{"id":20117688,"date":"2023-06-20T14:09:08","date_gmt":"2023-06-20T08:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thethirdpole.net\/?p=117688"},"modified":"2023-06-20T17:23:48","modified_gmt":"2023-06-20T11:53:48","slug":"locust-outbreak-in-afghanistan-threatens-major-food-crisis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/en\/food\/locust-outbreak-in-afghanistan-threatens-major-food-crisis\/","title":{"rendered":"Locust outbreak in Afghanistan threatens major food crisis"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

For nearly 30 years, Mullah Khan Mohammad has worked his family\u2019s land in Surkh Kotal \u2013 near the great archaeological site<\/a> of the same name \u2013 in Baghlan province. Baghlan, in northern Afghanistan, is known as the country\u2019s breadbasket due to its significant wheat production. \u201cSince we returned [in the early 1990s, after the Soviet-Afghanistan war], we have been cultivating wheat, beans and seasonal vegetables here,\u201d said the 45-year-old farmer proudly, as he showed The Third Pole around his farm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But Mohammad is now facing another enemy: locusts are ravaging his harvest. \u201cSo far, about 60% of our produce has been affected by malakh<\/em> [locusts]. Soon there will be nothing left,\u201d he said dejectedly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mohammad is not alone, and farmers in surrounding districts shared similar woes with The Third Pole. \u201cThe locusts have destroyed more than half of our harvests this year,\u201d said Ahmadzai, a 50-year-old farmer from Baghlan. \u201cThere isn\u2019t even enough chaff left to feed the animals,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warning of dangerous locust outbreak<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

An advisory<\/a> issued by the UN\u2019s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on 10 May 2023 warned of a major outbreak after Moroccan locusts (a species of locust which is found from north Africa to western Asia) were reported from 10 of Afghanistan\u2019s provinces. \u201cThe last two big outbreaks, 20 and 40 years ago, cost Afghanistan an estimated 8-25% of its total annual wheat production. A full outbreak this year could result in crop losses ranging from 700,000 to 1.2 million metric tonnes of wheat \u2013 up to a quarter of the total annual harvest,\u201d Richard Trenchard, the FAO\u2019s representative in Afghanistan, told The Third Pole in an email on 4 June 2023, repeating the text of the advisory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trenchard also shared data on damage caused by locusts across Afghanistan\u2019s northern and northeastern provinces up to the first week of June. Samanghan, Baghlan and Kunduz had been the worst affected, with 6,000 hectares, 5,000 hectares and 4,500-5,000 hectares respectively damaged by locusts. Most of the land affected was pasture, but wheat, sesame, green gram, and cover crops were also impacted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"two<\/div>
Farmers in Pul-e-Khumri walk through their fields to see where locusts have gathered on 20 May 2023 (Image: The Third Pole)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In both the advisory and in his comments to The Third Pole, Trenchard emphasised that this year\u2019s harvest had been the best in three years \u2013 significant in a country struggling with food security. \u201cBut this [locust] outbreak threatens to destroy all the recent gains, and dramatically worsen the food insecurity situation,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Afghanistan has been experiencing an extreme humanitarian crisis since the government takeover by the Taliban in August 2021 due to a host of factors, including an extended drought. As a result, nearly 20 million people in the country are facing acute hunger, \u201cincluding more than 6 million people on the brink of famine-like conditions\u201d, according to UN estimates<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Impact of climate change<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Afghan climate scientists who spoke to The Third Pole attributed the recent spike in locust populations to changing precipitation patterns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe life cycle of locusts is highly dependent on weather patterns,\u201d explained Wahdatullah Khaplwak, an academic currently based in Japan, whose work focuses on plant protection and agricultural policy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Afghanistan is currently experiencing a third consecutive year of drought<\/a>. \u201cThe biology and ecological needs of Moroccan locusts are being met due to the drought conditions and minimal rainfall, leaving the soil barren and untouched, but [with] enough moisture to allow the eggs to hatch sooner than usual and the larvae to thrive on the sparse vegetation,\u201d Khaplwak said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"man<\/div>
A member of staff from the from Baghlan Directorate of Agriculture sprays insecticide on fields in Dahana-i-Ghuri district on 3 May 2023 (Image: The Third Pole)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Trenchard added: \u201cDue to the drought, herders moved to other locations in search of pasture. This meant that the locusts hatched unnoticed until they were unmistakably multiplied from the hatching. The alarm bells rang late.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lack of mechanisms to control locusts in Afghanistan<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to the most recent Climate Risk Index<\/a> published by the NGO Germanwatch in 2019, Afghanistan ranked sixth among countries most impacted by climate change-induced disasters, such as increasingly powerful cyclones, extreme rainfall leading to floods and landslides, and longer dry seasons resulting in droughts. These impacts have been further exacerbated under the Taliban regime, which lacks the resources and expertise required to deal with the worsening impacts of climate disasters<\/a> in the region. