International Day of Nowruz: Culinary exhibition and musical performance

Ambassador Sadiqov,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen:

A warm welcome to today’s event to celebrate Nowruz. When the General Assembly adopted a resolution in 2010 recognizing 21 March as the International Day of Nowruz it encouraged Member States to raise awareness and to organize annual events to honour the day. I sincerely thank the Permanent Mission of Azerbaijan for taking the lead in organizing today’s festivities. Thank you also to the other 11 Permanent Missions¹ for their support. Having joined hands in making today’s celebration possible, they have reinforced the symbolism of this special day for friendship and solidarity that transcend borders, cultures and religions.

Nowruz is celebrated each year by more than 300 million people around the world. The tradition to mark the first day of spring and the New Year in the Balkans, the Black Sea Basin, the Caucasus, Central Asia, the Middle East and other regions goes back more than 3,000 years. This longstanding tradition has been recognized by UNESCO placing Nowruz on its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

Today, on the day of Nowruz, day and night are equally long. From now on, the daylight period starts to be longer again. Nowruz which literally means “New Day” therefore stands for a new beginning. It is about nature blossoming and starting to grow. And it is about renewal, about hope and about optimism.

As we begin this New Year, the world is faced with important challenges. Actors here in International Geneva will have a crucial role to play in helping to resolve situations of conflict, of abuses of human rights and of inequality and lack of development prospects. Let’s all be inspired and use this new energy transpiring through Nowruz to reenergize our collective efforts to make the world a more peaceful place where people can live in full enjoyment of their rights and prosper economically, socially and culturally.

Happy Nowruz to everyone!







¹ Permanent Missions of Afghanistan, Albania, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan