(L-R) FAO Deputy Representative in Uganda Ms Priya Gujadhur hands over a motorised spray pump to the Parmanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, in Entebbe recently.

In a bid to enhance Uganda’s efforts to control Desert Locust, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has today handed over an assortment of equipment and vehicles to the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), to beef-up the response.

The equipment, which includes four pick-up trucks, four vehicle-mounted sprayers, 10 motorized spray pumps, 10 hand-held spray pumps and an assortment of standard personal protective equipment (PPE) including; helmets, overalls, and safety goggles, forms part of FAO’s contribution to scaling up efforts to respond to the Desert Locusts, which first entered Uganda in February 2020. This consignment was made possible with financial support from partners including the European Union, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Mastercard Foundation, and the Governments of Switzerland and Canada.

Speaking at the handover ceremony held at the MAAIF offices in Entebbe, Pius Wakabi Kasajja, the Ministry’s Permanent said that the Equipment will boost the control operations by reducing on human resource required for ground operations while ensuring the safety of the frontline workers involved in the operations.

“We are grateful to FAO for the support given to the Government of Uganda in addressing the Desert Locust invasion. This equipment will greatly boost our operations,” he said.

Unlike hand-held sprayers, vehicle-mounted sprayers can treat large areas quickly, ranging between 180-200 hectares in a day, with less labour required.

With funding from several donors, FAO is also procuring spray and survey equipment, protective gear, pesticides, fuel, vehicles, and motorcycles. The Organization is also supporting the government to train extension workers, who conduct the ground spraying and surveillance.

FAO is also supporting efforts to mobilize and educate communities about Desert Locust control operations through radio stations so that they can move their livestock, beehives and families to safety, ahead of spraying operations.

Priya Gujadhur, the FAO Deputy Representative in Uganda, said that the situation remains extremely alarming in the Horn of Africa, specifically in Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia, where widespread breeding is in progress and new swarms are starting to form. This presents a threat to food security and livelihoods at the beginning of the upcoming cropping season.

“Breeding and hatching is taking place in Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia, and as long as this continues, Uganda will continue to be at risk. It is therefore important that Uganda strengthen its surveillance and preparedness effort to manage the desert locust invasion,” she said.

Uganda has adopted innovative technologies such as eLocust3m, developed by FAO in helping to improve early warning. This mobile-based tool is a tried and tested data recording and transmission system that will help field staff to gather data and transfer it in real-time from the field to their national locust centres. Information obtained via eLocust3 is used to assess the current situation, forecast its development and warn locust affected countries and the international donor community of likely locust invasions. FAO is assisting MAAIF through the procurement of necessary software for DL surveillance and data analysis.

Besides internal resources, FAO Uganda has received funding to scale up Desert Locust operations in Uganda from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; International Cooperation and Development (DEVCO) of the European Union, the Netherlands, Canada and Switzerland.