The 2019 IPPC Regional Workshop for the Near East and North Africa

Opening Ceremony of the 2019 IPPC Regional Workshop for the Near East and North Africa which took place in Beirut, Lebanon © NEPPO

2 September 2019, Beirut -The 2019 IPPC Regional Workshop for the Near East and North Africa (NENA) was held in Beirut, Lebanon from 2 to 5 September 2019. Thirty-five representatives and observers attended the workshop. They came from 16 IPPC contracting parties, as well as from the FAO Plant Production and Protection Division (AGP-AG), the FAO Regional Office for the Near East and North Africa Region (FAO-RNE), the Near East Plant Protection Organization (NEPPO), the Arab Society for Plant Protection (ASPP) and the IPPC Secretariat.

Mr Maurice Saade (FAO Representative in Lebanon) welcomed all the participants to the workshop. He said that the IPPC, through the Standards Committee (SC) and Expert Working Group, had developed International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs) that helped address global plant health issues. He added that the IPPC Regional Workshop allowed representatives from National plant protection organizations (NPPOs) to provide further inputs on these standards, as well as develop their capacity.

Dr Hassan Lakiss (the Minister of Agriculture of Lebanon) expressed his warm welcome to all participants. He highlighted that this workshop was a good opportunity for participants to increase their capacity to protect plant resources and share experiences related to standard setting.

Dr Jingyuan Xia (IPPC Secretary) expressed his appreciation for the excellent organization of the Workshop. He highlighted three key points for all participants to keep in mind:

• how to implement the IPPC Strategic Framework for 2020-2030;

• how to promote the 2019 IPPC annual theme “Plant health and capacity development”; and

• how to fully promote the International Year of Plant Health (IYPH) in 2020.

Mr Shoki Al-Dobai (FAO AGP-AG representative), Mr Mekki Chouibani (IPPC-SC representative), and Mr Mamoun Al Bakri (IPPC Implementation Committee (IC) representative) provided updated information on the recent Committee on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM-14); as well as the SC and IC meetings.

Participants reviewed and provided comments on four draft ISPMs undergoing a second consultation and one in its first round of consultation. They also discussed the IPPC Online Comment System (OCS), the IPPC Strategic Framework 2020-2030, the IYPH 2020, and the IPPC e-Phyto. They agreed that the new framework provided clear scientifically sound priorities for the next 10 years, and IPPC ePhyto would play an important role in facilitating international trade.

The 2019 IPPC Regional Workshop for NENA Region was financially supported by the IPPC Global Project on Capacity Development under the Framework of FAO-China South- South Cooperation Programme. It was jointly organized by IPPC Secretariat, FAO-RNE, NEPPO and the Ministry of Agriculture of Lebanon.

Participants at the 2019 IPPC Regional Workshop for NENA in Beirut, Lebanon © FAO