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Kenya: Munya – Locusts Not a Disaster, We’ve Got Them Under Control

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6 years ago

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Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya has once again dismissed calls to declare the locust invasion a national disaster, saying that the government has the situation under control.

Addressing journalists after a strategy meeting with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Mr Munya said there was no need to panic even as the government enters the second phase of control measures against the invasion.

“We have not yet reached a stage of declaring a national disaster. This is an extreme measure usually taken to attract funding to deal with a particular problem and we already have this funding,” he said.

He said the government has brought on board partners including the World Bank, Germany, the EU, the US and the Africa Development Bank.

“The government has also mobilised its own resources and we will deploy more as we acquire them,” he said.

Mr Munya assured the public that the plan to contain the pests by June is on course but total eradication will take longer. The government has acquired more aircraft and other equipment to help in spraying pesticides in locust-infested areas, bringing the total number of planes to 20.

The CS said the country is food-secure despite the Strategic Food Reserve’s warning of a possible shortage even as locusts ravage parts of the Rift Valley, the country’s food basket. He said the government will import food if the need arises.

Council of Governors Agriculture Committee chairman Muthomi Njoki (Tharaka-Nithi) hailed the cooperation between the national and county governments in dealing with the locusts and urged leaders at all levels to educate communities on how control locust nymphs to prevent their spread.

He urged the national government to work with neighbouring countries.

“The government should intervene outside its borders because even if the locusts are eradicated within the country and neighbouring countries are not doing the same, we will only be waiting for new swarms to arrive,” said Mr Njoki.

“Collaborating with neighbouring countries to eliminate the locusts at the source will be the best solution, ensuring that we finish the locusts as a region to prevent a vicious cycle,” he added.

FAO has said the desert locusts originated from the Arabian Peninsula, especially Yemen, as tropical cyclones in the area led to their migration westwards to the Horn of Africa and eventually into East Africa.

The organisation noted that the invasion hit Kenya by surprise as the country had not experienced one in over 70 years, compared with her northern neighbour Ethiopia, which faces invasions more frequently and has stronger support systems and infrastructure against them.