Locusts spotted in Meru farms and Isiolo county

Miraa farmers in Meru have been thrown into a state of panic after locusts were spotted in their farms ib different parts of Meru county.

The swarm of locusts have been making steady progress inland after they first invaded Wajir county, from the Southern Somalia.

They have now made landfall in Ndumuru village in Ntunene ward and Kine Meru Kiutine areas of the Meru county, according to former Igembe MP Joseph Muturia.

The government, through its spokesman Rtd. Col. Cyrus Oguna, said it had a spray aircraft on the ready in Wajir, and said they have the situation under control.

Despite this affirmation, the progress of the spraying has been marred by an acute shortage of ‘chemicals’ used to annihilate the locusts. In a report, Mandera county government stated that they were  3,000 litres short of chemicals, as the 1,000 litres they had was far from enough.

Meanwhile, almost 12,000 square kilometres of landmass had been infested in the county, with the swarms leaving behind a trail of destruction that could result in acute food crisis.

A warning about locust invasion in countries in the Horn of Africa was sounded by the Food and Agriculture Organization back in December 18, 2019.