East Africa: Desert locust, food security and livelihoods situation - information bulletin

This bulletin is being issued for information only and reflects the current status of the desert locust situation across East Africa. The information and details available are accurate at this time. International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) are not seeking funding or other international donations at this time.

The situation

The current desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria) activity in Eastern Africa is extremely alarming. The Horn of Africa remains the worst-affected area with an unprecedented threat to food security and livelihoods. Swarms have increased in Ethiopia and Somalia, moving southwest to Kenya and are within 200 km of northeast Uganda and southeast South Sudan.

Aerial and ground operations by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) are underway, but remain insufficient due to the size of the swarms. Favourable weather conditions forecasted over the coming months will enable further survival, reproduction and movement of the locusts. This could result in an increase of locusts in the three affected countries with the possibility of swarms spreading to Uganda and South Sudan. A swarm also has formed on the coast near the Sudan-Egypt border with immature swarms arriving in Djibouti.

Forecast information per country is available below.

• Ethiopia: Swarm movements are likely to occur across eastern and southern Ethiopia, also reaching parts of central highlands. Cross-border swarm movements along the Somali and Kenyan border will augment their size. Substantial breeding is expected to occur across eastern and southern Ethiopia causing hopper bands to form.

• Kenya: Additional swarms will continue to arrive in the northeast from Ethiopia and Somalia, spreading west through northern and central areas. Movement further south will be limited due to headwinds. Breeding will cause further increase of the quantity of locusts in February and March.

• Somalia: Breeding will cause locust numbers to increase along the north-western coast. In the northeast, more hopper groups and bands will form as hatching continues and new swarms could start forming in early March. In central and southern areas, egg-laying, hatching and hopper band formation are expected to continue.

• Sudan: More swarms will form on the northern coast, which are likely to move to the Nile Valley. More swarms may start to form on the southern coast in March.

• South Sudan: There is a high risk of small swarms appearing in the southeast from southern Ethiopia and northern Kenya in coming weeks.

• Uganda: There is a low risk of small swarms appearing in the northeast from Kenya in coming weeks.