Somalia and Pakistan declared a national emergency in response to swarms of desert locusts in their countries.
Somalia
Somalia declared a national emergency following locust infestation sweeping the Horn of Africa, as insects devastate food supplies in one of the poorest and most vulnerable regions in the world. Experts say the locust swarms are the result of extreme weather swings. Somalia’s declaration — the first country in the region to do so — is aimed at boosting national efforts in tackling the hungry insects.
Pakistan
Prime Minister Imran Khan made the emergency declaration following a government briefing on the situation on 31st January, 2020. The desert locusts — large herbivores that resemble grasshoppers — arrived in Pakistan from Iran in June 2019 and have already ravaged cotton, wheat, maize and other crops. The last time Pakistan saw a serious threat of locusts was in 1993. Currently, locust swarms are affecting neighboring India and countries in East Africa.
