FAO delivers the first batch of desert locust control
equipment to Iran

FAO in the scheme of an emergency technical cooperation project,
supplies necessary pesticide sprayers to Iran to assist the country in its
effort to control the unprecedented desert locust infestation.

Tehran – As part of an ongoing support provided by the Food and Agriculture
Organization of the United Nations (FAO) to Iran for controlling desert locust
infestation, the first consignment of pest control equipment supplied by the
Organization, was delivered to the country’s plant protection authority.
According to a press release published by the FAO Representation in Iran, this
delivery includes 25 vehicle-mounted Ultra Low Volume (ULV) sprayers worth
around USD 125,000.

Iran is now
experiencing the worst desert locust outbreak in the last 50 years. The latest
tracking data shows that seven out of 31 provinces of the country have been
invaded by this pest so far and the new projection implies that this number
might be increased to 10.

Although, last year
Iran managed to conduct pesticide spraying operations in more than 700,000 ha
of its rangelands, this year, as the infestations have occurred in larger
scales, the country needs to expand the control operation and treat at least
one million ha of surface areas.

In this regard, FAO
has financed a USD 500,000 emergency Technical Cooperation Programme (TCP)
project to further enhance Iran’s national technical capacity for early
warning, monitoring and management of desert locust.

In the framework of
this project, FAO assists the Plant Protection Organization of the Ministry of
Agriculture Jahad with increasing its technical capacity through training
workshops and learning programmes for 320 pest and agriculture officers in the
locust affected provinces of the country.

This project also
provides the country with additional handheld and knapsack sprayers, Personal
Protective Equipment, chemicals (pesticides), and data management and
communications software and hardware equipment.

FAO, being the UN
specialised agency dedicated to increasing food and agricultural development,
has implemented similar project in other affected countries such as Pakistan,
Yemen and East African nations, all aimed to support its Member States in
managing the threat posed by the desert locust. 

Source of News: http://www.fao.org/iran/news/detail-events/en/c/1277948/