A formal session of the Slovenian Beekeepers’ Association was held at its headquarters to mark the third World Bee Day in Slovenia. Due to the COVID-19 epidemic, only a small number of participants gathered at this beekeeping event, which had initially been planned to take place in Dolenjske Toplice. The participants were representatives of beekeepers, local communities, diplomats and others involved in the World Bee Day project. Minister of Agriculture Aleksandra Pivec also attended the event. In her address, she highlighted the importance of beekeeping and the role of the state in supporting this important sector.

The third international celebration of World Bee Day was held virtually due to the COVID-19 epidemic. The international conference was organised by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in collaboration with the International Federation of Beekeepers' Associations (Apimondia) and the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences and with the support of the Slovenian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food. The aim of the conference, entitled "Bee Engaged", was to highlight the importance of the engagement and actions of every person for the preservation of bees and other pollinators.

In a week, on 20 May, Slovenia and the rest of the world will celebrate World Bee Day for the third time. The UN General Assembly proclaimed World Bee Day on 20 December 2017. The main purpose of World Bee Day is to raise awareness among the global public about the importance of bees and other pollinators for humanity, in light of ensuring global food security, eradication of hunger, and care for the environment and biodiversity. With the title "Bee Engaged", FAO as the organiser of the event wishes to draw attention to the importance of engagement and actions of countries, organisations, research and educational institutions, civil society, the private sector, farmers, beekeepers and the public for the conservation of bees and other pollinators.

This year's World Bee Day calls on the global public to “Bee Engaged”

In exactly a month’s time, on 20 May, Slovenia and the rest of the world will celebrate World Bee Day for the third time. The UN General Assembly proclaimed World Bee Day on 20 December 2017 as a result of cooperation between the Slovenian Beekeepers’ Association, as the initiator, and the Republic of Slovenia. The main purpose of World Bee Day is to raise awareness among the global public about the importance of bees and other pollinators for humanity, bearing in mind food security, global elimination of hunger, and care for the environment and biodiversity.

In collaboration with the Slovenian Beekeepers’ Association and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food, the National Assembly organised an event to commemorate the second anniversary of the historical proclamation of World Bee Day. 20 December will mark two years since the UN General Assembly, on the initiative of Slovenia, unanimously adopted the resolution designating 20 May as World Bee Day. The purpose of the event was to highlight all key beekeeping achievements that can also be attributed to the proclamation of World Bee Day. The attendees were received by their host, the President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia, Mr Dejan Židan. The event, attended by State Secretary Dr Jože Podgoršek on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food, began with the painting of beehive panels in the company of the pupils of the France Bevk Primary School in Ljubljana.

The last meeting of the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council under Finnish Presidency, which was attended by State Secretary Dr Jože Podgoršek, focused on fishing, agricultural and forestry issues. The ministers adopted the Regulation fixing for 2020 the fishing opportunities in the Black and Mediterranean Seas, reviewed the progress made in negotiations on the reform of the common agricultural policy and exchanged views on the importance of forests and forestry for a sustainable future. As part of preparations for the Presidency of the Council of the EU, the State Secretary met with the German and Portuguese ministers of agriculture.

At the meeting of the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council attended by State Secretary Dr Jože Podgoršek, the ministers discussed the environmental and climate aspects of the common agricultural policy (CAP) beyond 2020. The Commission put before the Member States two proposals for regulations laying down the CAP transitional provisions that would ensure continuity in terms of policy implementation and the granting of support to farmers in 2021.

Under the auspices of the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food, 16 Slovenian winemakers made a successful appearance at the ProWine Fair in Shanghai. The three-day event is one of the most important wine-related trade fairs in the Asian market. According to the winemakers, the presentation was a great success.

State Secretary Damjan Stanonik is attending the 13th meeting of SEE ministers of agriculture in Pristina, Kosovo. This year's host country of the ministerial meeting is the Republic of Kosovo, in collaboration with the Regional Rural Development Standing Working Group (SWG RRD) that is coordinating cooperation between the Western Balkan countries.

The Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Dr Aleksandra Pivec joined the President of the Republic of Slovenia, Borut Pahor, on his state visit to Norway. The visit, hosted by King Harald V of Norway, covered numerous events and meetings attended, among others, by Norway's Prime Minister and President of Parliament. One event that received a lot of attention focused on the promotion of beekeeping and the role of pollinators in sustainable food processing, at which Minister Pivec was one of the speakers. On the occasion, President Pahor gifted the King of Norway a Slovenian beehive with painted panels.

On the last day of her visit to Canada, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Aleksandra Pivec attended Slovenia's promotional event presenting Slovenian businesses to potential business partners and the media. Ms Pivec met today with the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs of the Province of Ontario, Ernie Hardman, and representatives of Slovenians living in Canada.

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Aleksandra Pivec spent the second day of her Canadian visit in Ottawa. Ms Pivec met with Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Chris Forbes at the Ministry of Agriculture and Agri-Food. She also attended the ceremonial handover of a photograph featuring the image of a bee to the Canadian Museum of Nature and visited a research institution – an experimental farm.

Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Aleksandra Pivec has begun her visit to Canada today. On the first day of her visit, Ms Pivec attended the Apimondia International Apicultural Congress that also featured a Slovenian Day. This year, Slovenia has its own exhibition area at the Apimondia Congress where it is represented by the Slovenian Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Slovenian Beekeeper’s Association (SBA), and by the institutions and companies associated with beekeeping. The Slovenian Agriculture Minister also met with the representative of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food of the Province of Quebec Sylvain Lacombe with whom she discussed cooperation between the two countries and the areas and products that are of interest to consumers in the two countries.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food hosted an international ministerial conference under the title Strengthening the Formation and Transfer of Knowledge for the Advancement of Agriculture and the Countryside that was held ahead of the AGRA Fair. The conference was attended by 15 foreign delegations, including a Turkish delegation that started its working visit yesterday by signing the adopted guidelines for the further cooperation between Slovenia and Turkey.

Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Bekir Pakdemirli is currently on a visit to Slovenia at the invitation of his Slovenian counterpart Aleksandra Pivec. Before the minister's arrival, the two countries held the second expert-level meeting of the Slovenian-Turkish Steering Committee on Agriculture and Forestry.