C44 SPECIAL EVENT The FAO Champion and FAO Partnership Award Ceremony 2025 Opening Remarks

Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

I am so delighted to welcome you to the FAO Awards Ceremony during a year of great significance – FAO’s 80^th Anniversary.

For eight decades, FAO has worked hand in hand with governments, communities, and individuals to improve global food security and build a world free from hunger.

But we know this journey is not ours alone.

Every step forward has been made possible by those with whom we work closely - our Food Heroes, our partners, and our champions.

These Awards are more than an acknowledgement of achievements - they represent FAO’s core values and aspirations.

Today, I am pleased to present the FAO Champion and Partnership Awards, two of the Organization’s top recognitions for those making a lasting impact on agrifood systems.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The FAO Champion Award honours institutions whose transformative efforts have significantly advanced sustainable development.

The National Confederation of Artisanal Fisheries of Colombia has brought the voices of more than 800 fisher groups to national policy.

They helped secure social protection under national legislation and restored 83 wetlands.

Their concept of Aquatic Agrifood Ecosystems now forms part of Colombia’s National Development Plan - a testament to innovation rooted in tradition.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The FAO Partnership Award recognizes bold collaboration and collective impact.

The Egyptian Food Bank has supported over 24 million people, mobilizing food assistance, nutrition education, and economic empowerment for farmers and local communities.

Their integrated model strengthens resilience and policy across the country.

Congratulations to both awardees!

Dear Friends,

Today’s ceremony is a celebration of possibility and hope of what happens when commitment and innovation meet the urgent call to transform global agrifood systems.

These awardees remind us that transformation is already happening and must accelerate.

As we mark this 80-year milestone, let us also look forward together, with even greater determination, to build a world where no one is left behind.

To all the winners: thank you for your extraordinary contributions!

Congratulations once again and let us continue working hand in hand for the transformation of global agrifood systems to be more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable,

And the Four Betters: Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment, and a Better Life – leaving no one behind.

Thank you!