Crop protection services in Southern Africa |
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| Authors: | Allan Femi Lana |
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| Institution: | Professor Allan Femi Lana, of the Department of Crop Science and Production at the Sokoine University of Agriculture, Morogoro, Tanzania, is currently Chairman, Coordinating Committee of the Plant Protection improvement Programme in Southern Africa funded by the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA) |
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| Abstract: | Despite the considerable progress made in different farming systems in Southern Africa, effective crop protection services remain a major constraint in their agricultural production systems. Factors responsible for these limitations include the following: the low government priorities still accorded crop protection services; the scarcity or complete lack of trained experienced professional and technical crop protection personnel; the fact that techniques for pest and disease control either are not available to small-scale farmers, or, where available, are not appropriate to the local situation; the inadequacy or lack of cooperation and communication between scientists, extension workers and farmers. A rigorous research, extension and training programme with an efficient infrastructure is advocated. In order to set priorities for appropriate integrated pest management (IPM), a standardized survey of pests of important food crops as well as losses suffered by small-scale farmers in each country of the region is imperative. The crop protection services can also be strengthened through the establishment of a Southern African Development Coordination Conference (SADCC) Crop Protection Collaborative Network to coordinate crop protection activities, as described below. |
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