FAO briefs suppliers on procurement of locust control agents

The unprecedented surge of the desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) this year in East Africa, Gulf of Aden and eastwards up to Pakistan and India, as well as FAO-led massive locust control operations whipped up the demand chemical and biological locust control agents.

The FAO Liaison Office with the Russian Federation together with the Federal State Budgetary Institution “Russian Agricultural Center” (“Rosselkhozcentre”) organized on August 6 a webinar for all prospective suppliers working in Russia and in the Eurasian region as doing business with FAO requires knowledge of rules and procedures regulating FAO procurement, as well as of FAO specifications for such substances.

“This year, FAO has purchased almost 700,000 liters of locust control agents for its operations; so this is a market where, as we believe, Russian suppliers of these products and related services could successfully compete,” said Mr Oleg Kobiakov, Director of the FAO Liaison Office with the Russian Federation.

“We thank FAO for this fine initiative, for this video conference. We appreciate the opportunity to get acquainted with global best practices,” said Mr Alexander Malko, Head of the Rosselkhozcentre.

“We also procure such control agents and have good track record in working with domestic suppliers of plant protection products. We have accumulated reserves of about 20,000 tonnes sufficient for treating 300,000 hectares,” Mr Malko informed the audience. 

“I hope that our manufacturers of plant protection products will successfully join the global cohort of FAO operations suppliers. I am confident that they have all the prerequisites: high-quality products, a wide variety and a business-oriented approach,” Mr Malko concluded.

The keynote speaker was Dr Alexandre Latchininsky, Agricultural Officer (Locust Management), FAO Plant Protection Division. In his presentation on “FAO’s technical requirements for the procurement of locust control agents”, he recalled that FAO has the mandate to organize and coordinate the fight against desert locusts worldwide, and FAO international pest monitoring and control program was the first of its kind.

“2020 saw the most severe outbreak of desert locusts for the past 50 years, and in a number of countries – for the past 70 years,” the FAO expert underlined.

The Russian Federation recently made a voluntary contribution of $10 million to support FAO in the fight against the scourge of desert locust in East Africa. The funds will be used within the framework of FAO operations in Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and South Sudan. “Russia is one of the six largest donor countries in the fight against locusts in the world,” Mr Latchininsky intoned.

In total, FAO deals with 11 active substances of insecticides belonging to six chemical classes, the FAO expert detailed. He then posed and answered the all-important question of “Which of them are actually procured by FAO?” These are the Organophosphates - Malathion, fenitrothion and chlorpyrifos; pyrethroids-deltamethrin and lambda-cyhalothrin; Chitin synthesis inhibitors (CSIs) – diflubenzuron and teflubenzuron; biological control agent Metarhizium Acridum.”

The next question Mr Latchininsky answered was on FAO’s tender procedure. The first stage of the procurement, he explained, involves the development of technical specifications (TS). The key point here is the availability of JMPS certification (“Joint FAO/WHO Meeting on Pesticide Specifications” (JMPS)). More specifically:

• Offered products must be JMPS certified;

• Each product must be accompanied by a detailed dossier, including comprehensive information on all aspects of its physical and chemical properties, toxicology, ecotoxicology, etc.;

• The dossier is submitted by the manufacturing company;

• Apart from the dossier, the bidding company must also present the methodology used to analyze the insecticide;

• JMPS reviews all submitted materials and makes a conclusion on product certification.

The second stage of the tender is the technical evaluation of the submitted proposals that checks for compliance with the required technical specifications. The third stage of the tender consists of financial evaluation.

During the lively discussion that followed, Russian experts as well as representatives from Georgia and Uzbekistan exchanged views and practical information.

A number of Russian companies presented their products, research and development activities, and spoke in favor of enhanced cooperation within the sector, including on the FAO platform.

The participants of the webinar were presented, in particular, innovative unmanned technologies, including quadrocopters for spraying, disinfection and surveillance, suitable for use also by farmers on small land plots.

The experts discussed and approved the initiative of testing Russian-made bio-products using the FAO methodology.

50 leading experts attended the webinar which was already the second event this summer dedicated to locust control organized jointly by the FAO and Rosselkhozcentre.