Promoting Ecologically-Based Alternatives to Highly Hazardous Pesticides to Enhance Food Safety and Security in the Pacific Region - TCP/SAP/3803
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Boosting food production in the Pacific Islands is a key strategy for increasing food security, economic stability and resilience to shocks such as the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result of the pandemic, food imports and supply chains were disrupted and access to fresh produce was severely impacted, posing serious concerns for food security. It was therefore essential that the agricultural sector in the larger islands in the Pacific be revived. Central to agricultural growth are sustainable pest management strategies and robust and functioning biosecurity systems. Previous agricultural intensification efforts have however led to modest and short-lived yield gains in the region. The average yields of vegetables in Fiji are still from four to seven times lower than those in neighbouring countries, such as New Zealand and Australia. The lack of effective and sustainable pest management strategies in the Pacific is a serious limit to agricultural growth. Plant pests, including invasive and emerging pests, continue to take a significant toll on crop productivity in the region. International trade and climate change create new pathways and ecological niches that facilitate the establishment and spread of pests and diseases into new geographical areas.