FAO in Liberia

FAO Presents pheromone traps and Smart Phones (Tecno) to MoA for Fall armyworm(FAW) Surveillance system

09/05/2019

Monrovia- The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has  presented pheromone traps   Smart Phones (Tecno) to the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) to support the government efforts in the implementation of FAW Monitoring and Early Warning System (FAMEWS) to reduce the infestation and spread of FAW.

The materials will be used to effectively monitor and report on the Fall Armyworm (FAW) as well as enhance the government’s efforts to mitigate and boost the resilience of farmers against FAW infestation on maize, vegetable and other related food crops in Liberia. Items delivered to the MoA included 100 pheromone traps, 600 lures, 12 lits Deltamethrin, and 25 smart phones (TECNO).

Presenting the items, the FAO Representative in Liberia Ms Mariatou Njie said FAW is a dangerous transboundary pest with a high potential to spread continually due to its natural distribution capacity and it has the potential to cause serious damage to crops, yield losses and threaten national household food and nutrition security.

FAW is an invasive pest that requires vigorous actions to stop the spread due to its threat to food security. According to Madam Njie FAO has undertaken several actions to strengthen countries’ capacity to respond to FAW through TCP projects and other funding mechanisms. 

She called on the selected District Agricultural Officers to be more committed in collecting the FAW data and submitting to Global System for analysis. “It will be difficult to assess the level of infestation and damage caused by the pest without timely collecting and submitting reliable data for decision making”.

The FAO Representative disclosed that the project will mainly focus on mass awareness campaigns on radio and television, strengthening the surveillance system and building the capacity of farmer and agricultural extension workers on monitoring, scouting, early detection and sustainable management of the transboundary insect pest.

Receiving the item on behalf of the Ministry of Agriculture, Assistant Minister for Administration Hon. Ernest J. Clarke thanked FAO for the support in strengthening the agriculture sector.

“This is timely, it will help us urgently address the problem faced by the farmers. We appreciate the well-timed assistance from FAO to buttress the government efforts to intervene and stop the further spread of the insect pest”.

In September 2018, the Government of Liberia represented by the Minister of Agriculture and the Country Representative of FAO signed a TCP Project (TCP/LIR/37001/C1) on Rapid Assessment, Surveillance and Intervention for the Management of Fall Armyworm in Liberia. The project aims to reduce the infestation and spread of FAW through functional surveillance system, mass communication for public sensitization and farmers’ training.