Investments to control the desert locust invasion on crops in Africa 2021
The food security of millions of people in West Africa and in the Sahel is threatened by a desert locust invasion coming from the Horn of Africa. The desert locust is the largest migratory crop pest in the world. According to the source, a one-kilometer square swarm can consume the same quantity of food in one day for 35 thousand people. Thus, some four million British pounds have been allotted to prevent the impact of the desert locust invasion in Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Senegal. The largest amount has been assigned to Mauritania (over one million British pounds). Among others, the investments in Mauritania were planned to be used for aerial survey operations to detect desert locusts, implement spraying techniques, support the triangulation of pesticide from stocks in Algeria to Mauritania as well as inform the community. The partner for this investment is the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office of the United Kingdom.