The National Biosecurity Committee held its first session of 2021 to examine multiple relevant issues and review the status of the deliverables and recommendations of its third meeting of 2020. His Excellency Dr Abdullah Belhaif Al Nuaimi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, presided over the meeting.
As the first order of business, the Committee evaluated the progress made in updating the National Biosecurity Strategy. The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) informed the committee that it has finished drafting the updated strategy in collaboration with strategic stakeholders. The document seeks to leverage the latest advancements in handling biological threats as well as AI and big data to enhance the country’s biosecurity through improving preparedness and response capabilities in biohazard detection and mitigation.
Furthermore, MOCCAE presented an overview of the third edition of the Infectious Biological Waste Management Handbook, developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Prevention and the concerned health authorities nationwide in line with the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO). Released in January 2021, the handbook outlines the standards and practices for safe handling, processing, and disposal of potentially infectious waste.
Committee members also received a briefing on the measures taken by MOCCAE and Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (ADAFSA) to combat the fall armyworm in the UAE. These include the issue of the Ministerial Resolution No. 322 of 2018 regulating the import of fall armyworm host plants from affected countries, as well as introducing a plant health certificate, which states that inbound plant consignments are pest-free.
After the fall armyworm was first detected in the UAE in 2019, the Ministry requested the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations to supply pheromone traps to capture the pests, and train agricultural experts on using them.
Following an integrated federal plan to control the fall armyworm, MOCCAE holds regular educational workshops for farmers on the detection and management of the pest as part of an extensive awareness and guidance program. It also carries out inspections on select farms, and periodically assesses the effectiveness of available pesticides and the resistance levels of the fall armyworm.
Moreover, the Ministry has established a database to monitor the infestation rate of the pest and inform appropriate countermeasures.
A national team comprising experts from MOCCAE, ADAFSA, Dubai Municipality, and Sharjah Municipalities and Agriculture Affairs Department has been set up to align efforts and devise an action plan to eradicate the pest.