International Year of Millets Closing Event

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) welcomes your participation in the closing ceremony of the International Year of Millets 2023. The event will take place in a hybrid modality in the Sheikh Zayed Centre at FAO headquarters and online.

Through the Year’s observance, the unique nutritional qualities and agronomic traits of millets were demonstrated, thereby raising awareness and directing critically needed policy attention to their suitability for sustainable crop production systems, especially with minimal inputs and under adverse and changing climatic conditions. Additionally, key business opportunities were validated for diverse actors along the crops’ value chains. The closing ceremony will be an opportunity for stocktaking of the outputs of the year-long observance, for instance: the Background paper, Millets Recipe Book, the Chefs Challenge, Photo Contest, and Stories from Millet Champions. The lessons learned from the considerable co-creation and sharing of knowledge through partnerships and networks, such as the Millets Community of Practice, will also be shared. Finally, the way forward for sustaining the momentum generated through the Year, especially to contribute to efforts to achieve the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, will be articulated.

Interpretation will be provided in the six official languages of FAO and an exhibition will be held in the atrium during the entire week (25 - 29 March).

Agenda

Side Event | 9.30 – 10.30 |

Roundtable discussion: Research and development for the millet sector
Sheikh Zayed Center, Hybrid

Moderator: Fenton Beed, Senior Agricultural Officer, Plant Production and Protection Division, FAO

Agenda Item	Presenter
Opening by moderator	Fenton Beed Senior Agricultural Officer Plant Production and Protection Division FAO
Opening remarks	Chike Mba Deputy Director Plant Production and Protection Division, NSP FAO
Keynote Speech	Rebbie Harawa Director International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) Africa Programme
Roundtable discussion	Panelists: · Fatma Sarsu, Senior Plant Breeder, Joint FAO/IAEA Center of Nuclear Techniques in Food and Agriculture, International Atomic Energy Agency · Tara Satyavathi, Director, ICAR-Indian Institute of Millets Research, India · Giovanni Dinelli, Researcher and coordinator of the EU GREAT LIFE project, University of Bologna, Italy · Fritjof Boerstler, Senior Natural Resources Officer and Global Coordinator of the GEF-7 Impact Programs, FAO
Closing remarks	Fenton Beed Senior Agricultural Officer Plant Production and Protection Division, NSP FAO

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Side event | 10.30 – 11.30 |

Panel discussion: How have millets had an impact on your life?
Sheikh Zayed Center, Hybrid

Moderator: Makiko Taguchi, Agricultural officer, Plant Production and Protection Division, FAO

Agenda Item	Presenter
Welcome	Makiko Taguchi Agricultural officer Plant Production and Protection Division FAO
IYM official video	International Year of Millets 2023 - YouTube
Panel discussion	Panelists: · Abderrahmane Benkhalifa, Researcher, Algeria · Fatmata Binta, Chef and Founder, Fulani Kitchen Foundation, Sierra Leone and Ghana · Hannah Binge, Researcher, Indigenous Grasslands for Grain team, Australia · Naima Dhore, Farmer, Youth, United States of America and Somalia · Patrick Mutepeya, Farmer, Zimbabwe
Q&A
Closing	Makiko Taguchi Agricultural officer Plant Production and Protection Division FAO

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11.45 – 12.30 | Reception & Exhibition & Speaker’s corner
Atrium

Light lunch, visit to the IYM exhibition and interactive discussions in the Speakers’ corner.

·Nate Blum, Chief Executive Officer, Sorghum United, United States of America
·Hannah Binge, Researcher, Indigenous Grasslands for Grain team, Australia
·Tacko Ndiaye, Senior Officer, Inclusive Rural Transformation and Gender Equality Division, FAO

12.30 – 13.00 | Cooking demonstration with chef Fatmata Binta

Atrium

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High-level event | 13.00 – 14.00 |

Official closing ceremony of the International Year of Millets 2023
Sheikh Zayed Center, Hybrid 

Global, regional, national and local achievements of IYM 2023 & future prospects, and awards.

Moderator: Yurdi Yasmi, Special Coordinator, Plant Production and Protection Division, FAO

Agenda Item	Presenter
Welcome by the moderator	Yurdi Yasmi Special Coordinator Plant Production and Protection Division FAO
Opening remarks	QU Dongyu Director-General  FAO
Keynote speech	Maninder Kaur Dwivedi Additional Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, India
Keynote speech	Yaya Adisa Olaitan Olaniran Minister and Permanent Representative of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to FAO
A Year in celebration of millets	Video
Presentation of the IYM Photo Contest winning photo	Video
Way forward	Jacqueline Hughes Director-General International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) India
Closing remarks	Beth Bechdol Deputy Director-General FAO

Webcast