April 19, 2017
A highly damaging invasive insect-pest Fall Armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) first noticed in Africa in Nigeria, January 2016, has since been reported in several countries in southern Africa and eastern Africa, including Kenya. The Fall Armyworm (FAW) is highly polyphagous insect-pest, and can feed on a wide array of crops including maize, wheat, rice, sorghum, millets, groundnut, cowpea, cotton, sesame etc. Since maize is extensively grown in sub-Saharan Africa, extensive damage is most obvious on maize. FAW moths can migrate over long distances (over 100 km per day) and breed quite fast. While there is certainly no silver bullet to this problem, experiences from America clearly call for a well-coordinated, multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional initiative in sub-Saharan Africa, based on an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) strategy.
The Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) together with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the Food and Agriculture (FAO) will jointly hold a two-day Stakeholders Consultation Meeting on “Fall Armyworm in Africa: Status and Strategy for Effective Management” from April 27 -28, 2017 at the Kempinski Hotel, Nairobi- Kenya. We hope to have the participation of a diverse array of stakeholders in this meeting, including from the Ministries of Agriculture/National Plant Protection Organizations (NPPOs), renowned experts (from UK, US and Brazil) working on invasive insect-pests and their control, scientists from relevant international and national research and development organizations based in Africa, and private sector institutions with potential solutions to consider.
The objectives of the meeting will be: a) to review the status of FAW incidence and impacts in Africa; b) to discuss the available technological options for minimizing the damage caused by this invasive insect-pest; c) to provide concrete recommendations on a well-coordinated strategy for effective management of FAW in Africa, and d) to identify appropriate partnerships to develop and deploy short-term, medium-term, and long-term solutions to the farming communities.
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