Aerial and ground control operations are in progress in addressing the worsening desert locust situation in some areas in the country. According to the Food Security and Nutrition Working Group’s recent update, the East Africa region is already experiencing a high degree of food insecurity, with over 19 million people coping with crisis (which has reached Integrated Phase Classification Phase 3 – a classification that describes severity of food emergencies) or higher levels of hunger.
Under a worst-case scenario, where the current locust upsurge is not quickly contained and becomes a plague by the next main crop season, significant crop and pasture losses would cause food insecurity in affected areas to worsen further.
David Phiri, Food and Agriculture Organization’s coordinator for Eastern Africa and representative to the African Union and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa warned: “We must act immediately and at scale to combat and contain this invasion. As the rains start in March there will be a new wave of locust breeding. Now is the best time to control the swarms and safeguard people’s livelihoods and food security, and avert further worsening of the food crisis”.
