Two parasitoids introduced in mealybug (Rastrococcus invadens) in Burundi, Rwanda, and Uganda have freed an estimated 250 000 mango trees from this pest and supported the livelihoods of many farmers in the region. These beneficial insects were introduced to control the mango mealybug population by laying their eggs inside them, ultimately killing the pest and preventing further infestations.

As part of its ongoing efforts to maintain the preparedness to fight the desert locust, especially in invasion countries, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations conducted a crucial refresher training for locust officers from frontline counties as well as crop protection officers and equipped them with principles of desert locust survey and reporting.

Within the framework of the FAO-Türkiye Partnership Programme on Food and Agriculture (FTPP II), practical training was given to farmers on recognition and integrated management of wheat rust diseases at the Ikizce Research and Production Farm of the Field Crops Central Research Institute Directorate in Gölbaşı, Ankara.

The FAO’s Locust Pesticide Management System is being implemented in Ethiopia where it is used in the organization and recording data of desert locust pesticide control products and equipment in Kaliti store. Using the application, the Locust-PMS focal officers can register pesticide products for locust control, track useable and obsolete pesticides and empty containers, and monitor disposal of obsolete pesticides and associated waste, among other tasks.

The FAO-developed SusaHamra system has been launched in Jordan as its official national red palm weevil monitoring application, becoming the second country after Tunisia which adopted the system for monitoring and surveying the pest in the affected areas. The system is powered by PlantVillage.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations is reviewing its integrated biosecurity index tool essential in refining the measurement of biosecurity system status and progress at both national and sub-national levels, ensuring effectiveness, efficiency, and sustainability. At the national level, the index is envisioned as a planning tool, facilitating comprehensive assessments across ministries to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. This comprehensive tool encompasses five critical sectors: aquatic and terrestrial animal health, plant health, food safety, and forestry/invasive species management. 

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations constructed five (5) Desert Locust centres in Yemen's key breeding areas. The initiative is part of the ongoing efforts to control & manage the pest in the Near East region. The Seiyun centre has been handed over to local authorities in Seiyun, in Hadramout governorate in Yemen. The country is one of the most significant Desert Locust breeding reservoirs in the region and the establishment of these Centres will mitigate pest outbreaks in the region and beyond.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations has called for sustained locust management in Caucasus and Central Asia (CCA), based on long-term regional cooperation, monitoring and early warning systems, as well as advanced and safer control techniques, in particular biopesticides. The call was made at the side-event of the 34th session of the FAO Regional Conference for Europe (ERC34).

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, in collaboration with Georgia State University, is developing a novel training approach using Virtual Reality (VR) to teach teams about locust surveys and controls during breeding and invasion. The platform will create an immersive environment where locust officers and trainees will get to interact with locusts in a virtual classroom.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) presented the newly developed integrated biosecurity index (IBI) and assessment tool in support of the countries to analyze and manage risks associated with linkages between human, plant, and animal health and environment sectors. It is noted that inadequate controls in one sector can have far-reaching consequences for other sectors.