Senegal modernizes plant pest surveillance with digital tools

The Direction de la Protection des Végétaux (DPV) in Senegal, in collaboration with the African Phytosanitary Programme (PPA), held a workshop in Thiès to strengthen national capacities for the digital surveillance of plant pests.

The initiative aims to modernize the collection, transmission, and analysis of phytosanitary data. By transitioning from traditional methods to digital tools, the DPV seeks to improve the speed and precision of monitoring threats to crops. This modernization is intended to help prevent, detect, and manage phytosanitary risks that impact agriculture, natural resources, and food security.

Koumba Mouendou Descartes, representing the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) secretariat, noted that reliable data is essential for identifying new pests, assessing risks, and demonstrating a country’s phytosanitary status. The training follows previous capacity-building efforts, including a training-of-trainers session held in South Africa.