Agriculture Principal Secretary Hamadi Boga has announced a possible third wave of desert locust invasion in Kenya as huge swarms are currently hatching in Somalia and are likely to cross to Kenya.
The new invasion could deal a blow to Kenya’s efforts, coming at a time when the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) announced the country had managed to eliminate all the deserts locusts, except in one county.
Secretary Boga explained that despite Kenya’s efforts to contain the locusts, failure by Somalia to deal with the emerging swarms pose a serious threat in the coming days. In Somalia and Ethiopia, the locusts are hatching and the direction of wind will play a critical role in their movement.
Desert Locust Information Office
FAO had handed over Desert Locust Information Office to government to enable it monitor the movement of the pests in the region and take necessary precautions. The office contains information, equipment and all data that was collected during the desert locust survey and control.
The invasion of desert locust in the country had been contained, except in Samburu County, coming as a relief to farmers who were worried of losses from these pests. FAO office in Nairobi announced last month that about 23 counties that had been invaded in the second wave of invasion were now free from the ravaging insects with only a few swarms that had been spotted in Barsaloi, Samburu County.
According to the study commissioned by the ministry of Agriculture last year and funded by FAO, approximately 609,999 hectares of cropland and 579,786 hectares of pastureland were infested by the desert locusts.
