Sustainable Management of Invasive Pests in Africa

Invasive species, generally, affect economically important crops, thus affecting the livelihoods of millions of people along crop value chains. Typically, invasive species have high migratory capabilities and, because of plant material exchanges made during trade, they cannot be contained by one country. Usually, African countries react after a pest has invaded and established itself in the country, making the cost of mitigating the pest even more expensive. This book presents a pan-African view of the impacts of invasive insect pests on agriculture and of how invasive species impact on productivity in Africa. It not only describes their importance, but also presents a diversity of research findings in the field, ranging from the use of early warning and monitoring systems for quarantine purposes, agricultural extension, all the way to control strategies. The IPM arsenal presented in this book includes the use of botanical bioactive compounds, semiochemicals, resistant varieties, biological control agents such as entomopathogens, endophytes, predators, and natural enemies. Aspects of technology transfer strategies, regional coordination, and farmers’ perceptions have not been overlooked, because these affect the adoption of mitigation strategies. The book also presents measures that would help agricultural research services to estimate the damage and take actions for preparedness and readiness to face invasive insect pests. This starts with a basic knowledge of taxonomy to enable concerned persons to describe the insects and the vast inventory of affected crops. Physiological and ecological aspects of invasive pests are strongly highlighted to strengthen Integrated Pest Management Strategies.

The threat of invasive species will remain permanent; therefore, the book encourages knowledge exchange and collaboration between researchers and scientists on the continent, while encouraging the establishment of a platform or a fund for preparedness and rapid response.

Saliou Niassy is a Senegalese national. He holds an MSc degree in Natural Sciences, a Postgraduate degree in Zoology from Cheikh Anta Diop University in Dakar (UCAD), and a PhD in Zoology from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT) in Kenya, through the ARPPIS-DAAD-icipe programme (2008–2011). Saliou joined the University of Pretoria in 2011, as a Postdoctoral Fellow, to coordinate the Research Network on Climate Change in African Mountains, AfroMont, funded by the FAO and the Mountain Research Initiative (MRI). After establishing the AfroMont Network successfully, Saliou took up a second Postdoctoral Fellowship at the International Centre of Insect Physiology, icipe, in Nairobi, under an African Union-funded project on Grain legumes in 2013. In late 2014, Saliou was appointed a Research Scientist, Head of the Technology Transfer Unit, under an IFAD funded project, operating in Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Rwanda.

Saliou served as the Coordinator of the Land Matrix Initiative, one of the most prominent global and independent land monitoring initiatives in the world, analysing competition on Large-Scale Land Investments between September 2015 and June 2017.

Saliou has now re-joined icipe as Head of the Technology Transfer Unit (ATTU), as cross-cutting for the centre. Saliou is a pan-Africanist, and he has trained in and is working in Africa. His research interests encompass agriculture and rural development, food security, and poverty alleviation. Currently, Saliou is the President of the African Association of Insect Scientists (AAIS), a position held since 2013. Saliou speaks French, English, Wolof and Diola fluently, and a little bit of Swahili and German. 

Sunday Ekesi is the Director of Research and Partnerships at icipe. He is a scientist, research leader and manager with extensive knowledge and experience in sustainable agriculture, which includes microbial control, biological control, habitat management, managing pesticide use, integrated pest management, pesticide management, and biodiversity in Africa and internationally. As Director of Research and Partnerships, he also manages and provides leadership on the implementation of high-level strategic goals of the various themes of the organization, in line with the institution’s vision and strategy.

Sunday has broad perspectives of agricultural research and development issues, with proven experiences of challenges and opportunities in working with smallholder farmers, extension agents, research organizations, and the private sector to improve food and nutritional security. He has vast experience on African Fruit Fly Programme and is familiar with the current priorities of sustainable intensification and agricultural transformation agenda. Sunday advises national programmes in more than 21 African countries on the development and implementation of integrated pest management (IPM) programmes for horticulture and staple crops. He sits on various international advisory and consultancy panels, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), The World Bank (WB), IPM Innovation Lab, and regional and national projects on various arthropod pests and climate change-related issues. He has authored more than 200 peer-reviewed publications and has trained 30 graduate students. He is a member of the Editorial Board of Journal of Insects as Food and Feed (JIFF), International Journal of Tropical Insect Science (IJT), and Life: The Excitement of Biology (LEB). Sunday is a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society (FRES) and the African Academy of Sciences (FAAS).

Dr Lorna Migiro is an agricultural entomologist, with 19 years of experience in research, lecturing and project management. She is currently the Programme Support Manager for the award-winning CABI-led Plantwise programme, whose aim is to increase food security and improve rural livelihoods by reducing crop losses in several developing countries across Africa, Asia and the Americas. In previous roles, Lorna worked at both the Technical University of Kenya and Pwani University as a lecturer, was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Alnarp Sweden, was an Assistant Regional Manager with the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS), a Consultant with Dudutech Kenya Limited, a sales representative with Phillips Pharmaceutical Company Limited, and a Technical Assistant at the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe). 

Washington Otieno is the Plantwise Programme Executive at CAB International, where he has worked since 2013. At CABI, Washington has led the coordination of Plantwise, a global programme that builds the capacity of developing countries for plant health management through networks of plant clinics, development, and use of pest databases. He has expertise in phytosanitary capacity development, acquired through working with the Secretariat of International Plant Protection Convention and the Kenyan National Plant Protection Organization, and in agricultural research in tea production systems. Washington holds BSc and MSc degrees in agriculture and plant pathology, respectively, from the University of Nairobi, and a PhD from Wageningen University and Research Centre. He has published one book chapter, and more than 30 papers in peer-reviewed and institutional journals.