Abstract

Nigeria’s drive to boost food security and to fight off insect pests and yield-limiting crop pathogens has led to an unintended consequence: the mass importation and build-up of obsolete and toxic pesticides. Nigerian farmers have been relying heavily on these agrochemicals for the control of various weeds, insect pests and pathogens, leading to the high importation of these products. Although synthetic-chemical pesticides can be used to control some pests economically, rapidly and effectively; most of them cause serious negative impacts to the ecosystem. This paper highlights the need to  improve the sustainability of the use of plant protection products. This can be achieved by integrating existing plant protection measures (chemical, mechanical, physical, biological, host-plant resistance, use of pheromones, cultural, etc.) under the framework of what is termed Integrated Pest Management (IPM) while identifying, advocating for and promoting the use of botanical pesticides in the pest management process.

Key words: Plant protection, plant protection products, sustainable use, integrated pest management (IPM), botanical pesticides/botanicals.