Namibia battling with 3rd locust outbreak

Windhoek (Namibia), January 7: Namibia is currently fighting the 3rd locust outbreak in the Karasburg District, Karas Region in the southern parts of the country, Namibia's Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry spokesperson Jonah Musheko said in a statement on Thursday.The first outbreak was reported on Sept. 21, 2021, by a commercial farmer and a team was immediately dispatched. Unfortunately, they could not trace, Musheko said."The initial control commenced on Nov. 3, 2021, in the Karasburg district and by then, the infested area was estimated at approximately 800,000 hectares of farmland, and over 240,000 ha surveyed with approximate 2,000 ha treated/sprayed," he added.According to Musheko, since mid-December 2021, the ministry has been detecting swarms of brown locusts and spraying teams have been dispatched and are in the field to date."As of yesterday, spraying was carried out at the farms Nakop up to Swartkop, covering approximately a total of 80,000 ha. These first instar locusts are still hatching, they do not move much and did not form groups yet. However, there are large swarms of adult locusts that migrated through the area while reproducing," he added.Musheko, meanwhile, encouraged farmers to continue monitoring and scouting their farms and report any new incidents of locust infestations.Source: Xinhua