Report of International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC)
to the SPS Committee meeting on 26-28 June 2024
for the Period: march 2024 – june 2024

Communication from the IPPC secretariat

The following communication, received on 29 May 2024, is being circulated at the request of the International Plant Protection Convention secretariat (IPPC).

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The International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) is an intergovernmental treaty signed by 185 contracting parties (as of October 2023), aiming to protect the world's plant resources from the spread and introduction of pests, and facilitate safe trade. The Convention introduced the development and implementation of International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs) as its main tool to achieve its goals, making it the sole global standard setting organization for plant health.

The IPPC is one of the "Three Sisters" recognized by the World Trade Organization's (WTO) Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) Agreement, along with the Codex Alimentarius Commission for food safety standards and the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) for animal health standards.

1  Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM): Eighteenth Session (CPM-18)

1.1.  The eighteenth session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM-18) took place in person on 15-19 April 2024 in the FAO Headquarters, Rome, Italy. It had over 400 attendees from 114 contracting parties, 20 observer organizations including the Regional Plant Protection Organizations (RPPOs). The CPM-18 meeting papers are posted here, as well as the report.[1]

1.2.  As of main decisions and discussions done:

·_        The CPM adopted four International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs): an amended ISPM 5 (Glossary of phytosanitary terms), an annex 1 (Criteria for evaluation of available information for determining host status of fruit to fruit flies) to ISPM 37 (Determination of host status of fruit to fruit flies (Tephritidae)), a revision of ISPM 4 (Requirements for the establishment of pest free areas), a new phytosanitary treatment (Cold treatment for Thaumatotibia leucotreta on Citrus sinensis) and adopted the CPM Recommendation on Minimizing the pest risk associated with the sea-container pathway (R‑06);

·_        The CPM noted the report on the activities of the Standards Committee (SC) in 2023 and noted the adjustments to subjects made by the SC to the list of subjects in the List of topics for IPPC standards;

·_        The CPM adopted the proposed revisions to the Standard Setting Procedure and the Rules of Procedure for the Standards Committee, together with the other associated revisions to the IPPC procedure manual for standard setting;

·_        The CPM noted the work of the Implementation and Capacity Development Committee (IC) in 2023 and noted the activities of the IC Subgroup on the IPPC Observatory and the activities and updates of the IC teams on national reporting obligations (NROs), PCE, Fusarium TR4, IPPC guides and training materials, e-commerce, the use of third-party entities, the IPPC regional workshop guidelines, developing the CPM participation guide, contributed resources, projects, and submission of implementation topics;

·_        The CPM adopted the recommended topics in response to the 2023 Call for Topics: Standards and Implementation.

1.3.  The next session of the CPM (CPM-19, 2025) is tentatively schedule for 31 March to 4 April 2025, at FAO Headquarter, Rome, Italy.

2  Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) Bureau[2]

2.1.  Since March 2024, the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) Bureau convened face-face prior to the eighteenth session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM-18).

2.2.  The CPM Bureau at this meeting discussed several topics, including:

·_        Progress report of the IPPC secretariat for 2023;

·_        Review of previous bureau meetings reports (October 2023, December 2023);

·_        Logistical arrangement for CPM-18 (2024);

·_        Review of the CPM-18 (2024) agenda items with key issues for consideration;

·_        And other issues relating to the organization of CPM-18 (2024).

3  Standards Committee[3]

3.1.  Since the last update of from the IPPC secretariat to the SPS Committee, the IPPC Standards Committee (SC) met in May 2024 and the main focus was to revise and approve draft ISPMs for consultations.

3.2.  The Standards Committee Working Group (SC-7) met the week after and they revised and approved two draft ISPMs for second consultation.

3.3.  Below, the list of draft ISPMs that the SC approved:

3.1  First Consultation (1 July – 30 September 2024)

3.1.1  Draft ISPMs (English, French and Spanish)

1._    Draft revision of ISPM 26 (Establishment of pest free areas for fruit flies (Tephritidae)) (2021-010);

2._    Draft annex Field inspection (2021-018) to ISPM 23 (Guidelines for inspection);

3._    Draft annex Design and use of systems approaches for phytosanitary certification of seeds (2018-009) to ISPM 38 (International movement of seeds).

3.1.2  Draft Diagnostic Protocols (English only)

1._    Pospiviroid species (except Potato spindle tuber viroid (DP 7)) (2018-031): Went for consultation from 30 January to 3 May 2024;

2._    Heterobasidion annosum sensu lato (2021-015): Went for consultation from 30 January to 3 May 2024;

3._    Meloidogyne mali (2018-019): 2024 July consultation.

