For many West African countries, cotton is a vital - and often the only - source of cash income for farmers. Much more than weeds or pathogens, insect pests pose a serious threat to cotton yields. Hence the use of insecticides becomes imperative if revenues are to be protected. For various reasons, a number of the pesticides used in West Africa belong to older chemistry. The most recent initiative of Bayer CropScience to tackle this problem is a stewardship project. It aims to support cotton farmers in their choice and safe application of crop protection products. Training events for extension officers and farmers have been held in Mali and Senegal in cooperation with national cotton companies and other partners.
Replacing outdated chemistry
“Our major objective is to improve safety standards in pesticide use”, says Dr. Peter Ohs (Senior Safe Use Manager at Bayer CropScience) about the West Africa project. This type of initiative is badly needed in certain developing countries, where economic pressures, poor regulatory arrangements and a low level of education among the rural population often lead to risky crop protection practices. Bayer CropScience has developed the modern foliar insecticide ThunderŽ OD specifically for West African needs. It is intended to replace certain WHO class 1 insecticides.
Safe-use training
In May 2007, Project Manager Claude Legroux organized safe-use training events in each of the four main cotton-growing areas of Mali. Cotton accounts for 27 percent of Mali’s export earnings. It is extremely important to offer cotton farmers an insecticide solution that is not only safe, but also economic as they must stay competitive. A fifth training event was held in Tambacounda, Senegal. Each event comprised three modules, starting with an introduction to good agricultural practice, right product choice and safe use. The second module moved to safety practices: the participants learned how to read labels and pictograms on crop protection products and how to minimize exposure risks, for example with the help of protective clothing. Finally, Bayer CropScience presented the advantages of Thunder in terms of performance and safety to the user. A dialogue-based integrated approach is central to the safe-use training events of Bayer CropScience. “You have to convince your counterparts that you are talking about their cause - that you are taking their problems seriously”, Peter Ohs remarks.
Benefits for both sides
The dialogue in West Africa has produced valuable insights for both sides. The Bayer CropScience safe use managers have learned about the heterogeneity of their product users: depending on education level, skills and motivation, West African cotton farmers employ a range of insecticide application techniques and personal protection equipment. The African farmers and advisors were surprised when they heard that the main route of contamination is via the hands when mixing, loading or applying the crop protection products – rather than inhalation of products. The use of long trousers, jackets and gloves can reduce contamination significantly. Encouraged by the positive response, Bayer CropScience is planning to extend the safe-use project in 2008 to Benin, Burkina Faso, the Ivory Coast and Togo.
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