Belize and OIRSA
OIRSA opened its Representation in Belize in 1996 after the Belizean government signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Organization, establishing its full membership in OIRSA as a full-fledged member state.
As one of its early activities, the organization implemented the Servicio Internacional de Tratamientos Cuarentenarios (SITC) in the country and has since been working collaboratively with the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security, and Enterprise through the Belize Agricultural Health Authority (BAHA) in regional programs and projects related to phytosanitary matters.
Animal Health
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- Through the Regional Classical Swine Fever (CSF) Control Program, the tonsils of pigs have been sampled for possible disease diagnosis in border areas with Guatemala, reinforcing quarantine measures to prevent the introduction of pork products or by-products from that country. In addition, talks have been given to producers, and four prevention barriers have been installed at entry points with Guatemala. The diagnostic laboratory has been strengthened by acquiring materials to analyze collected samples.
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- The OIRSA Representation in Belize also supported the implementation of the national livestock herd sweeping for determining the prevalence of Tuberculosis (TB) and Brucellosis (Br), incorporating the Trazar Agro traceability system. With funds from OIRSA in Mexico, eight veterinarians who participated in the sampling for TB and Br were hired. Through the OIRSA/IDB project, 'Harmonized Bovine Traceability System,' the animal identification system with traceability capacity was developed. One of the main achievements of these projects is highlighted by the fact that, in February 2013, Belize had its first live cattle export to Mexico.
Plant Health
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- Within the framework of the OIRSA - ICDF Taiwan project: 'Strengthening the OIRSA region in the control of Huanglongbing (HLB) and the implementation of integrated pest management (IPM) in citrus,' two greenhouses were constructed—one for bud multiplication and the other for a germplasm bank—facilitating the production of healthy citrus plants for Belize and the region. Additionally, a coordinator has been hired to lead this project, along with four field technicians, to implement the activities included in it. To date, a protocol has been developed for demonstration plots that will serve as a field school to train citrus producers.
- The regional laboratory for biological control agents located in Belize continues with the mass production of the parasitoid. Anagyrus kamali, a biological control agent for the Pink Hibiscus Mealybug, Maconellicoccus hirsutus (Green). In the last five years, over 1.3 million specimens have been released in the OIRSA region, specifically for the biological control of this devastating pest. In 2020, the reproduction of other natural enemies began in the laboratory, which are produced on a large scale for the biological control of economically significant pests. Chrysoperla carnea highly efficient predatory insect for the biological control of numerous soft-bodied insect pests such as whiteflies, thrips, aphids, and mealybugs, among others. The tiny wasp Trichogramma pretiosum a parasitoid of lepidopteran pest eggs, it is mass-produced in the laboratory and released as a significant component of an integrated pest management program. In recent years, over 260 farmers, field technicians, extensionists, and students have been trained to implement and release natural enemies. To validate this new technology in Belize, OIRSA collaborated with institutions and the Ministry of Agriculture in Belize to carry out more than ten field pilot projects in various crops in the area to demonstrate the effectiveness of natural enemies as Bemisia tabaci in coconut cultivation Plutella xylostella in Brassicas, Diaphorina citri in citrus Pseudococcus elisae in banana, Megalurothrips usitatus in bean, Diatraea saccharalis in sugarcane, Diaphania nitidalis in cucumber, Spodoptera frugiperda in corn. Currently, farmers are adopting this technology in their plots to reduce the use of large amounts of agrochemicals and seek to lower production costs, achieving higher profitability.
Quarantine:
The Representation supported the competent authorities in the implementation of the Remote Diagnosis System using digital images. OIRSA initiated this project with the acquisition of cameras adaptable to the BAHA stereoscopes, which the BAHA has used to acquire additional funds from the IDB and to complete this project with all quarantine stations capable of making remote diagnoses using digital images.