A Successful Reception for Promotion of an International Year of Plant Health in 2020

Mr Jingyuan Xia, IPPC Secretary; Mr Andrew Doyle, Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Ireland; Ms Aulikki Hulmi, Director of International Relations at Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland; Mr Ralf Lopian, IPPC Contact Point for Finland.

On 4 July 2017, the Government of Finland and the IPPC Secretariat jointly organized a successful reception for promotion of an International Year of Plant Health (IYPH) in 2020 at the margins of the 40th Session of the FAO Conference in Rome. Over 80 participants gathered at the reception, including government officials and representatives, FAO management and staff.

The reception was opened chaired and opened by Ms Aulikki Hulmi, Director for International Relations at the Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. She highlighted that plant health constitutes a priority for the government of Finland, which has decided to champion international efforts to declare 2020 as an International Year of Plant Health in 2020 since 2015. She further thanked FAO and the IPPC Secretariat for their joint efforts in promoting this year, which will greatly contribute to raising awareness on the relevance of plant health at all levels.

Mr Andrew Doyle, Minister of Agriculture of the Republic of Ireland delivered a keynote address, and pointed out how in recent years the risks of pest movement and introduction into new areas have increased dramatically. Increased trade in plant commodities and products and the effects of climate change makes it easier for pests, weeds and disease causing organisms to enter, establish and spread into new environments, and that at the same time, the human and financial resources of plant health services and plant protection research and educational services are being consistently decreasing. He therefore welcomed the draft resolution to declare 2020 as IYPH to raise awareness on these challenges.

Mr Ren Wang, FAO Assistant Director-General, presented a keynote address and recalled the crucial importance of plant health to ensure food security, biodiversity and environment protection and trade, and praised the work done by the Republic of Finland and the IPPC Secretariat in preparing for the declaration of 2020 as IYPH. He further urged all FAO Members to support the draft resolution that would be discussed the following day at the 40th Session of the FAO Conference.

Mr Jingyuan Xia, IPPC Secretary, presented a welcome address by thanking all participants for their support, and recalling that Plant Health is essential in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, as well as the FAO Strategic Objectives. He sincerely hope this initiative could be endorsed at the 40th Session of the FAO Conference.

Mr Ralf Lopian, the IPPC Contact Point for Finland and Chairperson of the IPPC Steering Committee for IYPH 2020, made a brief on IYPH in 2020, and also introduced the promotional IYPH video that had been prepared for the occasion. The direct link can be found here.

Mr Jari Leppä, the Minister of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland, could not join the reception for previous commitments, but had the chance to talk to the IPPC Secretary Xia, and express his appreciation for the IPPC community efforts towards IYPH in 2020.

For more photos of the event, visit this photo gallery.

Finnish Minister of Agriculture Jari Leppä with IPPC Secretary Jingyuan Xia