Ministerial Resolution No.87/2020 issuing the Regulation for the protection of date palm, coconut and ornamental trees, those similar to the palm tree, and their seedlings and all of their vegetative parts.

This Regulation consisting of 12 articles and 4 Annexes aims to protect some tree species. In article 2 bans the import of the aforementioned trees except for the following cases (i) for research purposes after the approval of the Minister; (ii) if they are produced using the technique of organogenesis and in vitro, provided that their import is under the conditions and controls outlined in Annex 1; (iii) if they are produced in industrial growth media chemically or thermally treated (and do not contain sand, natural soil or organic materials) and in one of the countries of the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, provided that their import is following the conditions And the controls contained in Annex 2; (iv) they come from and are directed to countries in which the plant quarantine is declared. Furthermore, the owner of an agricultural holding, farm, or entity that has the mentioned trees must carry out the agricultural operations recommended by the Ministry, combat harmful pests, and cooperate with the Ministry’s employees in implementing prevention programs approved by the Ministry (art.8).
Conditions and controls for importing seedlings of date palm trees, coconut, ornamentals produced using the technology of Organogenesis and In Vitro (Annex 1); Conditions and controls for importing offshoots of date palm trees produced in chemically or thermally treated industrial growth media (Annex 2); Varieties of date palm trees and their seedlings, which are prohibited from being exported (Annex 3); Conditions and Controls to Export in date palm tree seedlings and coconut.