ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Agron.

Sec. Pest Management

Volume 7 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fagro.2025.1601845

Prioritising non-native pest species to inform plant health biosecurity policy decisions and to safeguard agriculture, forestry, biodiversity, and livelihoods in Uganda

Provisionally accepted
Joseph  MulemaJoseph Mulema1*Caroline  NankingaCaroline Nankinga2John Patrick  Kanahe KagororaJohn Patrick Kanahe Kagorora3Geoffrey  TusiimeGeoffrey Tusiime4Robert  AmayoRobert Amayo5Martin  ChemongesMartin Chemonges2Costa  GumisiriyaCosta Gumisiriya3Fred  KatoFred Kato6Boniface  Mulindwa KigongoBoniface Mulindwa Kigongo2David  KutungaDavid Kutunga7Barnabas  MuddeBarnabas Mudde8John Bosco  MuhumuzaJohn Bosco Muhumuza9Yosia  MukasaYosia Mukasa2Herbert  MusiimentaHerbert Musiimenta2Fred  MuziraFred Muzira2Emmanuel  John NamasaEmmanuel John Namasa2Idd  RamathanIdd Ramathan10Sebutare  GilbertSebutare Gilbert2Alexander  SsamulaAlexander Ssamula2Benius  TukahirwaBenius Tukahirwa7Samuel  Morris OpioSamuel Morris Opio11Ivan  Juma ObareIvan Juma Obare12Caroline  AliamoCaroline Aliamo1Christine  AlokitChristine Alokit1Venansio  TumuhaiseVenansio Tumuhaise13Daniel  KaranjaDaniel Karanja1Paul  MwambuPaul Mwambu2MaryLucy  OronjeMaryLucy Oronje1Shahasi  Yusuf AthmanShahasi Yusuf Athman14Morris  AkiriMorris Akiri1Ivan  RwomushanaIvan Rwomushana1Joab  TugumeJoab Tugume2Herbert  TalwanaHerbert Talwana4Edward  OnkendiEdward Onkendi1Mildred  Ochwo-SsemakulaMildred Ochwo-Ssemakula4
  • 1CAB International, Nairobi, Kenya
  • 2Department of Crop Inspection and Certification, Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, Entebbe, Uganda
  • 3Mountains of the Moon University, Fort Portal, Uganda
  • 4College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
  • 5Busitema University, Busitema, Uganda
  • 6Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, c/o National Agricultural Research Laboratories, Kawanda, Kampala, Uganda
  • 7Department of Crop Protection, Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries, Entebbe, Uganda
  • 8Ngetta Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute, Lira, Uganda
  • 9Department of Crop Science and Production, Kabale University, Kabale, Uganda
  • 10National Crops Resources Research Institute (NaCRRI), Kampala, Uganda
  • 11National Crops Resources Research Institute, Kampala, Uganda
  • 12Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS), Nairobi, Kenya
  • 13Kyambogo University, Kampala, Uganda
  • 14College Natural Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

In recent years, various invasive species have been introduced to sub-Saharan Africa, partly due to insufficient information about potential invasions, which has led countries to respond reactively rather than proactively. This information can be gathered through horizon scanning.Using the CABI Horizon Scanning Tool, 9,071 pest species have been identified as unreported in Uganda. A subset of 1,517 was prioritised for rapid risk assessment based on guidelines that evaluated the likelihood of entry and establishment, the magnitude of socio-economic and environmental impact, as well as potential pathways of introduction. These pest species included 357 arthropods, 130 bacteria, 74 chromista, 417 fungi, 19 molluscs, 124 nematodes, nine protists, and 387 viruses and viroids, of which 360 of the 1,517 were reported as invasive.Vectors and vectored organisms were also assessed to determine their associated risk.Management actions were recommended for 618 species, which included 160 arthropods, 70 bacteria, 30 chromista, 174 fungi, six molluscs, 41 nematodes, three protists, eight viroids, and 126 viruses. These pest species either attained an overall risk score of 54 and above or a lower score for specific pest species. The actions included targeted surveillance, regulation supported by pest risk analysis, contingency planning, publicity, management by the industry, and research. This information is vital for risk monitoring and management and can be utilised by countries in the East African Region.

Keywords: Invasive Alien Species, horizon scanning, Rapid risk assessment, pest risk identification, pest risk analysis, Pest risk management

Received: 28 Mar 2025; Accepted: 10 Jul 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Mulema, Nankinga, Kagorora, Tusiime, Amayo, Chemonges, Gumisiriya, Kato, Kigongo, Kutunga, Mudde, Muhumuza, Mukasa, Musiimenta, Muzira, Namasa, Ramathan, Gilbert, Ssamula, Tukahirwa, Opio, Obare, Aliamo, Alokit, Tumuhaise, Karanja, Mwambu, Oronje, Athman, Akiri, Rwomushana, Tugume, Talwana, Onkendi and Ochwo-Ssemakula. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Joseph Mulema, CAB International, Nairobi, Kenya

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