JAPANESE ACTRESS KEIKO KISHI NAMED GOODWILL AMBASSADOR FOR POPULATION FUND
Press Release
POP/617
JAPANESE ACTRESS KEIKO KISHI NAMED GOODWILL AMBASSADOR FOR POPULATION FUND
19960415 NEW YORK, 15 April (UNFPA) -- Keiko Kishi, one of Japan's most prominent movie and stage actresses, will be a "Goodwill Ambassador" for the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).The announcement was made today by Dr. Nafis Sadik, UNFPA Executive Director, who said that Ms. Kishi will represent the Population Fund in her travels throughout the world and, in addition, will film, write and speak out on population issues.
Dr. Sadik said that, as an initial undertaking, Ms. Kishi will visit Viet Nam to observe conditions there and hold discussions with government officials and non-governmental organizations, especially women's groups. Television programmes on her visit are expected to be produced and broadcast in Japan, Viet Nam and elsewhere.
Ms. Kishi's acting career spans more than 40 years. She first achieved fame in the 1950s as the star in the hit movie "Kimi-no-Na-wa" (What's Your Name?). Since then, she has played major roles in many Japanese movies, including "Snow Country" based on the novel by Nobel Prize Winner Yasunari Kawabata.
In 1959, she married Yves Ciampi, a prominent French movie director. She lives in Paris, but visits Japan periodically to appear in movies, television dramas and plays. Ms. Kishi is also an accomplished writer and has won several literary awards, including the coveted Japan Essayist Club Award. In addition, she travels throughout the world making television documentaries on various subjects.
As a UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador, Ms. Kishi will receive a symbolic fee of $1. Other UNFPA Goodwill Ambassadors are Jane Fonda and Ted Turner.
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