Following the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, the world has turned its face to halt its rapid transmission. For that reason, the danger of locusts’ swarms seems to remain a lesser problem to global community while in fact it is a serious one that will put millions of people in East Africa into food insecurity and hunger.
Delays in obtaining pesticides, helicopters and other supplies which are important in the effort of controlling the desert locusts have become a serious threat to combat East Africa`s worst threats.
As it is indicated by The New Humanitarian Organization, as new crop season gets underway, the second generation of pest is forming to destroy the crop.
Desert locusts are more serious threats to the region for they can reproduce rapidly and migrate long distance destroying farm and pasture lands.
Studies indicate that a single swarm of locusts can consume enough food that can feed 35,000 people.
According to the report from Ministry of Agriculture, desert locust has already consumed over 3.5 million quintals of agriculture produces in Ethiopia.
As it was told by State Minister Sani Redi, the government is doing its level best to control the disaster that will put the nation into food security crisis.
In his recent statement to journalists, the State Minister said that, so far, the desert locusts have affected 170 Woredas in six regional states and a city.
He said, Sorghum, maize and wheat on about 198,000 hectares of land were destroyed by the desert locust. What is more, the state minister said, due to the Coronavirus threat and the locusts swarm, the country may lose about 8 percent of its agricultural produces by the next Ethiopian year.
Sani said the Coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated the challenge to control the locusts. As a means to overcome the challenge, the Ministry has applied helicopters to assess the movement of the locusts.
As BBC Africa news puts it on its recent news, a second, much bigger wave of locusts is causing destruction on a vast scale across East Africa, months after the region was hit by another locust invasion.
Confirming BBC`s view, The Washington Post has warned governments and the UN to take a serious measure to help East African countries which are caught between COVID-19 and the swarm of locusts.
According to Washington Post, despite the fact that there is willingness from international community to help the region, COVID-19 related challenges has become a challenge to address the faced problem.
Indeed, as it was indicated by The New Humanitarian Organization, despite the fact that donors have provided most of the 153 million USD which was requested by FAO, that will be used to fight the outbreak of the locusts while corona-related issues have become serious challenge
To make matters worse, Coronavirus-related travel restrictions have since reduced the number of cargo flights, causing delays in the supply of pesticides and helicopters.
“Several governments and U.N agencies have repeatedly warned that locusts will cause calamitous food shortages if they end up on cropland. Ten of thousands of liters of pesticides have been delayed in reaching the region because of border closure caused by coronavirus pandemic.”
According to The New Humanitarian Organization, though most goods have arrived their destination, the second batch of locusts swarm is preparing to invade the crops.
“Though most goods have now arrived, the millions-strong swarms forming and maturing in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Somalia are roughly 20 times the size of the first batch, which were carried in by winds last year from the Arabian Peninsula and bred in huge numbers after unusually heavy rains.”
Despite the fact that the world is caught with COVID 19, several partners are showing their unreserved efforts.
As it was indicated by FAO, with funding support from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and other partners, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has leased two aircraft and two helicopters to scale up the aerial Desert Locust control operations in Ethiopia. In addition, the Organization is in the process of leasing one aircraft and one helicopter.
What is more, The Russian Federation has showed its commitment in the fight against locusts swarm in East Africa by donating 10 Million USD.
As it was mentioned by FAO Director- General QU Dongyu, the donation by the Russian Federation to boost the fight against the Desert Locust outbreak in East Africa will support FAO`s operations in Ethiopia, Kenya, South Sudan and Uganda.
The Ethiopia Herald May 8, 2020
BY LEULSEGED WORKU
