This archive report was first published on 9 November 2019.
On November 4, 2019, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) issued a warning that a swarm of locusts in northeast Ethiopia could soon move to Kenya if nothing is done.
According to FAO, a number of the insects had already moved into Eritrea, while some entered northern Somalia where they laid eggs.
Locusts are known to devastate crops and cause major agricultural damage.
FAO noted that the hatched eggs needed to be brought under control at an early stage to avoid pouring into other Ethiopia's neighboring countries, including Kenya.
"Ground and aerial operations were in progress in northeast Ethiopia where swarms formed. A few groups moved north towards Eritrea while some swarms moved southeast to northern Somalia and eastern Ethiopia where they laid eggs that began hatching at the end of the month. There remains a moderate risk that a few swarms could reach northeast Kenya," FAO said.
So far, the Ethiopian government, in conjunction with the Desert Locust Control Organisation for Eastern Africa, has put in place various control measures.
However, Ethiopia's Agriculture Minister Sani Redi told ReliefWeb that the desert locust invasion was likely to cause incalculable green vegetation loss, and that substantial support was needed to undertake massive control and preventive measures.
