Proceedings of the Asia regional workshop on the

Policy development
Policy development in <strong>the</strong> country also indirectly contribute to <strong>the</strong> reduction in <strong>the</strong> use <strong>of</strong>
pesticides such as <strong>the</strong> discontinuity <strong>of</strong> pesticide subsidies in paddy areas, development <strong>of</strong> IPM/ICM
programmes for new crops, introduction <strong>of</strong> organic farming for production food crops, certification
<strong>of</strong> farms with GAP, zero burning policy during replanting <strong>of</strong> major crops, and <strong>the</strong> pesticide risk
reduction program by <strong>the</strong> Pesticides Board.
The major drawback <strong>of</strong> IPM is that general recommendations are not feasible for varied
environmental conditions even within a single crop. The use <strong>of</strong> IPM alone may not be sufficient, but
a more holistic approach which takes into consideration <strong>of</strong> good crop management and cultural
practices such as crop rotation, use <strong>of</strong> resistant varieties, accurate matching <strong>of</strong> fertilizers inputs to
crop requirements and where possible, use <strong>of</strong> biological control, may be <strong>the</strong> long term solution to <strong>the</strong>
problems faced by <strong>the</strong> agricultural sector. Some <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> plans <strong>of</strong> action to improve <strong>the</strong> situation are:
● Development <strong>of</strong> more crop-based IPM packages should be encouraged and should cover
all non-chemical methods <strong>of</strong> pest control;
● A national centre for coordinating all IPM activities, developments and setting <strong>of</strong>
national targets should be set up.
B. Testing, quality control and effects in <strong>the</strong> field
Concerns on quality <strong>of</strong> pesticides <strong>of</strong>fered for sale, and improvement efforts
The quality <strong>of</strong> pesticides <strong>of</strong>fered for sale are strictly controlled from <strong>the</strong> onset <strong>of</strong> registration
<strong>of</strong> a pesticide to ensure that only those that meet <strong>the</strong> safe and effective specifications are allowed for
use in <strong>the</strong> country. There is, however, still cause for concern due to <strong>the</strong> availability <strong>of</strong> adulterated and
imitation pesticide products in <strong>the</strong> market. These pesticides are usually inferior in quality and pose
greater hazard to human health and environment. Some <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> following plans <strong>of</strong> actions to improve
this situation are:
● To enhance and intensifying investigation;
● Awareness and education <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> farmers/users;
● Industry to take appropriate steps by upgrading security features and monitoring <strong>the</strong>ir
sales activities more closely;
● Collaborative efforts with <strong>the</strong> Custom at <strong>the</strong> point <strong>of</strong> entry to prevent smuggling.
Pesticides specifications compliance
Pesticides submitted for registration must conform to FAO/WHO specifications. O<strong>the</strong>r
specification like Malaysian Standards or even <strong>the</strong> registrant own specification can be accepted in <strong>the</strong>
absence <strong>of</strong> FAO/WHO specifications. The conformation also applies to <strong>the</strong> contents and levels <strong>of</strong>
impurities <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> pesticide.
Efforts made to control and enforce pesticide quality standards
Several efforts have been made to ensure pesticide quality standards are properly controlled
with <strong>the</strong> following actions being put into place:
- 109 -