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https://e-catalogs.taat-africa.org/gov/technologies/plantwiseplus-knowledge-bank-crop-health-management-library
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PlantwisePlus Knowledge Bank: Crop health management library

Knowledge, resources, and tools for plant health!

The Crop Health Knowledge Library is a digital platform housing over 15,000 expert-validated resources covering pest and disease management, sustainable farming practices, and pest distribution data. It provides country-specific resources, pest identification tools, and a crop threat diagnostic tool to support evidence-based agricultural policies, extension service delivery, and national pest surveillance systems. Governments can also benefit from the email pest alert service to enhance early warning and rapid response efforts.

2

This technology is pre-validated.

9•9

Scaling readiness: idea maturity 9/9; level of use 9/9

Adults 18 and over: Positive medium

All age ranges over 18 access the Knowlege Bank for crop and country-specific management information. This supports agricultural stakeholders in accessing safe, validated advice on crop pests and diseases to improve yields and reduce crop losses.

Women: Positive medium

The site can be translated into local languages using an internet browser extension (e.g. Google Translate) and is mobile responsive for varying device ages. The Knowledge Bank provides free, localised and practical advice on crop health for women farmers and stakeholders.

Climate adaptability: Moderately adaptable

Where possible, the content has been written for specific climatic locations. However, the information may be applicable to other regions which have been included in the metadata. The knowledge library also contains more general cultural practices which can be applied in various climatic regions.

Farmer climate change readiness: Moderate improvement

Integrate Pest Management (IPM) is a core principle behind creating and publishing content on the Knowledge Bank. IPM helps farmers adapt to and build resilience against climate change by reducing dependencies on chemical pesticides, improving biodiversity and soil health.

Environmental health: Greatly improves environmental health

The Knowledge Bank content and it's IPM principles encourages diversified cropping systems and soil health practices. Healthy agricultural ecosystems are less vulnerable to pest outbreaks and are more resilient to changes in local conditions.

Soil quality: Improves soil health and fertility

The Knowledge Bank content and it's IPM principles promotes the use of alternatives to chemical pesticides where possible, such as biological control agents, holistic treatments and crop varieties. This reduces pesticide resistance and environmental damage.

Problem

  • Pest and disease outbreaks are undermining national food security, with up to 40% of crops lost each year. These losses affect staple crops and reduce resilience in national food systems.
  • Climate change is intensifying pest invasions, making it harder for ministries to predict and respond in time. New and more aggressive species are emerging in unfamiliar areas.
  • Public agricultural services lack access to real-time, science-based resources, making it difficult to equip extension workers with updated information.
  • Weak surveillance and early warning systems prevent effective coordination between ministries, research institutions, and farmers.
  • Policy and decision-making are often based on fragmented or outdated data, slowing down the development of strategic responses to crop health crises.

Solution

  • The Crop Health Knowledge Library, offers free and reliable resources to support national efforts in pest and disease management.
  •  It provides localized, country-specific content that helps align plant protection measures with national strategies and policies.
  • Includes digital decision-support tools designed for plant protection officers and extension workers, making it easier to provide accurate, science-backed advice to farmers.
  •  The platform strengthens early warning systems through diagnostic tools and pest alert services that enable faster response to outbreaks.
  • Ministries can use the Library as a training hub, equipping extension agents with practical knowledge to reach more farmers and improve field outcomes.

Key points to design your project

The Crop Health Knowledge Library is a free, open-access digital platform that strengthens national plant health systems by providing high-quality, science-based resources on pest and disease management, climate-smart farming practices, and diagnostic tools. Designed to support extension services and policy makers, it offers localized, country-specific content and early warning pest alerts. To integrate it into your national project, key activities include:

  • Awareness Campaigns: Promote the Knowledge Library among extension networks, plant protection agencies, and research institutions as a centralized resource for improving crop health management. Some materials to do the awarness is accessible here.
  • Capacity Building: Support ministries in embedding the platform’s diagnostic and training tools into extension worker programs and inspector training curricula.
  • Infrastructure Development: Facilitate access to the platform and its offline mobile app for rural extension staff, including in low-connectivity areas.
  • Policy Integration: Align the Knowledge Library content and tools with national agricultural strategies and food security plans to enhance systemic resilience to pests and diseases.

IP

Open source / open access

Countries with a green colour
Tested & adopted
Countries with a bright green colour
Adopted
Countries with a yellow colour
Tested
Countries with a blue colour
Testing ongoing
Egypt Equatorial Guinea Ethiopia Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burundi Burkina Faso Democratic Republic of the Congo Djibouti Côte d’Ivoire Eritrea Gabon Gambia Ghana Guinea Guinea-Bissau Cameroon Kenya Libya Liberia Madagascar Mali Malawi Morocco Mauritania Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria Republic of the Congo Rwanda Zambia Senegal Sierra Leone Zimbabwe Somalia South Sudan Sudan South Africa Eswatini Tanzania Togo Tunisia Chad Uganda Western Sahara Central African Republic Lesotho
Countries where the technology is being tested or has been tested and adopted
Country Testing ongoing Tested Adopted
Algeria No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Angola No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Benin No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Botswana No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Burkina Faso No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Burundi No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Cameroon No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Cape Verde No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Central African Republic No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Chad No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Côte d’Ivoire No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Democratic Republic of the Congo No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Djibouti No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Egypt No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Equatorial Guinea No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Eswatini No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Ethiopia No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Gabon No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Gambia No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Ghana No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Guinea No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Guinea-Bissau No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Kenya No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Lesotho No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Libya No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Madagascar No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Malawi No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Mali No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Mauritania No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Mauritius No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Morocco No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Mozambique No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Namibia No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Niger No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Nigeria No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Republic of the Congo No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Rwanda No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Senegal No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Sierra Leone No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Somalia No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
South Africa No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
South Sudan No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Sudan No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Tanzania No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Togo No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Tunisia No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Uganda No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Western Sahara No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Zambia No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted
Zimbabwe No ongoing testing Not tested Adopted

This technology can be used in the colored agro-ecological zones. Any zones shown in white are not suitable for this technology.

Agro-ecological zones where this technology can be used
AEZ Subtropic - warm Subtropic - cool Tropic - warm Tropic - cool
Arid
Semiarid
Subhumid
Humid

Source: HarvestChoice/IFPRI 2009

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that are applicable to this technology.

Sustainable Development Goal 4: quality education
Goal 4: quality education
Sustainable Development Goal 5: gender equality
Goal 5: gender equality
Sustainable Development Goal 8: decent work and economic growth
Goal 8: decent work and economic growth
Sustainable Development Goal 12: responsible production and consumption
Goal 12: responsible production and consumption

  1. The platform is open access and free to use — no cost to browse and access global and country-specific crop health resources.
  2. Creating a free account lets you save content into personal folders, making it easy to organize, print, and share relevant materials.
  3. For use in areas with limited internet, download the PlantwisePlus Factsheet Library App on Android or iOS.
  4. The app allows you to download country-specific packages of factsheets and resources for offline access anytime, anywhere.
  5. Use built-in tools such as pest identification aids, diagnostic tools, and pest alert services to support decision-making in the field.
  6. Subscribe to email pest alerts tailored to your country to receive timely updates about emerging crop threats.

Last updated on 30 June 2025