3.1.3  Draft Phytosanitary Treatments (English, French & Spanish)

1._    Draft annex to ISPM 28: Combination of Irradiation and Modified Atmosphere Treatment for Trogoderma granarium (2023-032);

2._    Draft annex to ISPM 28: Irradiation treatment for Pseudococcus baliteus (2023-033);

3._    Draft annex to ISPM 28: Irradiation treatment for Paracoccus marginatus (2023-034);

4._    Draft annex to ISPM 28: Irradiation treatment for Planococuss Lilacinus (2023-35).

3.2  Second Consultation (1 July – 30 September 2024)

3.2.1  Draft ISPMs (English only)

1._    Draft annex international movement of Mangifera indica fruit (2021-011) to ISPM 46 (Commodity-based standards for phytosanitary measures);

2._    Draft annex Use of systems approaches in managing the pest risks associated with the movement of wood (2015-004) to ISPM 39 (International movement of wood).

3.3  Draft Specification (1 July – 30 September 2024)

1._    Revision of the draft reorganized pest risk analysis (PRA) ISPMs (2023-037)

3.4  DP Notification period[4] (1 July – 15 August 2023)

1._    Revision of DP 09: Genus Anastrepha Schiner (2021-002)

2._    Revision of DP 27: Ips spp. (2021-004)

3._    Revision of DP 25: Xylella fastidiosa (2021-003)

3.5  Other discussions by the SC

3.4.  The SC received reports from and reviewed and approved the work programmes of the four technical panels (on the glossary, phytosanitary treatments, diagnostic protocols, and commodity standards).

3.5.  The next IPPC SC meeting is scheduled to be from 18 to 22 November 2024 at FAO Headquarter, in Rome, Italy. Besides the revision of draft ISPMs for recommendation to adoption, the SC will also discuss other strategic issues from its work programme.

4  Implementation and Capacity Development Committee (IC)[5]

4.1.  The May 2024 IC meeting was held face-to-face from 13 to 17 May in Rome. One of the main objectives of the IC May meeting was to discuss the decisions of CPM-18 (2024) that have an impact on the IC's work plan, as well as implementation issues in general, and to agree on ways of following up on these decisions. The IC agreed on the need to strengthen the resources allocated to implementation and capacity-building activities and to devote dedicated sessions at IPPC regional workshops to identify implementation issues and gather feedback from contracting parties. The IC also reviewed the conclusions relating to the other Development Agenda Items (DAIs) of the IPPC Strategic Framework, for which the IC is responsible for oversight: harmonization of electronic data exchange, management of courier and mail pathways, Developing guidance for the use of third-party entities, Pest outbreak alert and response systems.

4.2.  The May meeting also provided an opportunity for the secretariat units (Standards Setting Unit and Integration Support Team) to update the IC on their respective activities. The IC discussed on how to improve collaboration with the Standards Committee. Other important topics discussed during the meeting included the guides and materials recently published and those being developed with a focus on plant health curriculum training, the Implementation and Capacity Development (ICD) projects managed by the IPPC secretariat and the Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluations (PCEs) that have been carried out (9 completed and two ongoing) in the framework of the project Strengthening Food Control and Phytosanitary Capacities and Governance (GCP/GLO/949/EC). In addition, the results, of the desk study conducted to improve the tool and procedure for conducting PCE, enabled the IC to agree on a roadmap to implement these recommendations.

4.3.  During its May meeting, the IC invites some of the IPPC's partner organizations as observers. Thus, the European Commission (EC), the Committee Linking Entrepreneurship-Agriculture-Development (COLEAD) and the STDF secretariat were invited to share their experiences and activities in relation to the IC's areas of competence and discuss opportunities for collaboration and synergies with IPPC's implementation and capacity development activities.

4.4.  The next IC meeting is tentatively planned from 11 to 15 November 2024, FAO HQ, Rome, Italy.

4.5.  For more information about the last IC meeting please consult the report (to be uploaded on IPP, hyperlink).

5  ePhyto

5.1.  The ePhyto Solution continues to provide user countries with the opportunity to exchange digital phytosanitary certificates with any country using the system.

5.2.  An increasing number of countries are progressively transitioning from paper-based to digitalized phytosanitary certification system by using the IPPC ePhyto Solution that went live in early 2019. It has accelerated rapidly over the past years with 132 countries on board in May 2024 (116 in December 2022 and 130 in December 2023) including 90 countries actively exchanging approximately 200,000 ePhytos monthly and 33 countries currently testing the system. Countries that have recently (March 2024-May 2024) registered to the ePhyto hub are the Democratic Republic of Congo and Eritrea. As of May 2004, about 6.3 million ePhytos had been exchanged successfully since the inception of the IPPC ePhyto Hub.

