Liked on YouTube: Kenya mobilises youth to tackle locust problem

Kenya mobilises youth to tackle locust problem

(18 Feb 2020) Kenya has begun mobilising its National Youth Service to try to contain the worst locust outbreak that parts of east Africa have seen in 70 years. Footage from Yatta in Machakos shows young cadets, some wearing white protective clothing, engaging in practical exercises to learn more about locusts and how to eradicate them. The mobilisation is supported by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. The FAO representative in Kenya says the preparatory exercises are necessary as pesticides used to kill locusts can pose risks to the cadet's health. The training also helps the young people understand the "basic traits" of locusts,  Tobias Takavarasha adds. Six hundred cadets are currently receiving training in Kenya to help battle the locusts. Involving more people in tackling the locusts has become necessary as the invasion - which threatens food security - has spread from Kenya to South Sudan, where roughly half the population already faces hunger after years of civil war. Experts, however, say efforts on the ground are not enough and that the main effective way of controlling the swarms is aerial pesticide spraying. The UN and local authorities have asked for more aircrafts and pesticides, as well as an increase in funds. The number of overall locusts could grow up to 500 times by June, when drier weather begins, experts warn. Until then, the fear is that more rains in the coming weeks will bring fresh vegetation to feed a new generation of the voracious insects. Find out more about AP Archive: https://ift.tt/1CUvJt1 Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://ift.tt/2mlr9BZ Google+: https://plus.google.com/b/102011028589719587178/+APArchive​ Tumblr: https://aparchives.tumblr.com/​​ Instagram: https://ift.tt/2G5Qog8 You can license this story through AP Archive: https://ift.tt/2v1BQ1T
via YouTube https://youtu.be/K_WglYk8WXM