In 2017, the member countries of the FAO Commission for Controlling the Desert Locust in the Western Region (CLCPRO, Commission FAO de lutte contre le Criquet pèlerin dans la Région occidentale) requested an independent evaluation of the second phase of EMPRES-RO programme.
The main objectives were to conduct a critical assessment of project design and implementation, draw lessons and provide recommendations to inform on the ways forward. The evaluation team conducted missions in five representative member countries and presented the preliminary results at the 16th EMPRES Liaison Officers meeting that took place in Agadir, Morocco, in December 2017 and the executive summary at the 9th Session of the CLCPRO held in N’Djamena, Chad, in June 2018. The evaluation concluded that the Programme has clearly contributed to the sustainability of locust management in the region.
Among the main achievements there are: the significant increase in member countries’ contributions and improvement on their payment to the Commission Trust Fund; the development of management tools to facilitate the work of the national locust control units (NLCU); the strengthening of the NLCU’ staff capacities and the network created among these national units; and the establishment of the Regional Fund for Locust Risk Management and of the Intervention Force in the Western Region (FIRO- Force d’intervention dans la Région occidentale).
