Overview of how Tanzania is combating the spread of Maize Lethal Necrosis (MLN) in the country.

1. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Ongoing MLN Initiatives Activities
on Maize Lethal Necrosis Diseases
inTanzania
USAID-funded MLN Diagnostics and Management Project -- Annual Review and
Planning Meeting (October 18-19, 2016)

2. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
When the Disease was first Reported
• Very little was Known about the disease
• Following the Report of the disease A Strategic Plan for
Management and Control of Maize MNLD was devised
by PHS in Collaboration DRD

3. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Under that Action Plan the following strategies were prioritized ;
• Prevent the Introduction of the disease in Tanzania by strengthening the
border Inspectorate services
• Revisit of importation conditions for maize seeds into Tanzania
• Conduct a sensitization program by distributing Posters and Leaflets Maize
Producing Regions
• Creation of the plant protection (prevention and control of maize lethal
necrosis disease) rules
• Conduct country wide surveillance to Establish status
• Continue Monitoring the disease progress in the Outbreak Area

4. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Implementations
 20,000 posters and leaflets were distributed to 20 of
Tanzania mainland.
 Sensitization program to create awareness to
District level December 2012 to February 2013
 Proposal was submitted FAO to create extensive
awareness on the diseases
 Joint Stakeholders meeting was convened to Arusha
in October 2013 to device a long term strategies to
alleviate MLND

5. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
FAO Sponsored Project
100 Extension Officers from Manyara,Arusha and
Kilimanjaro were trained on
• Identification
• Control and Management of MLND
• A training Manual English and Swahili on Id and Mgt of
MLND was developed and distributed
• Leaflets, Posters, a video documentary in both English
and Swahili has been Developed and distributed
• UVIMA Swahili Name for MLND has been officially
pronounced by BAKITA-The National Kiswahili Council

6. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Prevention and Control of MLD Disease Rules
• Published Government Notice No.195
on 21/06/2013
• For the purpose of preventing the spread
of disease, any Inspector may declare any
area in which disease is reported to be
present, a quarantine area.
• Enforces an obligation to
report MNL Disease
infestation for any person incl.
farmers

7. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Maize Seed Field Inspection Protocol
As a general rule, planting healthy,
certified and treated seed is the first step
for the production of a healthy crop that
can, in turn, result in healthy seed

8. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Maize Seed Field Inspection Protocol
• The Purpose of Protocol for MLN-free
Seed Production is to limit further spread
of the disease into non-endemic areas
• From a phytosanitary perspective, there
should be zero tolerance for MCMV and
SCMV, if either one is detected in a seed
farm, it should be rejected.

9. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Therefore;
• Seed production MUST be done in registered seed farm
• Seeds for Planting MUST be certified free of MLN-
causing viruses
• PHS,TOSCI, Seed Industry and other stakeholders have
to ensure the protocol is developed and implemented
as soon as possible

10. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
• Seed production fields must be monitored by
trained and certified staff.
• Leaf samples of all symptomatic plants should be
delivered for diagnostic verification.
• Field inspection records should be maintained,
including all relevant data (date, operator, samples
collected, test results, number of plants rogued).
Field Inspection and Certification

11. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Surveillance
• May 2015,The Ministry Conducted
surveillance in affected regions of
Kilimanjaro Arusha and Manyara.
• Neighboring regions of Dodoma,
Morogoro and Tanga
Mission was to
• delimitation/establish extent of spread
• create public awareness

12. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Met with local leaders, Farmer Groups and
Farmers Field Schools (FFS) leaders
• to assess their levels of knowledge and
adopted practices/technologies to combat
MLND pandemic
• Scoring the disease incidence number of
infected plants out of total plants in an area
and the yield reduction

13. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
MLND awareness raising activities in
villages through organized public meetings
• Obligation to Report – From Farmers
Levels to the Ministry Level
MLND awareness

14. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
MLND awareness
Farmers in many areas visited
by the team claimed that they
are familiar with the
symptoms of MLN and they
do receive information on the
disease from mass media, public
awareness meetings and from
Extension Officers

15. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
The disease is still prevalent in the outbreak area
• farmer’s knowledge of the disease is inadequate
• they can identify the problem and know about the
measures but do not practice them probably because
they do not understand the reasons why the
measures are recommended.
Disease Progression

16. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Season 2015/2016
• The Ministry has not received any new
outbreak in any regions apart from where is
has been previously reported
• Received few reports in Mbeya Southern
Part of Tz, they were confirmed NOT
MLND

17. Ministry of Agriculture Food Security and Cooperatives
Plant Health Services
Ahsanteni Sana