Pesticides course to strengthen developing country capacity

摘要

The global resources available for regulating and managing pesticide risks are extensive. Particularly with the advent of the internet, resource accessibility has significantly increased over the past 20 years. Pesticide risk managers and regulators have access to numerous guidance documents on various aspects of pesticide regulation on websites of the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the World Health Organisation, the United Nations Environmental Programme, the Organisation of Economic Development, and the International Labour Organisation -to name a few. Despite the easy access and extensive content of guidance available, regulators and pesticide risk managers in developing countries and Economies in Transition (EIT) lack the capacity (human and skills) to address all the challenges they face in effectively regulating pesticides, reducing risks to humans and the environment, as well as introducing low risk approaches to pest management. To equip regulators and pesticide risk managers with the skills to implement the United Nations Code of Conduct on the Distribution and Use of Pesticides around a life cycle approach, the University of Cape Town (UCT) and FAO in collaboration with the Swedish Chemical Agency (KemI) designed and developed a new Post Graduate Programme focusing on capacity building.