National Inception Workshop of the Technical Cooperation Programme held at National Institute of Plant Health Management (NIPHM), Hyderabad on 29 – 30 November 2019.

The workshop was jointly organized by FAO of the UN, Department of Plant Protection Quarantine and Storage (DPPQS), and National Institute of Plant Health Management, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India.

The welcome address was given by Dr.N.Sathyanarayanan, Joint Director, DPPQS, Keynote address was given by Mr.Tomio Shichiri, FAO Representative in India, Introductory remarks were given by Ms.Anne-Sophie Poisot of FAO, Inaugural address was given by Ms.G.Jayalakshmi, IAS, Director General, NIPHM and Vote of thanks was given by Dr.G.Ravi, Director – Plant Health, NIPHM. The participants from Department of Agriculture, Central Integrated Pest Management Centres (CIPMCs) of Fall Armyworm infested states of India and various ICAR institutes and NIPHM under Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare attended the workshop.

The TCP will avail best expertise to national partners to immediately mitigate negative impacts on 2 fronts;

1. Prevent / reduce yield losses and economic and food security impacts
2. Promote environment friendly, safe strategies including biological control for the sustainable management of FAW to protect human and ecosystem health and livelihood

These twin objectives will be achieved in particular by;

• Supporting well informed mass information campaigns on FAW for farmers and relevant stakeholders, FAO’s flagship Farmer Field School (FFS) approach will also be used
• Supporting improved early warning and monitoring for FAW ( customize the use of FAO’s successful FAMEWS app) to generate real time knowledge on the host range and migration patterns in Indian agro-ecologies and cropping system

The TCP will also provide technical assistance to fill critical gaps, mobilizing senior expertise from FAO to provide guidance, adapting use of FAMEWS, training Farmer Field School (FFS) master trainers and improving training and multimedia materials based on sustainable options.

During the workshop, views of the participants were recorded to better understand on the ground situation of FAW and accordingly plan activities to be implemented through this project.