Fall armyworm (FAW) is an insect pest that feeds on maize and, potentially, more than 80 other crops including rice, sorghum, millet, cotton and vegetables. It is a transboundary pest able to fly more than 100 km in a single night. Native to the Americas, FAW was first reported in Central and Western Africa in early 2016.

Within two years, it had spread across almost all of sub-Saharan Africa as well as many Asian countries. Between February and May 2020, it was confirmed in Australia, Mauritania, Timor-Leste and the United Arab Emirates. In late 2020, it was detected in Jordan, Syria and Papua New Guinea. In January 2021, New Caledonia confirmed FAW and by 2021, FAW had spread to over 70 countries.

The pest can reproduce quickly in favorable environmental conditions. FAW will likely continue to spread, feeding on maize and potentially threatening cereal production systems in general, as well as the food security, food safety and livelihoods of hundreds of millions of people.

FAW cannot be eradicated but it can be controlled through an integrated pest management (IPM) approach. Direct actions that can be taken to manage FAW are largely up to farmers in their fields. Thus, the main focus and majority of resources will be aimed at supporting farmers. Sustainable FAW management will preserve the food and nutritional security of an estimated 600 million people worldwide. 

In response to the FAW crisis, FAO developed the Global Action for Fall Armyworm Control (GA), which has three key objectives:

1) reduce crop losses due to FAW by 5 percent in all eight demonstration countries, and by 10 percent in the pilot (scale-up) countries;

2) reduce the risk of further spread and infestation in countries with limited presence of the pest; and

3) establish a coordination mechanism at global, regional and national levels.

To achieve these objectives, the GA is leading a massive effort to validate and scale up sustainable FAW management practices to reach millions of affected smallholder farmers.  It aims at having an impact at economic, social and environmental levels by reducing yield losses, improving livelihoods, capacity and health while enhancing biodiversity, reducing chemical pollution and increasing the resilience of cropping systems. 

This FMM subprogramme has been designed to strategically align with, and contribute to, the GA. Capacity development, innovation, knowledge sharing and community-based FAW management pilots are the main activities at national level. Across regions, sound policy coordination and information exchange fora will contribute to disseminating best practices, including standards on phytosanitary measures and quarantine.

The GA is proving to be an innovative and powerful tool leading to transformational change. Through its global coordination of the FAW response, farmers and their governments are supported to manage FAW sustainably. Its organizational approach includes a Steering Committee, led by FAO Director-General QU Dongyu, and a Technical Committee and seven Technical Working Groups (TWG)[1] that bring together expertise and resources from FAW experts and stakeholders worldwide.

Innovative solutions are tested and made available to smallholder farmers to sustainably manage FAW in their fields, and to address the specific needs and priorities of men and women at field level. Monitoring and early warning systems will be further enhanced and deployed, and regional collaboration and coordination is being strengthened to reduce further spread of FAW. Through sustainable FAW management under the GA, food insecurity and poverty will be reduced, smallholder farmers’ livelihoods improved, and gender equality supported.

By improving the capacity of extension agents, government agencies, and farmers at field level, the  FMM subprogramme will build on created capacities, supporting the expansion of activities from demonstration and pilot countries. This supports the upscaling of good agricultural practices and FAW monitoring systems, and enables a shift from pilot-level interventions to large-scale transformations. 

Transboundary pests, and the consequences of climate change, pose significant challenges to  agricultural production systems. By providing science-based advice to governments, extensionists and farmers, FAO and its partners play a crucial role in preparing farmers and their governments for FAW management now, and for pest outbreaks in future. Thus, this subprogramme will play a catalytic role in supporting national and regional policy processes as these shift towards more sustainable and resilient agricultural production systems.

CHALLENGES AND LESSONS LEARNED

The proposed action is classified as low risk. Implementing new or revised agricultural policies to promote sustainable agricultural practices may involve the introduction of new crops and varieties/breeds, the provision of seeds/planting material for training purposes,  and establishing or managing planted forests. Special attention will be given to involving women and youth in the testing, training, and adoption of innovative practices and technologies and including them in demonstration and capacity development activities.