The twenty-fifth session of the FAO Asia and Pacific Plant Protection Commission (APPPC) was convened in Beijing from 27 to 31 August 2007 to review the activities of the Commission carried out during the past two years and the overall plant protection situation at national and regional levels. The Commission discussed and adopted two Regional Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (RSPMs) and identified the work programme of the APPPC for 2008–2009. This document presents the final report of the Session.
In the last biennium, the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific and its intergovernmental
technical body – APPPC – developed two new Regional Standards for Phytosanitary Measures. For the first time
the APPPC formulated a strategy and business plan which were adopted by the Session. The plans include
a position statement, mission statement and five strategic directions. The business plan stipulates areas
of work and projects which could be funded by governments or other organizations.
In addition, development of pest risk analysis for South American leaf blight (SALB) for rubber formed the basis for development of a standard on measures for protection from SALB in the region. The standard to be developed will facilitate the endorsement of the second set of amendments (1999) of the Asia and Pacific Plant Protection Agreement.
Further progress made by the APPPC was evidenced by development of country profiles of plant protection for information exchange among APPPC member countries. The profiles provide a valuable information source to assist member countries in formulating policies, recognizing dangerous pest trends or gaps in the execution of plant protection functions, and promoting transparency and harmonization of procedures.
The Session noted that integrated pest management (IPM) is considered to be a crucial component related to concerns of pesticide abuse under the International Code of Conduct and that IPM will not succeed without the reform of pesticide policies consistent with IPM principles. The FAO Council's decision to authorize a strategic plan to ban highly toxic pesticides could be viewed as the initiation of a much larger plan to handle environmental issues.
It is expected that the activities planned for the next two years and the actions taken on the recommendations will further enhance cooperation and the capacity of member countries in dealing with various aspects of plant protection, with firm commitments and concrete actions by all governments of the member countries.
He Changchui
Assistant Director-General and
FAO Regional Representative for
Asia and the Pacific