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While Afghan farmers are no strangers to the challenges of pest outbreaks, a lack of support during the current breakout has left them vulnerable. \u201cThere are certain medicines, one called Malathion, that we mix with water to spray on the fields that can kill these insects, but not everyone can afford it,\u201d said Ahmadzai. If not eradicated everywhere, locusts will simply move from one farm to another and continue to thrive, he explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mullah Khan Mohammad told The Third Pole that the local directorate of the Ministry of Agriculture had distributed some pesticides, but not enough. \u201cThey provided 25 litres of the chemical to our shura<\/em> [council of tribal leaders], but it isn\u2019t sufficient to cover the area of farm lands in our district,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the absence of access to chemicals, Ahmadzai explained how locals turn to traditional methods of locust control instead. The whole community, farmers and their families gather together, he said, and after having identified young locusts which have not yet developed wings, sweep them into a large tarpaulin using brooms. The locusts are then buried in trenches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis isn\u2019t very helpful,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The FAO\u2019s Trenchard explained: \u201cA month after hatching, the locusts become adults and develop wings, after which they form big swarms which fly to the lowlands and continue damaging agricultural crops.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"group<\/div>
A team from the Baghlan Directorate of Agriculture spray insecticide in Dahana-i-Ghuri district of northern Afghanistan\u2019s Baghlan province on 20 May 2023 (Image: The Third Pole)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Not long ago, Trenchard said, Afghanistan had a very strong locust control system in place, involving responding to any signs of an outbreak with traditional methods of gathering and burying locusts as well as chemical treatments. However, under the current Taliban regime \u2013 which is not officially recognised by any other country and faces sanctions \u2013 resources and funds available to support Afghan farmers remain sparse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sanctions imposed by the UN and United States upon specific actors within the Taliban have been interpreted by the global banking sector as applying to the whole of Afghanistan, despite clear exemptions for payments for food and other essentials, which has brought the country\u2019s banking sector to a halt<\/a>. Even the UN has been forced to physically transport millions of dollars in cash<\/a> every week to continue operating its projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This lack of resources, combined with a paucity of time to prepare owing to the delay in initially catching the locust outbreak, means that organisations working with Afghan farmers have not been able to mobilise funds or procure chemicals and appropriate equipment to tackle the pests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Moroccan locust life cycle is complete within a month, and if one delays in taking action, it means [that in] the second month, one is dealing with 20 times the number,\u201d Trenchard told The Third Pole. He also said that the response from the Ministry of Agriculture to the recent outbreak has been \u201cencouraging\u201d but \u201cheavily constrained\u201d, due lack of available chemical reserves and resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe government needs to make more efforts to help farmers to reduce the damage they [locusts] can cause,\u201d Ahmadzai said. So far, there is little evidence that the current government response has been sufficient; on 17 June 2023, Afghanistan\u2019s chamber of agriculture and livestock made another appeal<\/a> to the government to take more action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Borders no barrier to locusts<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If left unchecked, the current locust outbreak could threaten food security across an already unstable Afghanistan. \u201cThe socio-economic effects of a famine triggered by this could have an impact greater than one we can imagine,\u201d Khaplwak said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the FAO advisory<\/a>, wheat yield losses due to the locust outbreak could cost the country between USD 280 million and USD 480 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt will cause irreversible long-term effects on the life of Afghans, in particular the farming communities and the most vulnerable ones. Already, five decades of conflict followed by recent political instability in the country have left almost 50% of the population food-insecure, with an increasing number of kids and nursing women malnourished,\u201d Khaplwak elaborated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The devastation of a major locust outbreak would not be limited to within Afghanistan\u2019s borders. Once they develop wings, Trenchard warned, swarms can fly for up to 250 kilometres, damaging agricultural crops along the way. \u201cDepending on the wind strength, the locust swarm flights can also cross borders reaching neighbouring Tajikistan<\/a>, Uzbekistan<\/a> and Turkmenistan,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Khaplwak also recommended establishing an intergovernmental body in the region to tackle the locust outbreaks which seem to be occurring with increasing frequency as climate change worsens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA regional anti-locust centre [formed] by countries in this region who are affected could help regularly monitor and forecast [locust outbreaks] each year. It could be equipped with required technologies and financial resources that can take quick actions, serving mutual benefit for the region,\u201d he suggested.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Failure to contain the current outbreak now could result in a \u201chundred-fold\u201d increase in locust populations in the coming years, Khaplwak warned. \u201cIf a proper management strategy is not applied, the outbreak could lead to life-threatening circumstances for not just Afghans, but impact everyone in the region.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Editor\u2019s note: An Afghan national contributed to this report, and provided the pictures. Their name is being withheld for their safety.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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