Armyworms |
A fall armyworm
outbreak has been causing considerable crop damage in some countries
including in Tanzania. The pest damages maize which is a staple food in
most areas of Tanzania and the Southern Africa region as a whole. It
also affects other cereals including sorghum, millet and wheat, forcing
countries in the region to spend millions of dollars in preventive
measures.
After more than a
year of wreaking havoc across western and southern Africa, fall
armyworms started to be reported Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Ethiopia and
Burundi early this year and yesterday, (Wednesday September 27), the
government signed a Climate Smart Agriculture agreement which is worth
$500,000. The agreement is supported by United States Department of
Agriculture.
It also signed the
Value Chain Development for Rice in Iringa region agreement worth
$1.5million under the support of the European Union.
During the event,
FAO handed over fall pheromone traps to the Ministry of Agriculture,
Livestock and Fisheries to be used for the surveillance of fall armyworm
(FAW) infestation in the country.
The 216 traps would
also be used to determine the gravity of the problem and provide
information necessary for designing future interventions.
Speaking during the
handover event in Dar es Salaam, the FAO Country Representative, Fred
Kafeero, said that the traps were part of the efforts by UN agency in
addressing the FAW threat in parts of the country. "Fall armyworm, which
is mostly associated with the Americas, is a new threat in Southern
Africa and we are very concerned with the emergence, intensity and
spread of the pest," said Mr Kafeero.
"It is only a
matter of time before most of the region is affected, and the costs and
implications for food security and livelihoods could be very serious,"
he added.
For his part, the
MALF Permanent Secretary, Mr Mathew Mtigumwe said the support by FAO had
come at the right time when there are reports of invasion of the pests
in some parts of the country.
"Although it is too
early to know the long-term impact of fall armyworm on agricultural
production and food security in the country, its potential to cause
serious damage and yield losses is very alarming. These traps will help
us determine the extent of the problem and provide information necessary
for designing interventions," he said.
The fall armyworm
impact on crops and infestations has been identified in several regions
both in uni-modal rainfall areas such as Songwe, Katavi, Mbeya, Iringa,
Njombe, Ruvuma, Lindi, Mtwara, Morogoro and Rukwa regions; and in
bi-modal rainfall areas such as Arusha, Manyara, Shinyanga and
Kilimanjaro Tanga.
Mr Mtigumwe said
that Tanzania is working with other stakeholders including FAO to gather
and analyze experiences and best practices that will help to design and
test a sustainable FAW management program for smallholders in the
country.
MORE INFO: FAST PROLIFERATION
Endemic to the
Americas, fall armyworms can fly long distances, and females can lay up
to 1,000 eggs at a time, according to scientists. They proliferate in
tropical climates, making Africa a choice destination; however, experts
are still unclear as to how the pests got here in the first place.
According to FAO, as of January last year (2016), army worms had spread
to Nigeria and Ghana before hitting South Africa, Zimbabwe, Malawi,
Zambia, Namibia and Mozambique before descending on East African nations
this year.
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