Forest health

Activities - Overview

Direct technical assistance to countries is provided predominantly through FAO's Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP), in response to requests from governments related to specific pest problems affecting forests and food security. All projects offer more than emergency assistance, helping countries also to develop pest management strategies to prevent further outbreaks in the medium and long term.

Technical cooperation is offered through the organization of international workshops and technical visits to provide advice on pest problems, such as Dalbergia sissoo dieback in south Asia and juniper dieback and decline in Libya.

FAO, with the cooperation of experts from member countries, is compiling data for a global information system on insect pest and disease outbreaks and their impacts on natural and planted forests, trees outside forests and other wooded lands. It will be made widely available through both electronic and printed means.

At the request of member countries, and in collaboration with the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), three technical guides have been prepared which provide information on pests of Eucalyptus spp., Pinus spp. and Acacia spp. that have the potential to be spread through the international and domestic trade of seeds and plant tissue.

FAO also supports cooperation among countries in the management of forest pests of regional significance through the development of forest pest management and information networks.