Dear all,

In light of uncertainty surrounding the closure of Australia’s border amid the global pandemic, and to ensure we can deliver a viable World Congress in October 2021, we have taken the very difficult decision to cancel the in-person element of this year’s World Congress that was due to take place in Australia.

This means that we will no longer be hosting the World Congress in Sydney and will instead hold a virtual-only event. We are extremely grateful to all of our partners, particularly the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RANZCOG), the Local Organising Committee as well as Business Events Sydney and the government of New South Wales, for their effort in support of what would have been an incredible event in Australia.

FIGO’s Trustees will be working tirelessly with the Congress Organising Committee, Scientific Programme Committee and staff to develop an inclusive and truly global, virtual World Congress. One that will bring together people from all over the world to showcase clinical best practice, share the latest research and innovation, and discuss and influence policymaking, to ensure the health and rights of all women and girls.

With the COVID-19 situation constantly changing, a large face-to-face event could pose unacceptable risks anywhere in the world. It is our fiduciary responsibility to FIGO to ensure that any risk to the organisation is minimised.

We hope to be able to offer some limited in-person opportunities but are not able to provide more detail at this time. We must be able to ensure the safety of everyone involved in the meeting.

We will send out our call for abstracts for the World Congress in coming weeks. We will provide further details and open registrations by the end of March 2021.

If you have any questions, please do get in touch with us via congress [at] figo.org.

Yours sincerely,
Carlos Fuchtner, President
on behalf of all the Trustees
Mary Ann Lumsden, CEO
Andre Lalonde, COC Chair