Twenty two national plant quarantine inspecors formulated a set of standards to regulate and analyze the risk of the entry of invasive alien plant species (IAPS) in Indonesia as a result of the training on IAPS and Risk Analysis conducted by SEAMEO BIOTROP in cooperation with FAO and Indonesian Plant Quarantine Agency, Ministry of Agriculture on 27 September 2010 at the Centre’s headquarters in Bogor. The said of standards on IAPS, once fully implemented, is expected to significantly reduce the possible damage that IAPS usually brings to biodiversity and human health, and losses in agriculture, forestry, and fishery sectors in Indonesia.
The participants developed the regulatory framework on IAPS for Indonesia through the guidance from the training course persons particularly from the UN-Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) consultant, Dr. Ricardo Labrada Romero, Dr Catur P. Budiman from the Information and Biosafety Division of the Ministry of Agriculture, and SEAMEO BIOTROP scientists, namely: Dr. Soekisman Tjitrosoedirdjo and Dr. Sri S. Tjitrosoedirdjo. The training course as part of the Technical Cooperation Program (TCP) of the UN-FAO with the Ministry of Agriculture of Indonesia on Developing Training Course on Invasive Alien Plant Species for the Indonesian Plant Quarantine Inspectors which SEAMEO BIOTROP implements through Dr Sri as the designated national consultant and course leader.
During the opening program of the training course, Dr. Bambang Purwantara, SEAMEO BIOTROP director, appreciated the confidence that UN-FAO gave to SEAMEO BIOTROP to implement the training course. He considered this as a recognition of the Centre’s tireless efforts on IAPS as a major research program for the past 10 years and even since its interim period starting 1968 through the program on weeds. The training was officially declared open by Dr. Catur Putra Budiman representing Mr. Harry Prijono the Director General of the Indonesian Quarantine Agency.
The participants developed the regulatory framework on IAPS for Indonesia through the guidance from the training course persons particularly from the UN-Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) consultant, Dr. Ricardo Labrada Romero, Dr Catur P. Budiman from the Information and Biosafety Division of the Ministry of Agriculture, and SEAMEO BIOTROP scientists, namely: Dr. Soekisman Tjitrosoedirdjo and Dr. Sri S. Tjitrosoedirdjo. The training course as part of the Technical Cooperation Program (TCP) of the UN-FAO with the Ministry of Agriculture of Indonesia on Developing Training Course on Invasive Alien Plant Species for the Indonesian Plant Quarantine Inspectors which SEAMEO BIOTROP implements through Dr Sri as the designated national consultant and course leader.
During the opening program of the training course, Dr. Bambang Purwantara, SEAMEO BIOTROP director, appreciated the confidence that UN-FAO gave to SEAMEO BIOTROP to implement the training course. He considered this as a recognition of the Centre’s tireless efforts on IAPS as a major research program for the past 10 years and even since its interim period starting 1968 through the program on weeds. The training was officially declared open by Dr. Catur Putra Budiman representing Mr. Harry Prijono the Director General of the Indonesian Quarantine Agency.
For six days the 22 participants, coming from the Quarantine Airports and Seaports from 21 provinces of Indonesia, underwent 18 hours of lecture sessions, 3 practical exercises, and a field trip to Cibodas Botanical Garden and Mount Gede Pangrango National Park to update their knowledge and skill on various aspects of IAPS and Risk Analysis.During the closing program of the training Dr. Jesus C. Fernandez, SEAMEO BIOTROP Deputy Director for Programme and Marketing, encouraged the participants being the first batch of Indonesian plant quarantine inspectors to undergo the training, to share their newly acquired knowledge and skills with their colleagues to improve the quality of operation of plant quarantine agencies all over the country. On the other hand, Dr. Catur Putra Budiman, Head of the Information and Biological Safety Division of the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture, assured that staff development will continually be provided to the participants and the rest of their colleagues to improve their performance in helping implement the set of standards on IAPS control and management around the country.
