Hundreds of thousands of locusts have invaded the crops of northern Afghanistan, under the helpless gaze of peasants and their families already threatened with famine.
In the remote village of Kandali located in the province of Balkh, one of the eight northern provinces of the country mainly affected, an impressive swarm of gray insects massed on a fallow field to lay eggs, nullifying the efforts farmers in an attempt to exterminate them.
Equipped with nets, they captured the insects before burying them in trenches, but their numbers kept growing.
“They eat everything that is green: wheat, peas, sesame”, then once finished they will lay their eggs, which will hatch next spring, complains to AFP Baz Mohammad, the representative of the village.
“We walk with hungry stomachs to kill the locusts. If we don’t kill them our agriculture will be ruined,” complains the energetic 50-year-old.
Some 1.2 million tonnes of wheat could be destroyed, a quarter of the annual harvest, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has warned.
The losses caused by this insect pest, among the most harmful in the world, could represent up to 480 million dollars, she estimated.
In a statement released last month, FAO representative Richard Trenchard said conditions were “perfect” for an invasion with “overgrazing, drought and very limited control measures”.
Afghanistan is facing its third consecutive year of drought, according to the UN humanitarian coordination (Unocha). In this village, no rain has fallen since March, according to the inhabitants.
Faced with the remonstrances of farmers who deplore the lack of aid, the provincial responsible for the fight against these insects at the Ministry of Agriculture, Sifatullah Azizi, recognizes that the treatment of 7,000 hectares throughout the province has not enough.
“We have acted within our means. To eradicate them you need a budget, hire workers, pay for fuel, products…”, he justifies, sheepishly.
Afghanistan’s economy, already battered by decades of war, has been mired in crisis after billions of dollars in international aid were cut following the Taliban’s takeover in August 2021.
Afghanistan’s economic output has collapsed and nearly 85% of the country lives in poverty, according to the latest report from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).
“Afghanistan once had a very effective locust control system. But this system has been greatly eroded over the past two years,” Trenchard said.
Abdul Raqib Kazimi, who provides for the needs of the sixteen members of his family alone, can only see the damage: “60 to 70%” of his land has been destroyed, including fodder for livestock. “We need to feed ourselves. If there is no wheat, there is no flour,” he says.
And the worst is yet to come, he fears: “Next year, they will be out of my control again (…) All the crops will be destroyed if we don’t prevent them from laying eggs”, worries the 38-year-old farmer.
If left untreated, the Moroccan locust population could increase 100-fold next year, FAO has warned.
14/06/2023 10:51:24 – Kandal ? (Afghanistan) (AFP) – © 2023 AFP