Enhancing national capacities for a food secure West Africa and Sahel Region

17 August 2021, Banjul – The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in collaboration with the Desert Locust Control Commission in the Western Region (CLCPRO), ECOWAS and The Government of The Gambia,  trained 25 members of the National Desert Locust Invasion Prevention and Control Committee on how to prepare and control  imminent Desert Locust invasion in the West Africa and the Sahel Region amidst  worsening food insecurity.  

The three-day capacity building workshop which ends on 19 August at the Senegambia Beach Hotel forms part of FAO’s action plan to boost the national Government’s surveillance and control of   Desert Locust invasion in the African region.

The intervention is supported through a joint initiative of FAO Sub-Regional Office (SFW), Resilience Bureau for West Africa and the Sahel (REOWA), the Desert Locust Control Commission in the Western Region (CLCPRO), and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) through a sub-regional Technical Cooperation Programme titled "Strengthening the capacities of ECOWAS in the prevention, surveillance and control of the Desert Locust as well as the analysis of its impact on food and nutritional security in the Sahel during the COVID-19 pandemic".

The project aims to build and strengthen the Desert Locust monitoring and control capacity of countries in the face of possible Desert Locust threats. It assist Member States  to implement anticipatory and early actions to provide technical assistance to the “invasion” countries and to strengthen regional coordination.

Addressing the opening ceremony, Saikou E. Sanyang, Director General, Department of Agriculture commended FAO, CLCPRO, ECOWAS and other stakeholders for the timely initiative on behalf of the Gambian Government. He stressed that the impacts of Desert Locust on food security and national development. He further acknowledged FAO’s long-standing partnership with The Gambia in the drive to achieve food security. He urged the participants to take the training seriously and to remain committed to the task at hand.

Speaking during the opening ceremony, on behalf of the FAO Country Representation, Dr Mustapha Ceesay, Assistant FAO Representative and Head of Programmes said that the intervention is at the core of FAO’s mandate. “It consolidates FAO’s efforts to help eliminate hunger, food insecurity and malnutrition; increase the resilience of livelihoods to threats and crises. This is in line with national efforts as expressed in the priorities of the National Development Plan and the priorities of the Ministry of Agriculture” he said. Dr. Ceesay noted that FAO has long-standing expertise in monitoring Desert Locust populations and helping countries cope with this devastating insect pest.

He said the capacity building is part of FAO’s core functions which include advising and supporting capacity development at country and regional levels to prepare, implement, monitor and evaluate evidence-based policies, investments and programmes. FAO is always ready to advise and support activities that assemble, disseminate and improve the uptake of knowledge, technologies and good practices in the areas of food and agriculture. He highlighted the importance of partnerships between governments, development partners, civil society and the private sector to address  food and nutrition security, agriculture and rural development.

Benoit Gnonlonfin,  an international training facilitator and an ECOWAS/FAO Plant Protection Expert said that it is pertinent to have a Preparedness Plan in place rather than  to wait until an invasion occurs to begin to figure out what to do. Mohamed Lemine  Hamouny also an international training facilitator and Executive Secretary to CLCPRO emphasized  that the training is aimed at giving more information and knowledge about surveillance, control and management of an invasion. “It is very important to have a very strong Unit at the invasion country around which the prevention and mitigation mechanisms can be built”, he said.