5.3.  A large part of the success can be attributed to the collaborative efforts between the secretariat and the many partners. These partners include first and foremost the ePhyto Steering Group (ESG) and the United Nations International Computing Centre (UNICC) who developed and continue to lead in developing the technical aspects and enhancements of the IPPC ePhyto Solution. Implementation has also been supported in some countries by the Global Alliance for Trade Facilitation (GATF), the Industry Advisory Group (IAG) and the World Bank. Regional events on ePhyto organized by Regional Plant Protection Organizations (RPPOs) and regional programmes are also instrumental in enabling countries to join or implement the IPPC ePhyto Solution.

5.4.  The main challenge is to ensure the sustainable funding of the IPPC ePhyto Solution as it has so far been funded through projects from the Standards and Trade Development Facility (STDF), or through donations from countries. The current funding will run out in 2024, and without secure funding for 2025, the ePhyto Solution operation will not be able to continue.

5.5.  At the eighteenth session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM-18), the secretariat provided an update on ePhyto (electronic phytosanitary certificate) activities, including preliminary results from a study on the cost–benefits and global impact of ePhytos, and thanked CPs, RPPOs and other partners for their in-kind and financial support. The secretariat also presented the ePhyto Strategic Implementation Plan for 2024–2030 that was approved by CPM.

5.6.  The CPM Bureau representative on the CPM Focus Group on Sustainable Funding for the IPPC ePhyto Solution presented the focus group's proposals for a long-term funding mechanism for the ePhyto Solution. The CPM adopted the proposed model while taking into account the range of views. The model, with an initial total annual budget set at USD 1,263,000 will be implemented as a transitional pilot, starting in 2025 and will be reviewed after two years (2027). The CPM also noted that country contributions to the IPPC ePhyto Solution would not be mandatory for any country. In addition, the term of the aforementioned CPM Focus Group was extended until CPM-19 (2025) with the objective to explore alternative modifications and adjustments of the model.

5.7.  To be noted that the Generic ePhyto National System (GeNS) is now available in five out of six FAO official languages namely Arabic, English, French, Russian and Spanish (Russian and Spanish being the latest versions released in May). Indeed, the GeNS is a centralized web-based system to allow countries that do not have a national system to produce, send and receive ePhytos through the Hub.

5.8.  More information can be found on the ePhyto webpage on the IPP.[6]

6  Africa phytosanitary programme (APP)

6.1.  The IPPC Secretariat is currently implementing the pilot phase of APP in 11 African countries, namely: Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Morocco, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.  Plans are underway to identify the next set of 10‑11 countries in the 2nd quarter of 2024.

6.2.  APP is an IPPC initiative that aims to transform the technical capacity of Africa's phytosanitary personnel within national plant protection organizations (NPPOs), using scientific evidence, advanced technology, and tools to proactively monitor, efficiently and timely detect, and ultimately respond and recover from plant pests and diseases of economic, regulatory, and environmental significance. The programme provides training, collaboration opportunities, and digital tools and resources to enhance the resilience of Africa's phytosanitary systems against plant pests. It is the first-ever, continent-wide phytosanitary programme, is envisioned to support all 54 African countries to prevent and manage plant pests.

6.3.  Through APP, the IPPC Secretariat is providing pilot countries with state-of-the-art handheld tablet computers with APP-customised GIS mobile applications for pest monitoring, detection and reporting. With this field survey data, pilot countries will be able to determine and support decision-making on pest-free areas from which crop commodities can be exported, thus facilitating safe trade.

6.4.  With technical assistance from USDA-APHIS, survey protocol guides on a range of pests were developed to guide countries.

6.5.  During CPM-18, IPPC contracting parties noted the significant progress made by the IPPC community in support of the development of APP and supported its continued development, with the potential vision for it to become a global phytosanitary programme.

6.6.  Using the same materials and tools given to countries during the initial train-the-trainer workshop in Cairo last year, trainers are delivering the same training to approximately 50-100 field technicians in each of their respective countries. In addition, each country is developing an operational plan detailing areas to be surveyed and requiring resources to implement the pilot phase.

6.7.  The IPPC Secretariat coordinates the implementation of APP in collaboration with FAO and the African Union Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment. Current financial and technical support come from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)- Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS).

7  International Day of Plant Health - IDPH

7.1.  The third International Day of Plant Health (IDPH)[7] was marked on 12 May 2024 with the theme "Plant health, safe trade and digital technology".

