Interventions to Reduce Pesticide Exposure from Agriculture Sector in Africa

Case study within the APSENT project to investigate the effect of interventions to reduce pesticide exposure in smallholder farmers in Uganda. 
 

Aim: The online workshop aims to discuss recent research about interventions to reduce pesticide exposure from agriculture sector in Africa. On the first day, we will focus on exposure of workers. On the second day, we will address interventions which primarily address reduction of environmental and public pesticide exposure. The third day will be dedicated to different stakeholders’ perspectives and to conduct a synthesis of the presentation.

Outcome: The workshop will result in a discussion paper about effective interventions and how to upscale local intervention studies on a larger scale to reduce pesticide related human exposure and health risks. The paper will be submitted to a peer-reviewed journal. All workshop participants are invited to co-author the paper. The paper will include an analysis of current challenges, promoters and barriers for intervention research and implementation of interventions on a larger scale. Suitable and most crucial interventions will be promoted to the researcher and stakeholder network. We intend to use the outcome of this workshop to develop an eligible intervention study in the research framework of the Bilateral South African Swiss Chair in Global and Environmental Health. Ideally, the workshop fosters collaboration across researchers and stakeholders across Africa and beyond.

Format: The workshop will be a mix of presentation, breakout group discussions and plenary discussions. In the breakout group discussions, input for the discussion paper will be prepared.

Target group: Everybody interested in the topic is welcome to participate. The workshop is suitable for researchers, national or local authorities and NGOs.
 

In our playlist you will find all available videos of the workshop.

Monday, 15 November 2021

09:45 Welcome and Introduction, Aqiel Dalvie, Martin Röösli, Bilateral SA-CH Chairs in Global and Environmental Health

10:00 Overview on pesticide research in Africa: a literature review, Samuel Fuhrimann, Swiss TPH

10:20 Presenting raw/crude realities of unsafe practice, type of problems in the occupational sector, Erik Joers, University of Southern Denmark

10:30 A mixed method qualitative study to explore the experiences of African agricultural stakeholders on interventions to reduce pesticide exposure in farming, Martin Röösli, Swiss TPH

14:14 Effect of information access interventions on reduction of pesticide exposure among smallholder farmers in Uganda: a cluster randomized trial, Atuhaire Aggrey, Uganda National Association of Community and Occupational Health (UNACOH)

15:15 Risk perception and behavior in Egyptian adolescent pesticide applicators: an intervention study, Diane Rohlman, College of Public Health, Iowa

17:00 A global guideline and minimum pesticides list (Lancet paper), Paul C. Jepson, Integrated Plant Protection Center, Oregon State University, Corvallis

Tuesday, 17 November 2021

09:30 What are the problems for the environment and the population from agriculture pesticides in Africa? Bad examples, most pertinent problems to be solved, James Dabrowski, Freshwater Research Centre, South Africa

10:00 Lessons from pesticide studies in the rural Western Cape: Implications for interventions, Aqiel Dalvie, UCT

11:00 Case Study of a pilot intervention: Training Agricultural Extension Officers to impact pesticide safety knowledge amongst small scale women farmers, Saloshni Naidoo, University of KwaZulu-Natal

14:45 Current pesticide use and exposure in the rural Western Cape: results of CapSA study, Samuel Fuhrimann, Swiss TPH

15:30 Approaches to reduce occupational and environmental pesticide exposures, Berna van Wendel de Joode, Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica

17:00 Impact of pesticide exposure on children’s health in a California agricultural community, Brenda Eskenazi, Center for Environmental Research and Children’s Health, Berkeley Public Health

Wednesday, 17 November 2021

09:30 What type of evidence is needed from intervention studies for the regulation, Ivy Saunyama, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

10:00 Street Pesticides:  Intervention Complexities and Opportunities, Andrea Rother, UCT

10:45 How policy should reduce occupational and environmental exposures to pesticides, Leslie London, UCT