7 October 2013: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN (FAO), together with the Wageningen University and Research Centre, convened a regional workshop on pesticides management for East Africa. The workshop, held from 24-26 September 2013, in Musanze, Rwanda, agreed on a 21-point action plan to improve regional pesticide management.

Attended by representatives from governments, famers’ organizations and the private sector from Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, the workshop focused on developing a strategy for better regional pesticide management. The agreed action plan includes actions on: import controls to stop counterfeit and illegal pesticides from entering countries; and training farmers to protect their crops by using natural controls instead of chemicals.

The meeting also called on the East African Community and national policy makers to prioritize the pesticides management programme for action.

The workshop was funded by the Government of the Netherlands and FAO, in collaboration with the Government of Rwanda. [IISD RS Sources] [Wageningen University Press Release] [Government of Rwanda Press Release]