________________________________ FAO Media s[cid:image002.png@01D82743.4A880570] Closing ceremony for International Year of Fruits and Vegetables (IYFV) Thursday 24 February 2022, 13:00-14:30 CET What The year 2021 was designated by the United Nations General Assembly as the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables<https://www.fao.org/fruits-vegetables-2021/en/> with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) as the lead agency. The year-long celebration, in partnership with other relevant agencies and organizations, has proven to be a unique opportunity to underscore the importance of fruits and vegetables, also in the context of the global recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).<https://www.fao.org/sustainable-development-goals/en/> When On Thursday, 24 February 2022 from 13:00 to 14:30 CET, FAO will host the virtual closing ceremony for the International Year of Fruits and Vegetables 2021, through the virtual conferencing platform Zoom. Why Fruits and vegetables are good sources of dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals, and can help lower risk factors for non-communicable diseases, such as overweight/obesity, chronic inflammation, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. But the benefits of fruits and vegetables extend beyond human nutrition. Their cultivation can help improve the quality of life for small-scale family farmers and rural communities by sustaining livelihoods, generating income and enhancing resilience through the sustainable management of natural resources such as soil and water. How to participate Journalists can pre-register to join the closing event here<https://fao.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMsf-yvrjIsHdIrjwqeUtEisIMYO31f_AbM> or follow the webcast here<https://www.fao.org/webcast/home/en/item/5754/icode/>. Who will participate FAO Director-General QU Dongyu, will open the ceremony which will include a video message by UN Secretary General António Guterres. Speakers include: · Raquel Arbaje de Abinader, First Lady of the Dominican Republic · Stefano Patuanelli, Minister of Agricultural, Food and Forestry Policies of Italy; · Jose Ignacio Pinochet, Vice Minister of Agriculture of Chile. · Peter Munya, Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock Development, Fisheries and Cooperatives of Kenya The event will also feature a panel discussion including: · Patricia Araya, Alternate Representative, Permanent Mission of Chile to the Rome-based UN Agencies; · Dilara Koçak, a social media influencer from Turkey; · Sylvia M. Kuria, a young farmers’ leader engaged in the organic movement in Kenya; · Tahmina Isayeva, Food Hero<https://www.fao.org/world-food-day/food-heroes/en> and entrepreneur, Azerbaijan; · Benny M. Corcolon, Vice President, Research and Development, Tagum Agricultural Development Company, Inc., the Philippines; · Ted M. DeJong, Distinguished Professor and Pomologist Emeritus, Department of Plant Sciences, University of California-Davis, USA. The wrap-up event will be moderated by Marcela Villareal, Director, Partnerships and UN Collaboration Division, FAO. Live interpretation in all six FAO languages will be provided through the webcast<https://www.fao.org/webcast/home/en/item/5754/icode/> and the audience will be able to engage through the webinar<https://fao.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMsf-yvrjIsHdIrjwqeUtEisIMYO31f_AbM> chat function. PRE-REGISTER TO JOIN THE CLOSING EVENT HERE<https://fao.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMsf-yvrjIsHdIrjwqeUtEisIMYO31f_AbM> FOLLOW THE LIVE WEBCAST HERE<https://www.fao.org/webcast/home/en/item/5754/icode/> EVENT PROGRAMME AVAILABLE HERE<https://digital-assets.fao.org/home/action/browseItems?categoryId=136902&categoryTypeId=2&cachedCriteria=1> IYFV RESOURCES International Year of Fruits and Vegetables <https://www.fao.org/fruits-vegetables-2021/en/> SOCIAL MEDIA Trello Board<https://trello.com/b/81KXB2vR/international-year-of-fruits-and-vegetables-2021> #FruitsVegYear FOLLOW ON TWITTER @FAO FAO NEWSROOM +39 06 570 53625 [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> Journalists & editors: For photos, audio clips, video material & b-roll, contact: (+39) 06 570 53625 or [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>. Online tools: Photos via the FAOnews Flickr account<http://www.flickr.com/photos/faonews> RSS feed<http://www.fao.org/news/rss-feed/en/> of FAO news releases @FAOnews on Twitter<https://twitter.com/faonews/> This media advisory was issued by the Media Office at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). To unsubscribe from this news service send an email to [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]> with "signoff Media-G-Eng-L" as the only text in the message body. FAO | Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, 00153 Rome, Italy | (+39) 06 570 53625 | www.fao.org<http://www.fao.org>