Background
"Strengthening Pest Outbreak Alert and Response Systems" is one of the Development Agenda items from the IPPC Strategic Framework (SF) (2020-2030). The desired outcome for this Development Agenda is help build a global pest alert system with mechanisms to evaluate and communicate emerging pest risks. This system would provide regular information to NPPOs on new pest interceptions as well as alert NPPOs to pest outbreaks and changes in pest status to some of the most important pests around the world. NPPOs would then use this information to quickly adapt their phytosanitary measures to help reduce the risk of introduction and spread of pests. Strengthened pest outbreak response systems and tools would help countries take more timely action against new incursions. NPPOs, RPPOs and FAO would collaborate to develop and roll out comprehensive but easy to use tools to support countries to respond quickly and effectively. RPPOs would play an active role in assisting NPPOs as well as to coordinate outbreak responses across their regions.
During CPM-14 (2019), the concept of emerging pests and emergency issues was discussed and several countries expressed their concern regarding the situation with Spodoptera frugiperda (Fall Armyworm) and strongly supported work to develop global Pest Outbreak Alert and Response Systems, as no such systems exist within the IPPC Community.
CPM-14 (2019) requested that an action plan for an IPPC pest emergency system be drafted and submitted to CPM-15 (2020), which was aligned with the development agenda item from the SF: Strengthening Pest Outbreak Alert and Response Systems.
Action plan for the IPPC programme to "Strengthen Pest Outbreak Alert and Response Systems"
The IPPC Secretariat's programme to "Strengthen Pest Outbreak Alert and Response Systems" will be limited to quarantine or potential quarantine pests and will build synergies and avoid duplication with activities conducted by other organizations. The Secretariat would first identify existing material and experiences on the topic, including initiatives such as the work of the FAO Plant Production and Protection Division (AGP), National Reporting Obligations (NROs) and CABI's new initiative on "the Global Burden of Crop Loss".
The overall objective would be to set up well-functioning pest alert and response systems which would initially be tested for a few pests of global concern (no more than 4) in countries or regions where these pests are quarantine pests or have the potential to be quarantine pests.
Initial activities started in 2020 with the financial support of the European Commission in the framework of the project GCP/GLO/040/EC "Support to the IPPC Strategic Framework: Commodity and pathways standards, Pest Outbreak Alert and Response Systems, and e-Phyto" (2020-2023).
