The European Commission has released €1 million in emergency aid to help combat the locust invasion that is ravaging crops and pastures in East Africa, threatening to cause a humanitarian crisis, the European Commission announced on Tuesday 18 February.
This is initial aid that can be mobilised very quickly, in response to the appeal for international generosity, launched by the UN Secretary-General António Guterres, to contain this scourge, which has reached levels not seen in the last 25 years.
“Our emergency funding will help pastoralists and farmers in the affected areas who are at risk of losing their means of subsistence. We must step up efforts to tackle the situation before it affects more communities”, says EU Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič.
Containing the plague of billions of locusts and protecting the livelihoods of rural populations, especially those already threatened by food shortages, is urgent. The EU is considering further substantial support for the efforts of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in the Horn of Africa. The locusts have eaten thousands of hectares since the end of December. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)