Along with climate shocks, conflict and acute food insecurity, the East Africa region now faces a hunger threat from desert locusts, top UN relief officials warned on Tuesday, saying action now, will avert a major food crisis later.
Locust swarms of a magnitude not seen in decades are devastating crops and placing millions at risk of hunger in the Horn of Africa.
Keith Cressman, Senior Locust Forecasting Officer with the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), told Dianne Penn the agency is seeking $76 million to scale-up aerial spraying against the “voracious” locusts and protect livelihoods in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia.
With the rainy season fast approaching, countries in the Horn of Africa are in a race against time to tackle a Desert Locust invasion amidst ongoing humanitarian challenges, the United Nations warned on Monday.
The Desert Locust outbreak in the Horn of Africa could provoke a humanitarian crisis, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has warned.
Charlotta Lomas asked FAO senior locust forecasting officer Keith Cressman to provide an update on what he described as “a very, very scary phenomena”.
Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are dealing with desert locust swarms of “unprecedented size and destructive potential” that could spill over into more countries in East Africa, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warned on Monday.
Our main stories today: senior UN officials condemn attacks on Somalia capital, and call for continued international support; the International Atomic Energy Agency and UN’s Economic and Social Council welcome new leaders; and the Food and Agriculture Organization warns of possible locust swarms in Horn of Africa and Yemen
