Friday, March 29, 2024

Locusts Invade Uganda As Tanzania Deploys Experts

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Desert locusts on Sunday crossed from neighbouring Kenya into Uganda through Amudat in the northeastern part of the country, a government official said.

“It’s true they (locusts) have entered into Uganda. They are already inside Amudat district,” Martin Owor, commissioner in charge of disaster management, said.

Ugandan Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda called for an emergency meeting later on Sunday, Mr Owor said, adding that the government has a plan to fight the locusts, which migrated from Kenya’s Turkana and Samburu areas.

He said that security personnel and surveillance teams have already been deployed to help fight the pests, and that Uganda’s government officials on Sunday travelled to Kenya to meet their counterparts on agreements to allow spray planes to cross borders.

Uganda last week released Ush15 billion (about $4.5 million) as a contingency fund to help fight the locusts.

The East African country last experienced a major locust invasion 70 years ago, which caused immense damage on crops, according to the agriculture ministry. Read more

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