IPPC gears up for 17th session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures in March

Rome, 14 February 2023. Preparations are under way for the 17th session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM), the governing body of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC). CPM sessions are held annually to promote cooperation among IPPC’s 184 contracting parties and for the CPM to review the work progress of subsidiary bodies and the IPPC Secretariat towards achieving the IPPC strategic objectives.

CPM-17 is set to adopt four International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs) including, 1) Draft annex to ISPM 20: Guidelines for a phytosanitary import regulatory system: Use of specific import authorizations (2008-006); 2) Draft revision of ISPM 18: Requirements for the use of irradiation as a phytosanitary measure (2014-007); 3) Draft 2021 amendments to ISPM 5: Glossary of phytosanitary terms (1994-001); and 4) Draft annex to ISPM 28: Irradiation treatment for Pseudococcus jackbeardsleyi (2017-027).

The Standards Committee, Implementation and Capacity Development Committee, the IPPC Secretariat, working groups, technical panels and task forces will also be presenting the progress made on their respective workplans in the past year.

CPM sessions attract around 400 participants from national and regional plant protection organizations and IPPC partners every year. CPM-17 will be held in-person this year at the FAO Headquarters in Rome after previous sessions were held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

For more information, please see the dedicated CPM-17 webpage on the International Phytosanitary Portal. Contracting parties are encouraged to read the papers to be presented ahead of time as they become available in six different languages including Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish.

All ISPMs that are up for adoption are available in six languages. The period for contracting parties to submit objections is now open. See the IPPC Call for Objections, procedures and forms here.

Related information:

New standards to curb the global spread of plant pests and diseases (fao.org)