DUBAI: The EU has pledged €8 million ($9.72 million) toward the fight to combat the spread of desert locusts in Africa. The EU contribution was from its European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) and was welcomed by the director general of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Qu Dongyu. “I want to thank the EU and all other supporters for
DUBAI: Despite its best efforts throughout 2020 to bring the scourge of desert locusts under control, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) warns that swarms of the crop-eating insects now pose an even greater threat to agricultural and pastoral livelihoods and the food security of millions from the Horn of Africa to Yemen.
Last month, FAO said favorable weather conditions and widespread seasonal rains had led to an explosion in locust breeding in eastern Ethiopia and Somalia made worse by Cyclone Gati. Infestations are forecast to increase in the coming months alongside a new cycle of breeding on the Red Sea coast.