Agriculture on Train-the-Trainer Conference strengthening Africa’s phytosanitary systems

The National Plant Protection Organisation of South Africa (NPPOZA) in the Department of Agriculture (DoA) is hosting a Train-The-Trainer Conference to discuss agricultural plant disease identification and prevention. Furthermore, the conference will launch phase two of the Africa Phytosanitary Programme (APP) from 23 to 27 June 2025 in White River, Mpumalanga. The APP is an initiative of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The APP aims to strengthen the resilience of Africa’s phytosanitary systems against plant pests of regulatory, economic, and environmental significance.

The conference will provide hands-on training on innovative digital tools to enhance monitoring, detection, reporting and prevention of plant pests and diseases that have a significant economic and agricultural impact in Africa. Participants will include phytosanitary officers of the National Plant Protection Organisations (NPPOs) from 15 African countries, nine of which are in the new APP phase two:

• The People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria

• The Republic of Cabo Verde

• The Republic of Chad

• Republic of Congo

• Liberia

• Malawi

• The Republic of Senegal

• The Republic of South Africa

• The Republic of Tunisia

and six are in the pilot phase:

• Cameroon

• Guinea-Bissau

• Kenya

• The Republic of Mali

• Zambia

• Zimbabwe

Trainees are expected to gain knowledge and enhance their capacity to further train colleagues and other stakeholders in their respective countries.

The conference will include representatives from:

• Department of Agriculture (DoA)

• Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)

• IPPC Secretariat

• African Union Inter-African Phytosanitary Council

• Near East Plant Protection Organization

• European Commission

• Other partners

The media is invited to cover the conference as follows:

Day 1:

• Opening ceremony — APP Train-The-Trainer Conference

• Date and time: 23 June 2025 (09:00–10:00)

• Venue: Premier Hotel the Winkler, White River, Mpumalanga, South Africa

Day 3: Field visits

• Date and time: 25 June 2025 (07:30–17:30)

• Site 1: ARC Mbombela Research Farm, Tropical and Subtropical Crops Campus, Mbombela, 26 km from the hotel (07:30–12:00)

• Site 2: GIBA Farm, Hazyview, 40 km from the hotel (14:20–16:00)

• Site 3: Premier Hotel Winkler (16:40–17:30)

To RSVP, kindly contact:

Enquiries:
Mr Moses Rannditsheni
Director: Media and External Communication
Cell: 063 135 5425
Email: Moses.Rannditsheni@dalrrd.gov.za

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