UN General Assembly designates May 12 as International Day of Plant Health

NEW YORK - The UN General Assembly on Tuesday adopted a resolution to designate May 12 every year as the International Day of Plant Health.

The resolution invites all UN member states, organisations of the UN system, other international and regional organisations and relevant stakeholders to observe the International Day through activities aimed at raising awareness of the importance of plant health and its economic, social and environmental impact on food security and nutrition and ecosystem functions, and to share best practices in this regard, according to Xinhua.

It invites the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), in collaboration with the International Plant Protection Convention, to facilitate the observance of the International Day. It requests the UN secretary-general to bring the present resolution to the attention of all member states, the organisations of the UN system and other relevant stakeholders for appropriate observance.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the FAO welcomed the UN decision to establish the International Day of Plant Health, saying it is "an issue critical in addressing global hunger as plant pests and diseases cause massive crop losses and leave millions without enough food".

The resolution sets out that healthy plants constitute the foundation for all life on Earth, as well as ecosystem functions, food security and nutrition, adding that plant health is key to the sustainable development of agriculture required to feed a growing global population by 2050, the statement said. - BERNAMA