Zimbabwe has strengthened its national plant health surveillance efforts through a training workshop launched yesterday in Kadoma under the Africa Phytosanitary Programme (APP).
The initiative is being led by the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development through the Directorate of Research, Education and Specialist Services (D’RESS), in collaboration with the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) Secretariat. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations and international partners including the European Union Commission, the United Kingdom, and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) are supporting the programme.
The workshop is training over 40 plant health inspectors and managers in pest identification, field surveillance, digital data collection, and real-time reporting to support early warning systems.
D’RESS Chief Director Dr. Dumisani Kutywayo said the training aims to boost Zimbabwe’s capacity to manage five high-risk quarantine pests that threaten food security and export markets.
“These pests citrus greening, the Asian citrus psyllid, Fusarium wilt (TR4), banana bunchy top virus, fruit flies, and Xylella fastidiosa are a serious threat to our horticultural exports and national food supply,” he said.
The workshop follows a regional training held in Egypt in 2023, where six Zimbabwean experts were trained to cascade knowledge locally.
IPPC Secretariat representative Dr. Descartes Koumba stressed the importance of prevention over response.
“Regular surveillance and rapid reporting using digital tools are key to preventing outbreaks and maintaining trade flows,” he said.
The training provides practical, field-based experience and equips inspectors with tablets for digital data entry and geo-tagged reporting, which will help reduce export rejections due to pest interceptions.
In a side interview, Dr. Kutywayo said the adoption of digital surveillance would modernise Zimbabwe’s pest monitoring system.
“Our inspectors can now detect and report in real time, which improves response times and strengthens trade compliance,” he said.
The Plant Quarantine Services Institute (PQSI) under D’RESS noted the importance of extending digital surveillance training to extension officers and frontline staff to improve coverage and coordination.
The APP supports a broader continental effort to harmonise pest surveillance and reporting systems across Africa, enabling countries to protect agriculture, enhance resilience, and improve market access.
