The IPPC Holding the Second PCE Facilitators Training in Thailand

The International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) Secretariat organized and held the second training for the Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation (PCE) Facilitators from 8 - 19 August 2016 in Chang Mai, Thailand under the Standards Trade and Development Facility (STDF) project 401: Training of Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation (PCE) Facilitators.

The STDF project 401 seeks to improve national-level coordination and coherence of plant protection programmes through improved needs assessment and action planning. The aim of the project is to train a pool of individuals to facilitate phytosanitary needs assessment and action planning processes using the IPPC Phytosanitary Capacity Evaluation (PCE) tool.

The PCE process involves strategic thinking at political, technical and managerial levels and requires a deep understanding of the IPPC and International Standards on Phytosanitary Measures (ISPM) and a comprehensive knowledge of phytosanitary systems. It also requires applying strategic planning tools for setting national capacity development plans.

Eleven participants from the Caribbean, Asian and Pacific regions were trained on requirements of the IPPC and ISPMs, legislative aspects of phytosanitary systems, the PCE process and modules, as well as on strategic planning tools, facilitation techniques and ethics. Different facilitation techniques used during the training included delivery of presentations, plenary and small group discussions and exercises, individual tasks, a case study and a group simulation of an actual PCE application.

The feedback from participants indicated that the training improved their understanding of the PCE tool, it benefits and plays an important role in phytosanitary capacity development of a country. The participants considered group exercises, a role-play and a case study very useful to understand how the actual PCE facilitation work is carried out. It was also highlighted that the training brought together presentation skills and phytosanitary knowledge necessary to facilitate PCE application.