20 May World Bee Day - Information Note

The resolution on the declaration of May 20 as "World Bee Day", co-sponsored by 115 countries led by the Republic of Slovenia, was accepted unanimously by the United Nations General Assembly on 20 December 2017.

With the "World Bee Day" events to be held on May 20 every year, it is aimed to remember the importance of bees and pollinators for humanity and our world and raise the awareness in this regard. At the same time, it is aimed to draw attention to the conservation of biodiversity and ecosystems, which also contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals defined in the United Nations 2030 agenda.

As part of the first observance of World Bee Day, an international ministerial conference on the significance of bees and other pollinators for sustainable agriculture and food security was held today in Brdo pri Kranju in Slovenia. Ministers and representatives from 22 countries from all continents and representatives of international organisations discussed the situation, activities, and the required measures to protect bees in the world. In a joint political declaration they committed themselves to enhance the cooperation among countries at the international level, namely with regard to measures for protecting bees and other pollinators, raising awareness of the public, education, and exchanging good bee-keeping practices. They underlined the significance of studies and measures to prevent and control diseases and pests, while emphasising the necessity of future implementation of measures to mitigate climate change, which also affects the changing living conditions of bees. 

Slovenia is the leader in beekeeping in terms of number of hives per capita. For this reason, Slovenia also led the World Bee Day initiative.

Başar Arıoğlu

Honorary Consul General