FAO will hold, along with its partners, a virtual event on June 1 to conclude the IYPH, which was declared by the UN General Assembly with a view to celebrating in 2020 and was extended due to the pandemic until July 1, 2021, when the closing ceremony of the event, dedicated to plants, will take place.

The study will be presented by FAO Director-General QU Dongyu, along with representatives of the ministries of Agriculture and Forestry of Finland and Zambia, Professor Maria Lodovica, from the University of Turin, in northern Italy, and ten FAO experts from several nations.

The FAO communiqué announced that the review explores how climate change has affected crop pests and diseases, among them fall armyworms, desert locusts, banana Fusarium (fungus) and potato late blight.

In June 30, another virtual meeting will be held about the IYPH, Climate Change and Biodiversity.

Rome will host the pre-summit from July 19 to 21, three days of meetings of young people, small farmers, indigenous peoples, researchers, private sector, political leaders and ministers of agriculture, environment, health and finance, to promote new commitments and mobilize funds and associations.

During the closing ceremony of the IYPH on July 1, the results of the initiatives to protect plants from pests and diseases in 2020 and the first half of 2021 will be presented.

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