Posted on Mar, 15 Jun 2021, 20:06

Deadline on Mar, 31 Ago 2021, 23:55

The International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) Secretariat is soliciting:

• Nominations for appropriately qualified experts to take part in a virtual Working Group (WG) to develop the Surveillance and reporting obligations, e-Learning course (2020-012)
• Submissions of any existing relevant materials on surveillance and reporting obligations
• In-kind contributions such as photographs, videos, and existing e-learning materials to support the development of the above described resource(s)

Deadline: Nominations and Submissions are due 31 August 2021 .

1. Description of the e-Learning course:

The purpose of this e-Learning course is to provide practical guidance to improve surveillance and determination of pest status and assist NPPOs in meeting their obligations to report the occurrence, outbreak and spread of pests. Participants in the course will acquire the knowledge and skills required to establish and maintain a national surveillance system, design and implement surveillance activities to support pest status determination and pest reporting in line with ISPM 6 (Surveillance), ISPM 8 (Determination of pest status in an area) and ISPM 17 (Pest reporting). In addition, case studies will be gathered and provided as references to help illustrate the obligations, benefits and challenges of surveillance, pest status determination and pest reporting, particularly as it relates to new pest detections and outbreaks.

This e-Learning course will be developed under the auspices of the IPPC Secretariat, under the oversight of the Implementation and Capacity Development Committee(IC). Funding is provided partially by the FAO “Common Market for Southern and Eastern Africa (COMESA) Trade Facilitation Programme (GCP/INT/387/COM)”. The Comité de Liaison Europe–Afrique–Caraïbes (COLEACP) will provide in-kind pedagogical and technical support under the Fit For Market SPS program, within the framework of development cooperation between the Organization of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS) and the European Union.

2. Instructions for making nominations

Nominations will be accepted from contracting parties, national or regional plant protection organizations (NPPOs or RPPOs) and international entities.

A nomination should only be made if the nominee has agreed to his/her nomination and can allocate appropriate time to the task and a signed Statement of Commitment is required to verify this commitment.

Each nomination must be accompanied by the following documentation, available on this webpage:

1. Completed Nominee details and summary of expertise form - All sections should be completed, including contact details, education and professional training. A clear description of the nominee’s expertise is required. MS Word version of the document is preferred. The file should be named as follows: COUNTRY_SURNAME_Firstname_Summary.

2. Completed and signed Statement of Commitment - this should be read carefully by each nominee and discussed between the nominee and their employer. The form should then be signed by the nominee and a senior person in authority from the organization that employs the nominee and submitted with the nomination (as a file such as PDF). The file should be named as follows: COUNTRY_SURNAME_Firstname_commitment.

3. The nominee’s Curriculum Vitae (CV) – electronic copy of the nominee’s CV (only as a word processing file such as MS Word) with the file named as follows: COUNTRY_SURNAME_Firstname_CV. MS Word version of the document is preferred.

All the submissions should be sent to the IPPC Secretariat by e-mail ([email protected]) no later than 31 August 2021 and include “Surveillance e-Learning” in the subject line.

3. Working virtually to develop the e-Learning course:

As international travel is restricted due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this e-Learning course will be developed virtually and no face-to-face meeting is currently planned. It is therefore critical that WG experts have access to reliable internet and appropriate tools for participating in virtual meetings and document reviews. Experts will be tasked with drafting modules for consisting of the e-Learning course and reviewing and revising the modules. Documents will be shared and reviewed electronically. WG activities are expected to represent an average of 1-2 days of work per month and to continue for approximately 9 months.

The first virtual meeting of the WG is tentatively planned for mid-September. Additional virtual meetings will be organized as needed. The start time of the meetings will be selected to minimize the impact on participants and may be rotated so the same people are not inconvenienced every time.

4. Specific Practical Expertise Requested:

A WG will be formed to help develop this e-Learning course and should be composed of experts with relevant technical and practical expertise in surveillance, pest status determination and pest reporting.

Experts will also be selected based on geographical representation from both developing and developed countries to help ensure that the material developed is globally applicable and reflects best practices from all over the world. The IPPC Secretariat and the Implementation and Capacity Development Committee support equity, diversity, and inclusiveness and encourage all interested experts to submit their candidature.

The following criteria should be used for selecting WG experts:

(1) Practical expertise and knowledge in one or more of the following areas, additional experience in pest risk assessment is desirable:

• Designing and implementing surveillance programmes
• Reporting obligations of contracting parties
• Pest status determination
• Pest outbreak and response
• Pest alert systems
• Developing training programmes, particularly e-Learning courses

(2) Knowledge of pest surveillance, pest status determination, pest risk assessment and pest reporting in both the international and regional context in African countries will be considered as this is the target audience of the project donor and regional context in which this material will be developed.

Additional information   
• Information on Common Market for Southern and Eastern Africa (COMESA) Trade Facilitation Programme (GCP/INT/387/COM) : https://www.ippc.int/en/core-activities/capacity-development/projects-on-implementation-and-capacity-development/comesa-trade-facilitation-programme/

For further information: Please contact Ms Natsumi Yamada by email ([email protected]).