This simple statement has seldom resonated with so many as on this World Food Day 2020, when hundreds are dealing with the widespread effects of COVID-19.

World Food Day 2020 also marks FAO’s 75th anniversary. The organization was founded during the post World War II reconstruction period, and its mission remains as relevant as ever. 2020 celebrations are dedicated to the food heroes: from farmers to drivers, shop assistants, food bank and government representatives, who under difficult circumstances continue to provide food to their communities and beyond, helping to grow, nourish and sustain our world.

In New York, FAO, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and the World Food Programme (WFP), with the support of Canada, Italy, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, co-organized an event to champion global cooperation and solidarity in the face of the threats that COVID-19 is posing to food security and agricultural livelihoods.

The event opened with a rendition of Edward Grieg’s “Morning Mood” by the United Nations Orchestra. Music Director Predrag Vasić invited participants to “visualize the coming of a new dawn that will revive our respect for humanity.”

Joining the celebration via video message,the President of the 75th session of the UN General Assembly, Volkan Bozkir, underlined the critical role FAO plays in addressing hunger and improving nutrition, as the oldest permanent specialized agency of the UN.

The UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, used his message to emphasize the need to intensify efforts towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. “In a world of plenty, it is a great affront that hundreds of millions go to bed hungry each night,” he noted.

In his opening remarks, the President of the UN Economic and Social Council, and Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the UN in New York, Munir Akram, referenced the role of the High-Level Political Forum in launching FAO’s flagship publication The State of Food Security and Nutrition the World, and referred to the World Food Day 2020 as an opportunity “to work together and scale up collective solutions to advance sustainable development.”

The Permanent Representative of Italy to the UN, and Chair of the Group of Friends of Food Security and Nutrition, Mariangela Zappia, noted that even though many remarkable results have been achieved in the past 75 years, there is no room for complacency. “It is fundamental to focus on workers in the food supply chains, as well as on small-holder farmers and on the workforce involved in the processing and distribution of food,” she said in support of food heroes.

These thoughts were echoed by the Permanent Representative of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to the UN, Inga Rhonda King, conveyed the need to reposition food systems and invest in farmers, as we seek to rebuild from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The World Food Day 2020 event in New York was chaired by the Director of the FAO Liaison Office with the United Nations, Carla Mucavi, who  the Deputy Permanent Representative of Canada to the UN, Louise Blais called a “veritable food hero”. Blais made sure to highlight the importance of inclusiveness in food security efforts, in a way that would take into special consideration the needs of women, youth, indigenous peoples, and migrant workers.

The City of New York was very well presented in the event. Commissioner for International Affairs, Penny Abeywardena explained how the Bill de Blasio administration has confronted the pandemic by appointing a Food Czar, and establishing hundreds of food hubs for school children and adults.
Further to that effect, the Director of Food Policy, Kate MacKenzie, expressed the City’s commitment on reorganizing social protection systems with a special focus on food systems that will help create a more resilient and green city.

“World Food Day is a critical moment to take stock of our progress in achieving Zero Hunger,” said the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the 2021 Food Systems Summit, Agnes Kalibata. In her video statement, Kalibata also commended FAO for making the world “a safer, healthier and more prosperous place,” noting that “We continue to need this leadership now as much as ever. ”

A special moment in the event involved a retrospective storytelling of FAO’s legacy, presented by Special Representative of the Director-General, Daniel Gustafson. He reminded everyone that the founders of FAO were visionaries, focused on freeing the world from hunger. “Now we need to take their vision a step further, and include the roles of sustainability and quality nutrition,” he said.

The interactive panel was moderated by the Director of WFP’s Division for the UN System & Multilateral Engagement, Coco Ushiyama, who reiterated the UN system’s commitment in preventing the COVID-19 health crisis from becoming a food crisis.

The President of the Fund for the Development of the Indigenous Peoples of Latin America and the Caribbean, Myrna Cunningham Kain, underlined that indigenous people are food heroes who have managed to face COVID-19 by securing food and following sustainable diets, based on local nature.

Urban Farm Manager at Randall's Island Park Alliance, Ciara Sidell, noted that small and sustainably-runned urban farms were able to respond fairly nimbly and quickly to the growing food needs that came about during the pandemic. “Connecting with our community became essential, and working with the food heroes at pantries was our privilege,” she said.

Marie Rose Umutoni spoke from Rwanda where she supports the Joint Programme for Rural Women Economic Empowerment, a programme implemented by WFP, FAO, IFAD, and UN Women. “Interventions like green-house farming & small-scale irrigation for climate-smart agriculture have enabled Rwanda’s rural women to avail different types of food at household level, diversify their source of income, and create more assets to secure their livelihoods,” explained Umutoni.

The event was very well attended, with interventions from the floor by Brazil, Chile and Russia.

It concluded with remarks by the Head of IFAD’s New York Liaison Office, Teresa Liu, who reflected on what was said by reckoning that we need “to rebuild our food systems to be more inclusive, resilient, green, and sustainable for all.”

More information on the World Food Day 2020 New York event, including speaker bios and a photo album, is available here.