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MOGADISHU, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) – The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) on Wednesday requested additional funds to enable it to expand operations against the desert locust in Somalia.
The UN agency said the international community has pledged US $ 50.4 million so far to support the FAO-government 2020 action plan against the desert locust for Somalia, up from a total requirement of US $ 57 million. of dollars.
“The funds received will allow FAO and its partners to maintain operations until early 2021. However, additional funds are urgently required for air contracts, for sprayers, vehicles and operating costs to maintain operations until at least June 2021.” it said in a statement. statement.
The statement comes after a three-day mission by representatives of development partners to various areas affected by the desert locust in Somalia.
The main objective of the mission was to understand the progress made so far in the fight against the Desert Locust, interact with government counterparts, and help raise awareness of future needs to continue the ongoing response, as well as provide additional support for the livelihoods.
Alphonse Owuor, FAO’s Crop Protection Officer in Somalia, said that since control operations began, the UN food agency has been able to spray more than 110,000 hectares with biopesticides and insect growth regulators.
“Thanks to these fumigation activities, we were able to conserve 193,000 metric tons of grain and productive assets for nearly 90,000 pastoralist households,” Owuor said.
According to the FAO, for more than a year, the rise of the desert locust across the country has been the worst experienced in decades, adding that it is working with government authorities and partners to respond to this ongoing crisis.
He said the cyclonic storm that made landfall in northeastern Somalia on November 22 provided a favorable breeding ground for locust swarms.
“Rains and winds are two of the most favorable conditions for desert locusts to multiply rapidly and spread rapidly to areas where they had been under control,” said Etienne Peterschmitt, FAO Representative in Somalia.
“With these cool rains and the support of prevailing winds, the immature swarms that were present in the hard-to-reach Sanaag highlands have matured and moved to Sool and Togdheer, in search of moist soils to lay their eggs,” Peterschmitt added.
FAO said that with this new invasion of desert locusts, large areas of farmland and pastures are at risk of damage, with potentially serious consequences for agricultural, agro-pastoral and pastoral livelihoods in a context where food security already It’s fragile.
“By the second week of December, we expect numerous immature swarms to begin to form. Many of these swarms will migrate further south into southern Ethiopia and southern Somalia, most likely reaching northern Kenya in mid-December. The potential scale of this migration could be substantial, “said Owuor.
Johan Heffinck, Director of the ECHO Office in Somalia, said the rise in desert locusts is threatening the livelihoods and food security of people in an area that is already severely food insecure.
“Having witnessed on the ground how the various control teams fight this plague of desert locusts, this is truly a race against time. There is no time to lose,” added Heffinck. Final product
