Regional Workshop Production, Conservation & Utilization of Certified Propagative Materials for Fruit Trees in NENA Countries

Background & The Rationale of the Workshop 

Plant Certification is defined as a domestic programme consisting of the multiplication, distribution, and production of plant materials intended for release either domestically or for export, under an officially sponsored certificate attesting to the status of the material. Plant certification programmes aim to produce and distribute high-quality planting materials that are free from systemic diseases and pests. In general, certification programmes establish eligibility rules for nurseries, growers, and other plant suppliers.  Only those plants that have been registered, evaluated, indexed, and approved by the competent national authority to be free from any systemic diseases may be certified. Only plants that have been registered, indexed, and approved as free of systemic illnesses by the competent national government may be certified.

 Lack or shortage of healthy and improved planting material is a major constraint to the sustainable intensification of agricultural production. The situation in the NENA region is worsened by the lack of efficient systems for producing and disseminating high-quality planting materials, thus, many farmers were forced to rely on traditional regeneration and production for their supply. Normally this lengthy process results in small amounts of plant materials that are highly likely to be infected with plant pathogens.

Well-formed and healthy propagative material is crucial for the economic production of fruit trees. The health of the plant material must be ensured during production to prevent the mortality of plants and the spread of pathogens to new areas, which result in an increase in costs and a reduction in yield. To overcome these constraints, the use of certified propagative materials is one of the utmost.

Workshop Objectives

The event aims to promote regional cooperation and dissemination of the latest information regarding certification programmes for fruit crops. This workshop will be an opportunity to request recommendations from member countries to develop and move forward with the sustainable production of certified fruit crops in the NENA region. Cross-country experience exchange is also a vital topic that will be discussed with the aim of identifying achievements, gaps, challenges, and needs. The country presentation will gather information from participants on the plant certification programmes in the NENA region and this includes:

1. The status of certification programmes; (established- well established- not existing)
2. The structure of the certification programmes
3. The responsible authority: Government/public/private/ institutions;
4. The regulatory bodies responsible for field and laboratory controls;
5. Availability of Technical capacities for plant certification programmes (Laboratories, greenhouses, experts,….);
6. Technical protocols/Standards;
7. Sanitary testing and Traceability;
8. Type of crops under certification schemes;
9. Funding sources (governmental, private, national, and external projects, nurserymen, breeders .. etc.).
10. Any identified challenges, opportunities, gaps, needs; success stories, and Lessons Learned;
11. Recommendations to move forward with the sustainable production of certified fruit crops in the NENA region
12. Recommendations to move forward with the sustainable production of certified fruit crops in the NENA region

The specific objectives of the workshop are

• Strengthen the technical capacities of nursery organization and management of the Production of Certified Fruit Trees;
• Identify gaps and needs for establishing, and managing sustainably the certification systems;
• Defining proposals for capacity building on plant certification schemes in the region. 

Workshop Approach

The workshop will be conducted in the form of an in-person meeting, with a two-day scientific program and a one-day field visit.

 

Workshop Organization

FAORNE establishes a LETTER OF AGREEMENT with the Near East Plant Protection Organization (NEPPO). NEPPO is a coordinating body in the NENA region under the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC), to promote international and regional cooperation and capabilities, NEPPO is working to promote and facilitate information exchange, harmonize regulations, phytosanitary measures, monitoring programmes, management programmes, promote cooperation and coordination, develop regional strategy and build NPPOs capacity. Under this agreement, NEPPO will provide certain services as shown in the LOA.

 

Participants

FAO-RNE invites 18 NENA member countries through FAO country offices to nominate one participant for in-person participation as per below:

• The nominee should have a role in plant protection and plant certification programmes in his/her country.
• The nominee (s) from Gulf countries are invited to join the workshop in person at their own cost as per FAO in this regard.
• Invited speakers: 12 regional and international experts in the field of plant certification programmes are invited.  

Expected Outputs of the Workshop

Around 18 participants from North Africa and the Near East will strengthen their knowledge and technical experiences in the following aspects

• Certification of plant-propagating material in the EU (Italy, France, and the Netherlands) and NENA region
• Preserving the fruit tree industry and genetic resources
• Sanitary selection of primary sources
• Production of Certified propagative materials of Date Palm in the NENA region
• Phytosanitary measures and border control protocols to control Red Palm weevil (RPW)
• Cost-effective treatments of offshoots and ornamentals / Pest Free Area Protocol (RPW)
• The current situation of certification schemes within the region will be assessed.
• General Guidelines for the certification of plant propagation materials in the NENA region will be drafted.
• A regional network for plant certification schemes in the NENA region will be established.  

LINKAGE TO SDGs

SDG1, SDG2, SDG3, SDG4, SDG5, SDG8, SDG9, SDG13, and SDG19 

LINKAGE TO FAO’S FOUR BETTERS

• Better production: BP5
• Better life: BL2, BL5, and BL6
• Better environment: BE2, and BE4
• Better nutrition: BN2 

LINKAGE TO REGIONAL PRIORITIES

• Priority 1: Rural transformation

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