7.2.  The objectives of the IDPH were to increase public awareness and appreciation of the importance of plant health; drive positive behaviors towards practical ways that the public can prevent the movement of plant pests; and advocate for support by investing in national, regional and international plant health initiatives, and by promoting the IPPC and ISPMs.

7.3.  The IPPC secretariat organized a hybrid high-level event on 13 May (Monday) at the FAO headquarters which was officially opened by FAO Director-General QU Dongyu. Also speaking at the event were the Minister of Agriculture of Egypt, FAO ambassadors of Canada and Kenya and Undersecretary from USDA-APHIS. A technical session followed with speakers from the Ministry of Agriculture of Uganda, USDA-APHIS, Poste Italiane and the CPM Chair. The event was also webcast (see recording here).

7.4.  An exhibit was held at the FAO headquarters from 8-10 May which FAO staff, students and members of the SC visited. The exhibit featured messages on the importance of plant health to food security, environmental protection and safe trade, with a focus on educating people with the phytosanitary risks associated with e-commerce through an interactive display, as well as the breadth of adoption of the IPPC ePhyto Solution as visualized in a large global map (see photos here).

7.5.  FAO and IPPC held global digital campaign weeks before the event, including sending out save-the-date emails, publishing the Get Involved Guide in 6 FAO languages, disseminating the IDPH digital assets, promoting the IDPH website and Trello board for social media, and developing two new videos: 1) sniffer dogs in Italy saving olive trees from Xylella fastidiosa; and 2) plant health and safe trade. There were around 49,900 impressions on IPPC messages on X/Twitter and 14,000 users were reached on Facebook during the campaign period (16 April – 22 May).

7.6.  Some of the notable IDPH celebrations around the world include a street parade in Ghana, tree planting in India and Kenya, plant health quiz in the United Kingdom, symposium in Australia and Eritrea, podcast in Canada, family market day in South Africa, media story in St. Lucia, and videos produced in Vietnam, the Philippines and Malaysia. An Impact Report is currently being developed and will be published in June 2024.

8  IPPC Communications and Advocacy

8.1.  The IPPC secretariat continued to produce communication and advocacy materials including the IPPC monthly newsletter. Click here to subscribe: https://www.ippc.int/es/news/subscribe-to-the-ippc-newsletter/.

8.2.  In 2023, CPM-17 adopted the global IPPC Communications Strategy 2023-2030. The 2023 and 2024 IPPC Secretariat Communications Plan, which are an operationalization of the strategy, are now a more robust action plan aligned with the target milestones identified in the global IPPC Communications Strategy. The IPPC secretariat's communication plan has achieved some core milestones, including a revamp and development of new content on the International Phytosanitary Portal (IPP). New content were developed and posted on the IPP and on social media to raise awareness and jumpstart conversation on phytosanitary topics and IPPC's work programme, such as blogs on standard setting and implementation and capacity development.

8.3.  In December 2023, preparations for the International Day of Plant Health 2024 began with the development of the concept note, with key messages around the theme on Plant Health, digital technology and safe trade, and exhibits at the FAO Atrium. The secretariat coordinated with the office of the FAO Deputy Director-General for guidance on the planned activities and the digital communication campaign on IDPH.

8.4.  The IPPC secretariat coordinated communications and recorded media coverage for some of the activities at the secretariat, including the Train-the-trainer workshop of the Africa Phytosanitary Programme (APP) in Cairo, Egypt in September, and the international workshop on pest risk mitigation of sea containers and their cargoes, in Australia. Social media cards were developed on common pests and news articles were recorded from at least 15 news outlets for the three activities. In addition, survey protocol guides were developed for publication under the APP, with technical content contributed by USDA-APHIS.

8.5.  The IPPC secretariat continued the groundwork to set up a Community of Practice (COP) in communication structured as Regional Communication Networks (RCNs) in order to have a more focused approach to address communication and information needs of each region, and for a more strategic coordination with the IPPC Secretariat. The secretariat proposed to establish the RCNs and a Steering Group which were both approved at CPM-18. The Terms of Reference and setting up of the Steering Group are now underway.

9  CPM Focus Group on Sea Containers

9.1.  The Terms of Reference for the CPM Focus Group on Sea Containers were agreed to by CPM‑16 in 2022 outlining the key purpose of the group to review all relevant materials and recommendations, develop viable options that will contribute to risk management, and provide CPM with recommendations, including considerations around the option of development of an ISPM.

9.2.  The CPM Focus Group on Sea Containers final report was presented to CPM-18 and outlines the work undertaken by the group during its 2022-2024 mandate. This included the focus on the revision of the CPM Recommendation on Sea containers (R-06), the custodial responsibility concept, updates to the Code of Practice for Packing of Cargo Transport Units (CTU Code), pest risk assessment, World Customs Organization initiatives (changes to data models and updates to the SAFE Framework) and improvements to sea-container design. The focus group recommended that its mandate be extended to allow it to complete the tasks in its existing terms of reference and pursue further work, including the further development of identified regulatory and non-regulatory options.

