Tajikistan and Uzbekistan successfully conducted a locust cross-border survey in their southern common border areas, mainly focusing on the Moroccan Locust. This joint activity took place from 7 to 12 April 2025, with the participation of five locust experts from each country, representing both the central offices and the regions involved, from the State Entity "Locust Control Expedition", Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), Tajikistan, and the Agency on Plant Protection and Quarantine, MoA, Uzbekistan. At the time of the survey, Moroccan Locust hatching had been completed, and hoppers were in their first and second instars in the surveyed areas on both sides of the border; the maximum hopper density observed reached 450-550 individuals per square meter. Control operations had already begun in both countries. On 7-9 April, the participants surveyed 43 000 hectares (ha) in the Districts of Republican Subordination and Khatlon region of Tajikistan. Based on the assessment of the situation, the area potentially to be treated in 2025 will be up to 18 000 ha. On 10-12 April, the survey continued over 47 000 ha in the Surkhandarya region of Uzbekistan, with an estimated 15 700 ha potentially requiring treatment. The countries agreed to continue information exchange and enhance joint efforts for managing this transboundary pest. This coordinated activity was supported by the "Project for improvement of locust management (Phase 2)" in Central Asia, funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), in the framework of the FAO Locust Programme in Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA). 

A locust training was delivered to the benefit of 17 staff from Kazakhstan, pertaining to the Republican Methodological Center for Phytosanitary Diagnostics and Forecasts, Ministry of Agriculture. Delivered by FAO Experts on 31 March-4 April 2025 in Shymkent, the training focused on bio-ecology of the Moroccan, Italian and Asian Migratory locusts and on the basics of the locust preventive strategy, monitoring, information management -including the use of the Automated System for Data Collection (ASDC) and Caucasus and Central Asia Locust Management System (CCALM). This event was implemented with the financial support of the project funded by the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) as part of the FAO “Programme to improve national and regional management in Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA)”.

Trainings on locust bioecology, monitoring and information management -including the Automated System for Data Collection (ASDC) and the Caucasus and Central Asian Locust Management System (CCALM), were delivered in Uzbekistan in last February and in Turkmenistan in March, by the national Master-Trainers as part of a Training-of-Trainers approach. In Uzbekistan, locust control -including with Ultra-Low Volume (ULV) technology and biopesticides, as well as pesticide risk reduction, were also addressed. More specifically, in Uzbekistan, four national sessions were conducted by the Master-Trainers of the Agency for Plant Protection and Quarantine (APPQ) to a total of 68 participants, in Karshi on 3-5 February, in Gulistan on 10-12 February, in Fergana on 18-20 February, and in Nukus on 24-25 February. In Turkmenistan, the three training sessions, delivered by the Master-Trainers of the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Environment, benefited to 49 staff; they were held in Mary on 3-7 March, in Gyzylarbat districts, Balkan, on 17-18 March and in Bakherden, Akhal on 24-25 March. These trainings are deemed as crucial for capacity strengthening, either as refresher courses or for new staff. They were supported by JICA-funded project GCP/INT/384/JCA, as part of the FAO “Programme to improve national and regional locust management in CCA”.

On 10-14 March 2025, on-the-job training on monitoring techniques on the impact of locust control on human health and the environment took place in Termez and Surkhandarya region. It was delivered to the members of the Human Health and Environmental Monitoring Team, i.e. five staff of the Agency of Plant Protection and Quarantine, Ministry of Agriculture, Uzbekistan, by the FAO Environmental Expert. The Team was set up for the first time during the 2024 locust campaign. At the onset of the 2025 one, this training allowed field practice regarding pesticide application and implementation of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for pesticide risk reduction including in beekeeping zones, incident response simulation, environmental impact analysis, and filling of Pesticide Use Passport by staff involved in locust control. Over the past years, similar support was provided to Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan in the framework of the FAO “Programme to improve national and regional locust management in Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA)”, with a view to improve locust control and support pesticide risk reduction. The recent on-the-job training in Uzbekistan was more specifically provided thanks to the project funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

The sixth annual regional Workshop on locust data collection, analysis, forecast and reporting in CCA took place online on 13 March 2025, gathering up more than 50 experts from CCA countries and FAO. After a presentation made by each country on the use of the Automated System for Data Collection (ASDC) during the 2024 campaign, including challenges met and solutions, discussions concerned a number of topics related to the improvement of ASDC and the Geographic Information System (GIS) “Caucasus and Central Asia Locust Management System (CCALM)”. They included: the testing of ASDC beta-version with new third Human Health and Environmental Monitoring Form; the synchronization of locust survey data between the CCALM and the Russian, Kazakh and Uzbek locust GIS; CCALM use for analysis of locust density in the mark points, as well as for inserting maps in the monthly bulletins on locust and anti-locust situations; and recommendations for 2025. This workshop was held thanks to support from the regional project funded by the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

