By Zoila Palma: The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and New Growth Industries (MAFSNGI), has concluded a five-day Training of Trainers Workshop focused on coconut pest and disease management.
The training, held in Belmopan, forms part of FAO’s technical cooperation programme supporting the revision of Belize’s National Rural Development Strategy, with a specific focus on the coconut sector.
The initiative also supports the global “One Country One Priority Product” (OCOP) initiative, which promotes green enterprise and sustainable development within Belize’s growing coconut industry.
Participants included members of the Ministry’s fruit tree programme team, district extension officers and officers from the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI) involved in coconut production.
During the first four days, participants received technical training on integrated pest management strategies for major threats to coconut production, including the coconut weevil, red mites and red ring disease. The sessions covered pest and disease identification, host recognition and modern management techniques to strengthen the ability of agricultural officers to diagnose problems quickly and provide farmers with appropriate guidance.
The workshop concluded with practical field and laboratory exercises, where participants identified mite infestations and signs of fungal diseases in coconut plantations and learned laboratory techniques for confirming red ring disease in infected plant tissue.
The trained officers will next take these practices to farmers across the country, with district-level training sessions scheduled for September and October 2026 as Belize works to protect smallholder livelihoods, strengthen sustainable farming and build climate resilience in the coconut sector.
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By Zoila Palma: The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), in partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and New Growth Industries (MAFSNGI), has concluded a five-day Training of Trainers Workshop focused on coconut pest and disease management. The training, held in Belmopan, forms part of FAO’s technical cooperation programme supporting the revision of Belize’s
The post Ministry of Agriculture and FAO train officers to protect Coconut Industry from pests and disease appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
