On May 11, 2026, AGROSAVIA and FENALCE organized the Workshop on Prioritizing Maize Plant Health Challenges Under El Niño Conditions at the University of the Llanos in Villavicencio (Meta), Colombia, as part of the FONTAGRO project “Harnessing Bioproducts to Strengthen Climate Resilience.”

The event brought together 21 participants, including farmers, technical advisors, extension specialists, and researchers, to discuss the main challenges that maize production may face under drought and stress conditions associated with the El Niño phenomenon.

Using a participatory approach, attendees identified and prioritized the pests and diseases most likely to increase under scenarios of water deficit and high temperatures. This exercise provided valuable information on the concerns and needs of the productive sector, while generating inputs to guide future research, evaluation, and technology transfer activities.

Throughout the workshop, farmers, technical advisors, and researchers exchanged experiences and discussed management alternatives to help reduce plant health risks associated with extreme climate events. Participants also identified topics of interest that could strengthen technical support and knowledge generation related to maize production.

As part of the event, advances from the FONTAGRO project related to the use of beneficial microorganisms for sustainable pest and disease management were presented. Participants learned about alternatives based on entomopathogenic fungi, antagonistic fungi, and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi, organisms with the potential to improve plant health, enhance soil quality, and increase crop resilience under climate-related stress conditions.

The workshop also strengthened dialogue between the research community and the productive sector, helping ensure that technologies under development respond to the real needs of farmers and the specific conditions of regional production systems.

This activity forms part of the knowledge-sharing and stakeholder engagement actions promoted by the FONTAGRO project, aimed at improving understanding of the challenges that climate variability poses to maize production and promoting the use of bioproducts as tools for more sustainable and resilient agriculture.