9.3.  CPM-18 adopted the revised CPM Recommendation on Minimizing the pest risk associated with the sea-container pathway (R-06). CPM-18 also agreed to extend the mandate of the CPM Focus Group on Sea Containers until 2027 and agreed to add a third member from the Industry Advisory Group to the focus group's current membership to ensure that the broad range of industry sea-container logistics activities are appropriately represented and to provide the necessary scope of expertise. The Terms of Reference for the Focus Group as approved are presented in CPM 2024/CRP/14.

9.4.  Additionally, CPM-18 asked the secretariat to continue to collaborate with International Maritime Organization, the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, the World Customs Organization, the World Organisation for Animal Health, and the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, with a view to aligning guidance on sea-container cleanliness based on CPM Recommendation R-06 and any new information.

10  CPM Focus Group on the Safe Provision of Food and Other Humanitarian Aid

10.1.  The Focus Group on Safe Provision of Food and Other Humanitarian Aid was established by the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM-16) in April 2022. The IPPC has an adopted global recommendation to tackle pests in food aid to strengthen long-term food security and to combat humanitarian crisis. The provision of food and other humanitarian aid assists regions or countries that are at risk of food and economic insecurity as a result of conflict, crop failures, and natural disasters. The recommendation applies the principle of phytosanitary preparedness and response to the provision of urgent disaster-relief assistance and encourages recipient and exporting countries to develop adequate response plans and use guidance available in adopted standards.

10.2.  Further work is needed - To support the objectives of the IPPC strategic framework 2030 to enhance global food security and protect the environment from the impacts of plant pests and, where appropriate, environmental pests, the IPPC and the CPM established the focus group. The main objectives are to ensure international co-operation to prevent the global spread of plant pests, understand the concerns raised by the and propose solutions for development of the standard and other supplementary tools, and outline the key principles, requirements and other aspects that a global standard on "The Safe Provision of Food and Other Humanitarian Aid" should contain.

10.3.  During CPM-18, the vice-chairperson of the CPM Focus Group on the Safe Provision of Food and Other Humanitarian Aid presented an update on the activities of the focus group. The focus group had revised the draft specification Safe provision of food and other humanitarian aid (2021‑020) and had also drafted a gap-analysis diagram on existing ISPMs and a proposed definition for the "emergency pathway. At the end of the session, the CPM approved the draft specification on Safe provision of food and other humanitarian aid (2021-020) to be submitted for consultation in July 2024 and also agreed to extend the mandate of the focus group until CPM-20 (2026).

10.4.  More information about the focus group can be found at: https://www.ippc.int/en/core-activities/governance/cpm/cpm-focus-group-reports/cpm-focus-group-on-safe-provision-of-food-and-other-humanitarian-aid/.

11  Upcoming IPPC events

11.1.  For more information on upcoming meetings, please check the website: https://www.ippc.int/en/year/calendar/.

12  IPPC videos and other tools

12.1.  The IPPC secretariat wishes to share with you some tools available:

·_              New video on how trained dogs are preventing the spread of Xylella fastidiosa: The sniffer dogs saving olive trees from a deadly pest (youtube.com)

·_              New video on why keeping plants healthy support safe trade: Plant health and safe trade (youtube.com)

·_              New webpage and brochure on the Africa Phytosanitary Programme

·_              New infographic video Managing the pest risk posed by e-commerce: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDEaNfAZ2sM&list=PLzp5NgJ2-dK4T7GE2fsGujftlxSX1rCTC&t=4s

·_              Video on the IPPC standard setting procedure: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8zciLFG--8

·_              Video on Pest risk analysis: Why we do it and why it is important?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MXtQ9zVUqI0&t=212s

·_              e-learning course on Surveillance and reporting obligations: http://elearning.fao.org/course/view.php?id=824

·_              e-learning course on Pest Risk Analysis (developed in collaboration with COLEACP): http://training.coleacp.org/course/index.php?categoryid=208

·_              IPPC Observatory Factsheet: https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en/c/cc1022en

·_              IPPC Observatory Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tsuqqTpdAQ

·_              IPPC Observatory webpage: https://www.ippc.int/en/core-activities/capacity-development/list-topics-ippc-irss/list

12.2.  The IPPC secretariat would like to take this opportunity to express its sincere gratitude to the WTO-SPS Secretariat for the strong support and close cooperation.

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