If the crisis had been tackled earlier in the year it would have cost $9 million. Now the price tag is estimated at more than $100 million. 鈥淚n six months鈥� time it could be much more.鈥�
The problem is potentially the most serious locust plague Africa has seen for 15 years, and the warning comes from Keith Cressman, locust forecasting officer at the UN鈥檚 Food and Agriculture Organization in Rome.
This week, the first swarms began gathering in Mauritania at the western end of the Sahara. Hundreds more are expected to form next week in neighbouring Mali and Niger.
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鈥淭hat鈥檚 when they become a bigger problem, because they鈥檙e mobile,鈥� Cressman told New Scientist on Monday. 鈥淎t this stage, the most effective control is aerial application of pesticides, either against hopper bands of young locusts or the mobile adult form,鈥� Cressman explained. 鈥淵ou can hit swarms in the early morning before it warms up enough for them to take off.鈥�
Yet the FAO is still woefully short of the $100 million it needs for pesticides and logistical support to wipe out the threat. Only $37 million has been pledged so far.
鈥淚f the money runs out, the direct impact is that control operations are reduced,鈥� Cressman says. That raises the cost of controlling the swarms still higher. 鈥淭he longer we wait, the larger the problem will become, so early assistance is an investment,鈥� he says.
鈥淗elp must arrive this month in order to disrupt the next locust breeding cycle in October,鈥� said Jacques Diouf, director-general of the FAO, on 2 September. 鈥淥therwise the infestation could spread to even more countries in Africa.鈥