FAO: High-Level Meeting on the Management of Transboundary Plant Pests and Diseases in the Near East and North Africa
@FAO
22 June 2023, Italy - The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute of Bari (CIHEAM Bari), co-organized a three-day high-level meeting in Bari, Italy, to address the management strategy of transboundary plant pests and diseases (TPPDs) in the Near East and North Africa region (NENA). High-level officials and specialists discussed the limitations and weaknesses of plant protection systems in NENA countries, as well as the main pillars of the regional strategy for the sustainable management of transboundary plant pests and diseases in the NENA region.
"The Near East and North Africa region faces many threats from transboundary plant pests and diseases, which causes severe losses to agricultural production that may reach 25 to 40 per cent of the total global production, thus increasing the economic risks in the Near East and North Africa region," said Abdulhakim Elwaer, Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations for the Near East and North Africa.
Elwaer called on the countries of the region and plant protection experts to support the establishment of a regional programme to manage transboundary plant pests and diseases in NENA, calling for the adaptation of correct policies, legislation and sustainable investments as an initial step to prevent the entry of invasive pests and diseases into the agricultural sector.
The conference aims to address critical regional issues related to plant health in the NENA region while discussing the way forward and guiding further cooperation and partnerships, as well as resource mobilization and outlining the modalities for establishing a regional trust fund to manage TPPDs.
The Italian region of Puglia participated in the meetings and shared its experience in managing and controlling transient pests, particularly Xylella bacteria, which will be reviewed during a field visit to the laboratory for the propagation and maintenance of raw materials.
Thaer Yaseen, the Regional Plant Protection Officer at FAO Office in NENA, highlighted the numerous challenges that countries in the region face when managing transboundary pests and diseases, such as weak Plant Protection systems and national phytosanitary regulations, inadequate policies and legislation, and lack of surveillance and monitoring systems.
“The proposed Transboundary Pests and Diseases strategy would allocate 52 per cent of the budget to capacity building, 28 per cent to environmental, economic, and social impacts, and 20 per cent to cooperation and knowledge; estimated at USD 24.8 Million, USD 13.5 Million, and USD 9.4 Million respectively,” added Yaseen.
A ministerial meeting is anticipated to be held, at the end of the conference, on capacity-building and regional coordination protocols for plant health. The agricultural ministers in the NENA region will declare the most crucial recommendations and strategies for managing transboundary pests and diseases, as well as the role of countries in activating their provisions for regional coordination and planning to ensure the highest levels of effectiveness and warning, and the early and rapid response to threats to food systems in the region.