The United Nations has rolled out the second phase of its Africa Phytosanitary Programme, a continent-wide initiative to combat destructive crop pests using advanced digital surveillance tools.
Spearheaded by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), the new phase builds on a 2023 pilot project that sought to bolster national capacities for identifying and managing pest outbreaks in Cameroon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Mali, Morocco, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Monday’s launch of the second phase, hosted by South Africa’s Department of Agriculture, convened more than 50 plant health experts from nine countries for a weeklong training in digital diagnostics and field surveillance.
Participants from Algeria, Cape Verde, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Liberia, Malawi, Senegal, South Africa and Tunisia are being trained to use GPS-enabled tablets, customised survey apps and standardised protocols to monitor and report pests of critical economic and environmental importance.
Upon return to their respective countries, they are expected to cascade knowledge to national plant protection organisations across the region.
“We are building a critical mass of phytosanitary inspectors, technicians and officers across Africa by equipping plant health officers with the tools and skills to prevent and address major plant pest threats, that ultimately jeopardise food security, agricultural trade, economic growth and the environment,” said FAO Deputy Director-General Beth Bechdol.
She noted that by empowering frontline officers with digital tools, the initiative would help to build a continent-wide shield against invasive pests.
The programme is backed by funding from the European Union and the United Kingdom, following initial support from the US Department of Agriculture.
It aims to mitigate widespread pest threats such as fall armyworm, which alone causes an estimated $9.4 billion in annual crop losses in Africa, according to the Centre for Agriculture and Bioscience International.
South Africa’s Minister of Agriculture, in remarks delivered by Plant Health Director Jan Hendrik Venter, called for stronger enforcement of phytosanitary standards to support Africa’s ambitions under the African Continental Free Trade Area.
“Well-trained, well-equipped plant health officials across the continent are our best line of defence in maintaining pest-free or low-prevalence status, an essential condition for accessing these lucrative markets”, he added.
The initiative aligns with the African Union’s plant health strategy and comes at a critical moment: pests currently destroy up to 40 percent of global crop production annually, threatening both livelihoods and ecosystems.
JN/APA