Three national training sessions were held in December 2024/January 2025 to the benefit of 57 specialists from the central office, regional and district branches of the State Entity "Locust Control Expedition" (SE-LCE), Ministry of Agriculture of Tajikistan. Organized in Sughd and Khatlon regions and in the Districts of the Republican Subordination (DRS), the training focused on Moroccan and Italian Locusts biology, field surveys, information management using the FAO Automated System of Data Collection (ASDC), locust spraying techniques, pesticide risk reduction, and use of biopesticides. The sessions were delivered by SE-LCE Master-Trainers (MTs), who had previously benefited from the Training-of-Trainers (ToT) regional sessions conducted by FAO experts. During the training, participants gained essential knowledge on more effective and safer locust management. The presentation on the use of biopesticides against locusts, which was operationally used for the first time in Tajikistan in 2024, received particular high attention from the participants. These training sessions were organized in the framework of the FAO regional Programme “Improvement national and regional locust management in Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA)” and more specifically of the project "Improvement of Locust Management (Phase 2)," funded by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

These Practical Guidelines on three locust pests in CCA have recently been published in English in addition to several other languages, namely Azerbaijani, Georgian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Russian, Tajik and Turkmen. The guidelines provide detailed information on the biology, ecology and behaviour of three species of locust pests in CCA – the Italian, Moroccan and the Asian Migratory Locusts. They give comprehensive yet accessible information not only for locust control and plant protection specialists in the CCA countries, but also for researchers, students, and the widest range of readers. The guidelines are divided into several parts. The first three are devoted to general issues of biology, ecology, phase variability, life cycle and behaviour of locust pests. The next three deal separately with each of the three locust species in CCA. The Guidelines end with an annotated list of the most important publications on these harmful locusts. These practical guidelines were prepared in the framework of the interregional and multi-funded "Programme to improve national and regional locust management in CCA".

The year 2024 has been again particularly rich in achievements. While locust infestations were on the rise in several countries in Caucasus and Central Asia, the efforts and action of the national bodies in charge of locust management resulted in successful campaign implementation. The FAO Locust Programme in CCA, supported by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the United States Agency for International Cooperation (USAID), provided assistance in this regard, with a particularly high number of activities in 2024, several of them being carried out for the first time ever. A record number of cross-border surveys, involving all Central Asian countries, were held during the campaign. Regional exchanges also took place on several other occasions, including the annual Technical Workshop on Locusts in CCA, held for the first time in Turkmenistan. National capacities were strengthened with particular attention to training, joint activities and knowledge transfer on locust-related topics, benefiting to 580 persons in total, and through equipment delivery. Support was provided with respect to the Geographic Information System (GIS) entitled “Caucasus and Central Asia Locust Management System (CCALM)”, a key management tool for early warning and timely response. Preparedness was supported also with the development of a national locust contingency plan in Tajikistan, a pilot activity in the region. Following the two regional demonstrations held in 2023, six out of the ten CCA countries conducted national demonstrations/trials with biopesticides during the 2024 locust campaign, with very good results obtained. They represent an initial but highly promising step towards safer locust control. In this respect, Human health and Environmental Monitoring Teams were set up in two additional countries, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, for a total of six countries. Such regional and national efforts to strengthen regional cooperation and towards early warning and pesticide risk reduction will be pursued in the coming years. The above is  would not be possible without the outstanding support of the resource partners. The FAO Team working on locusts in Caucasus and Central Asia wishes to congratulate all stakeholders for the achievements made in 2024 and present its best wishes for a successful 2025!

The report of the annual Technical Workshop on Locusts in Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA), held on 11-15 November 2024 in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, is available here! It includes a summary of the 2024 locust campaign in the ten CCA countries and a forecast for 2025. The report also contains a review of the progress made and activities in 2024, with a summary of the discussions held by the CCA countries, resource partners, observers from China, Iran and Italy, and FAO experts, including on the latest developments regarding the GIS “Caucasus and Central Asia Locust Management System” (CCALM) or related to pesticide risk reduction associated with locust control operations, including biopesticides. On this basis, the next annual workplan, covering the 2025 campaign, is also provided and will guide the implementation of the FAO “Programme to improve national and regional locust management in CCA”. An updated list of publications relevant to locust management in CCA and produced under the Programme is provided in annex.

The annual Technical Workshop on Locusts in CCA is hosted in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, for the first time since Programme start. It gathers delegates from the countries participating in the FAO “Programme to improve national and regional locust management in the Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA)” as well as observers from China, Iran and Italy, in addition to the FAO organizers. The Workshop allows discussing the lessons learnt from the 2024 national anti-locust campaign and preparation of the next one, the implementation of the Programme in 2024 and workplan for 2025, the latest developments regarding the Geographic Information System (GIS) entitled “Caucasus and Central Asia Locust Management System” (CCALM), the use of biopesticides for locust control; the use of drones and new technologies in locust management, risk reduction associated with locust control operations, and future priorities for the Programme. This event is possible thanks to the financial support of the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the FAO Regular Programme.