Experts have warned of the risks of the spread of the transboundary pest, the cochineal insect, exacerbated by climate change, which threatens prickly pear crops and related economic and commercial activities in Tunisia. Discovered in Mahdia in August 2021, this plague has spread to the regions of Kairouan, Monastir and Sousse, according to a recent report by the Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights entitled "Environmental rights, climate change, environmental and social justice". Noureddine Nasr, a specialist in agriculture and rural development who has monitored the spread of the cochineal-scale insect in Morocco, warned of the dangers of this insect on the prickly pear, described as Tunisia's "green treasure", and encouraged farmers to prune and better organise their fig trees to facilitate the process of monitoring and early detection of infection. The expert, quoted in the FTDES report, called for the establishment of an emergency programme to combat the insect, to be entrusted to national an d regional civil protection committees. He also called for the creation of a national committee and local committees made up of researchers, professionals and the prickly pear community, under the supervision of the chairmen of the national and regional civil protection committees, which would monitor and submit reports in accordance with the civil protection programmes. Rain plays an effective role in eliminating cochineal insects, but according to research on this pest, Tunisia's high temperature climate has favoured the reproduction and survival of these insects, especially during the summer of 2023, which was marked by the highest temperatures ever recorded. Nasr called for farmers and investors to be trained in integrated pest management methods, particularly prevention through early detection for investors, as well as pruning, uprooting and burying prickly pear trees. According to the expert, all infected cacti in the governorates of Mahdia, Monastir and Kairouan should be uprooted and buried as soo n as possible, as well as any outbreaks discovered later, while monitoring the situation on the ground. He also called for the strict application of agricultural quarantine to limit the spread of the cochineal and the development of an integrated programme to ensure the success of this quarantine through information, awareness and training of farmers, especially women and children involved in fruit harvesting. Cochineal insects, which appear on cactus plants in the form of white, cotton-like masses, feed on the prickly pear's raquettes by absorbing the plant's sap, causing yellowish spots to appear, which gradually increase in size and eventually cause the plant to die. This phenomenon is responsible for the destruction of processing units, which contributes to increased unemployment, especially among women who work in these units or pick prickly pears. What's more, this scourge affects the livestock sector, especially in years of drought, since prickly pear is used as cattle feed, which has a negative im pact on livestock farmers' incomes and the availability of milk and meat products, according to the FTDES report. To this end, it is essential to provide logistical support to the inhabitants and farmers of the affected regions to combat this scourge, by working to isolate and protect non-infected areas. It is also essential, according to the report to follow the advice of experts and disseminate it among professionals in the sector, focusing on pruning and monitoring non-infected prickly pear trees, especially during the winter. "This approach would allow rapid intervention to contain outbreaks and take the necessary measures to limit the spread of the insect". The area under prickly pear cultivation in Tunisia is about 600,000 hectares, including 400,000 hectares of smooth varieties and 200,000 hectares of prickly varieties. Prickly pears have a wide range of uses in Tunisia, including fencing to demarcate ownership of land and houses, as a protective barrier and to reinforce the erosion control system. T his fruit, which also has great value-added potential, has found its way into the export market. The number of Tunisian companies working with prickly pear has reached 67 and exports of prickly pear products have increased by 89% between 2020 and 2022, according to the managers of the Project for Market Access of Typical Agrofood Products (PAMPAT Tunisia), implemented by the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO). Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse
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