4 February 2020, Rome - How does a special day look like? What makes a year or a decade be remembered by history? The United Nations have designed a wealth of days, years and decades to mark the relevance of the fulfilment of human rights.

At the global level, a long record of events, campaigns and declarations have a common thread: the realization of the human right to adequate food. These activities offer an opportunity to increase awareness about the importance of this human right, so that governments meet their obligations to fulfill it and people claim theirs rights.

Antonio Correa Do Prado, director of the Social Policies and Rural Institution Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), recalled that the 2030 Agenda is explicitly grounded in human rights. “Adopting a human rights-perspective, as well as a meaningful change in food policy, leads to a fairer world in which no one is left behind”, he added.

The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 10 December as Human Rights Day in 1950, commemorating the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Since then, support to these initiatives has considerably grew, renewing global commitments to eradicate hunger and malnutrition. Indeed, these occasions are an extraordinary opportunity to increase visibility at the highest level, strengthen strategic alliances and advise States on actions to take.   

These outreach campaigns build on results-based planning and management. Programmes agree on strategies, performance indicators and resources allocation that are regularly reviewed and evaluated, and subjected to adjustments as necessary.

Linking the right to food to global concerns

Various social dimensions, which contribute to the realization of the right to food, are annually and worldwide recognized, including the International Women's Day, World Water Day or World Day Against Child Labour.

2020 it is the International Year of Plant Health. It acknowledges that, as plants make up 80 percent of the food we eat, protecting plant health can help end hunger, reduce poverty and boost economic development.

Also long term happenings have been recently launched: the SDG Decade of Action 2020-2030, Decade of Action on Nutrition 2016–2025, the International Decade for People of African Descent 2015–2024 and the Decade of Family Farming 2019–2028, which continues the legacy of the International Year of Family Farming in 2014.

The list does not end here. 2022 has been designated as the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture, 2021 as the International Year of Fruit and Vegetables, 21 May as International Tea Day and 29 September as International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste, following requests made by FAO Conference. 

All those efforts come in addition to World Food Day, which last year encourauge to make healthy, sustainable diets affordable and accessible for all.