Eritrea: 12 May ‘International Day of Plant Health’


Message of the Ministry of Agriculture of the State of Eritrea

The UN, on March 29, 2022, decided for the observance of 12 May as the International Day of Plant Health (IDPH). The IDPH, by enhancing global awareness on plant heath can help end hunger, reduce poverty, protect biodiversity and the environment, and boost economic development.

This year, the International Day of Plant Health is being remembered worldwide, as well as in Eritrea, for the second time, under the theme “Plant Health for Environmental Protection”. Plant health and the environment are closely linked. Without healthy plants, the world is unthinkable to live in. Healthy plants provide us the oxygen that we breath in, the food that we eat, the ecological service that we get, etc. The combined effect of human activities and climate change, however, is putting an enormous pressure on the environment, plant health, agriculture, and the food systems that we depend on. It is therefore critical that global effort is needed to combat these challenges.

The International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), working under the aegis of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the UN, is a global treaty for protecting plant resources (including forests, aquatic plants, non-cultivated plants, and biodiversity) from damage by plant pests and for facilitating safe trade through common and effective action. To achieve these objectives, the IPPC has put in place over 40 International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs), which member states can use for the movement of plant and plant products in international trade. It is known that Eritrea is a member of the IPPC since 1995.