CropLife Cameroon offers an official course on pesticide management for agricultural dealers in collaboration with the Regional College for Agriculture in Ebolowa. Students who complete the course may apply for a pesticides distribution permit upon graduation.
In July 2010, due to a need identified by agricultural dealers, CropLife Cameroon contacted the college to propose the course. The Cameroon government that year started to reinforce a law that requires agricultural dealers to have a certain level of education before conducting business. Under a mutual agreement, CropLife Cameroon agreed to provide free of charge training materials, teach part of the course and assist the students with technical support during the course. College faculty and Ministry of Agriculture staff agreed to deliver the rest of the course.
CropLife Cameroon also developed a comprehensive course based on existing training materials from CropLife Africa Middle East. The full program consists of 16 hours of sessions per week over three months. Topics include the safe and responsible use of pesticides, regulation of pesticides in Cameroon and counterfeit products. At the end of the course, participants take a test and receive a certificate if they succeed.
The first course took place in January 2011 with 12 students – all of whom graduated. The students were agro-dealers who already owned shops, but operated their businesses in an illegal manner. Most were men (95 per cent) and around 30 years old at the time. Some of them had a basic knowledge of pesticides, but no one had formal education about the course topics beforehand. Certification allows the graduates to continue their businesses legally.
The first graduates responded positively. They said they highly value their certificate and appreciate the acquired knowledge. The Regional College of Agriculture in Ebolowa is pleased with the response to the programme and plans to offer the same course in colleges in other parts of the country.