Farmer field schools (FFS) equip millions of small farmers with the knowledge and skills necessary to implement the "produce more with less" paradigm supported by FAO and to improve living conditions through sustainable intensification. A regional workshop was held in Dakar on the FFS approach in West and Central Africa to foster the development of a regional network of specialists consisting of FAO and local players, and to agree on a common understanding of the FFS method.

根据总部设在伦敦的皇家学会今天出版的一份粮农组织研究报告，向农民传授有害生物防治替代方法的田间学校成功地使马里一个社区的棉农几乎完全取消了有毒农药的使用。

FAO is partnering with Oregon State University (OSU) to deploy new technology in West Africa for monitoring pesticides in surface and ground waters. The “passive sampling device” (PSD) uses an artificial membrane suspended within a stainless steel frame and submerged in surface waters for a chosen duration (a day to a month)...

West African farmers have succeeded in cutting the use of toxic pesticides, increasing yields and incomes and diversifying farming systems as a result of an international project promoting sustainable farming practices. Around 100 000 farmers in Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali and Senegal are participating in a community-driven training programme (West African Regional Integrated Production and Pest Management (IPPM) Programme) executed by FAO.

The adoption of sustainable farming practices allows small farmers of cotton in West Africa to increase their yields and incomes, reduce their use of toxic pesticides and protect the environment and their health.