(ETH) – East Africa is bracing for a third devastating locust invasion that is threatening crucial food supplies according to a new report from Express. According to the report, East Africa has already experienced devastation by a series of locust infestations over the past few months.
Just between January and April, alone, up to 1.3 million hectares of land and 200,000 hectares of crops were reportedly destroyed in Ethiopia. The incredible dry season and drought conditions are feared to provide the optimum breeding ground for the locusts in time for the next harvest.
After multiplying the locusts then emerge during the rainy monsoon season to wreak havoc by the millions. Up to 350,000 tons of cereals have been destroyed by locusts between January and April in the East Africa region. In February, Somalia declared a “national emergency” after a deadly swarm decimated its vital vegetation.
Kenneth Kemucie Mwangi from the climate monitoring program of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IDAG) recently stated: “Until we get extended figures, I would just say Ethiopia was definitely the most affected in terms of croplands, then Somalia.”
Another expert from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations highlighted the extent of the infestation by insisting hundreds of billions of locusts have already been killed in the region. He said: “About 400,000 hectares were controlled in the region between January and mid-May.
“We estimate that 400 billion locusts have been exterminated.” There is much feared that the next wave could be on its way after Namibia’s Ministry of Agriculture stated on Wednesday that the locusts were flying in from Botswana and Zambia.
