THE Ministry of Agriculture in collaboration with the Tanzania Plant Health and Pesticides Authority (TPHPA), and other four agencies has joined forces to combat plant pests through cutting-edge technology.
Cutting-edge technology refers to technological devices, techniques or achievements that employ the most current and high-level IT developments; in other words, technology at the frontiers of knowledge.
The other agencies are Tanzania Civil Aviation Authority (TCAA) through the Civil Aviation Training Centre (CATC), the European Union, and the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO).
The European Union (EU) head of delegation to Tanzania and the East African Community (EAC), Mr Cedric Merelthe, said the event signals a starting point for the development of precision agriculture in Tanzania.
He added that it will enable the country to adopt and use modern and innovative practices such as the use of drones which will help in monitoring crop production, early detection of potential crop issues, and adjusting the use of pesticides and fertilisers.
Mr Merelthe highlighted that the training which has been conducted under the EU-funded Strengthening Plant Health Services in Tanzania for enhanced food safety project will witness the team of drone graduates from the Civil Aviation Training Centre (CATC) receive their certification awards.
“Technology is playing a fundamental role in agriculture. Through the EU-funded Plant Health project the government of Tanzania will be able to adopt and use modern and innovative drone-based surveillance systems allowing monitoring of crop production, early detection of potential crop issues, and adjusting the use of pesticides and fertilisers. Today’s event represents a starting point for the development of precision agriculture in Tanzania,” Mr Merelthe said.
“FAO serves as the secretariat of the International Plant Protection Convention which is a treaty between countries pledging to prevent the spread of pests through agricultural trade. We therefore categorically support member states in implementing the agreed standards of phytosanitary measures,” said Dr Nyabenyi Tipo, FAO Country Representative in Tanzania.
He stated that the pilots are equipped with skills to operate surveillance drones with the latest technology, capabilities, and artificial intelligence to provide real-time images into security and emergency situations for better pest control, accurate intelligence gathering, and comprehensive situational awareness, for more informed decision making.
The TPHPA Director General, Prof Joseph Ndunguru said, “This is a revolution to our agricultural sector as we now going to be using cutting-edge technology in agriculture something which was lacking in agriculture sector,”
According to Prof Ndunguru, the training will enable the authority to rapidly respond to emergencies that require immediate actions as every minute can be fatal when it comes to plant protection and food security in general, hence with this cutting-edge technology and well-trained operators the process becomes more effective. It will improve the visual capabilities through a wider aerial viewpoint with minimal blind spots.
