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Achieving Sustainable Food Production in Africa: Roles of Pesticides and Biological Control Agents in Integrated Pest Management

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Abstract

Food production in Africa is declining, while her population is increasing rapidly. Some factors responsible for low food productivity are mentioned; special attention is given to the problem of agricultural pests. The hazards of overuse of pesticides in developed countries are cited to caution farmers in developing countries from getting drawn into a similar situation when attempting to solve pest problems. Integrated pest management (IPM), which aims to increase food productivity and profitability without endangering the environment, is recommended as a sustainable solution to the pesticide problem. The role of biological control agents, i.e., introduction, augmentation and preservation of natural enemies is emphasized. In developing sustainable agriculture through IPM, the importance of incorporating farmers’ traditional methods of farming into an IPM package and of identifying farmers’ overriding concerns, is recommended as a prerequisite to the acceptability and success of such packages.

Résumé

En Afrique, alors que la production alimentaire dimunie, la population humaine croit rapidement. Quelques facteurs à l’origine de la baisse de cette production alimentaire ont été mentionnés avec une attention particulière sur celui du aux insectes ravageurs de cultures. Les conséquences néfastes de l’usage abusif des pesticides dans les pays developpés ont été discutés en détail afin d’attirer l’attention des agriculteurs africains et ceux d’autres pays en voie de développement, sur les risques qu’ils encourent dans la tentative de lutte contre les insectes ravageurs des cultures. La lutte intégrée, dont l’objectif est l’augmentation de la production alimentaire et le respect de l’environement a été recommendée comme solution de rechange à l’usage des pesticides. L’accent a ete mis sur le role des composants de la lutte biologique c’est- a-dire, l’introduction, l’augmentation et la préservation des ennemis naturels. Pour une politique agricole adéquate à travers la méthode de lutte intégrée, il s’avère necéssaire d’incorporer les méthodes traditionnelles de cultures. L’identification des besoins des agriculteurs est une des conditions primordiales à l’acceptabilité et au succès d’un tel programme.

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  1. The International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), P.O. Box 30772, Nairobi, Kenya

    Godwin P. Kaaya

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Kaaya, G.P. Achieving Sustainable Food Production in Africa: Roles of Pesticides and Biological Control Agents in Integrated Pest Management. Int J Trop Insect Sci 15, 223–234 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1017/S1742758400015502

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