Closing workshop held for sustainable management of Fall Armyworm

Agrilife24.com: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) jointly organized the closing workshop for the project titled “Scaling up the Sustainable Management of the Fall Armyworm in Africa, the Near East and Asia” today in Dhaka.

Md. Ashraf Uddin, Director, Plant Protection Wing of the Department of Agricultural Extension participated as the Chair, Dr. Md. Abdus Salam, the Member Director (Crops) of Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC) was the chief guest. Dr. Debasish Sarker, Director General, Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI), and Mst Zohra Khatoon, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, gracing the session as Special Guests, and Nur Ahamed Khondaker, Assistant FAO Representative (Programme) and Officer-in-Charge, FAO Bangladesh participated to the closing workshop.

The closing provided an opportunity to share comprehensive insights into the implemented project activities, presenting the finalized National Action Plan of Bangladesh for Combatting Fall Armyworm, fostering collaboration among stakeholders involved in FAW control, envisioning a sustainable path forward, and collectively developing a roadmap for ongoing FAW control and management efforts in Bangladesh.

FAO provided technical assistance to prepare the Bangladesh National Action Plan to Combat Fall Armyworm which was presented at the workshop and well received by the participants. The action plan will serve as an instrument to mobilize resources and integrated approach to tackle crop damage by the insect following the approval by the Ministry of Agriculture.

Background
The project’s main objectives included coordinating and enhancing national and local capacities for Fall Armyworm (FAW) management. The project supported the Ministry of Agriculture and national task force, and adopted a cascading model to train 1 650 farmers, 100 sub-assistant agriculture officers (SAAOs), and frontline extension workers providing crop production advice. Additionally, 51 Farmer Field Days were organized, reaching 5 100 farmers.
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