You are the first line of defence

He spoke at the opening ceremony of the University of the West Indies’ Faculty of Food and Agriculture 7th annual Regional Plant Quarantine Officer Training: Principles and Procedures Course.

Rambharat told participants, “a gate works both ways, keeping what you want in and keeping what your want out. But it all depends on your mindset.” He outlined four critical areas which can influence the success of the officers as gatekeepers and the outcome of this training Programme namely: * Looking for clarity, if not certainty, in terms of what can and cannot be done and where the flexibility lies; * Accessibility of information in the context of the use of information technology for efficiency and effectiveness including the e-services of TTBizLink; * Striking a balance between minimizing the risk of the movement of material and animal products and balancing that with the interests of the end users and; * Looking at capacity building since there is a need to spend time on people and developing their capacity to make use of what is available in the Region which is far more important than building institutions.

The call to work towards developing a strong network of Plant Quarantine professionals across the Region was made by all speakers including Professor Brian Copeland, UWI St Augustine campus Principal, who stated stated that the University continues to support the growth and development in excellence in the delivery of national academic programmes of impeccable standard to a range of demographics.

He noted the significance of the role plant quarantine officers play in that they are a country’s first line of defence preventing the entry of pests and diseases that can cause untold damage to the environment and economy.

Dr Vyjayanthi Lopez, Plant Production and Protection Officer out of Barbados spoke at length about the importance of the role played by plant quarantine officers and announced that in 2020, the International Year of Plant Health will be celebrated the world over.

Wayne De Chi, Agricultural Scientist from the USDA’s APHIS IS made a call to all to, “play your part in improving the plant quarantine service in your respective country.” He also noted that a major reason for the USDA’s support of this course is ‘the need to professionalize the plant quarantine service in the Caribbean Region’; since these officers now have a ‘greater role with respect to trade in agriculture and agriculture related commodities’; The opening ceremony of the two-week long course was hosted on Monday and will run until August 11. This programme was first offered in August 2011 as a pilot over a five-day period at UWI’s St Augustine campus.

In 2012 and 2013, the course was expanded and modified on the basis of feedback received from the first cohort of Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) Officers. Key funding partners and collaborators included the governments of TT and Jamaica; the European Union; UWI and others.