THT: Residents of Bodale village are now engaged in the work of fighting swarms of locusts that are destroying grazing fields as well as yet to be harvested farm produce.
This is according to traditional leader of Bodale community in Daresalaam district of maroodi-jeeh region of Somaliland Chief Aqil Mustafa Adan Egal during a telephone interview with www.somalilandsun.com and The Horn Tribune newspaper.
Describing the new menace in his area the Aqil said “They buzz loudly as they decimate everything in their path”
Bodale village is about 125km north of the capital Hargeisa is mainly home a large number of agro-pastoralists whose livelihoods are therefore dependent on agricultural produce and to a lesser scale livestock trade.
Stating that the efforts of residents has failed to chase away the locusts thence continued destruction of farmlands and grazing fields the traditional said that unless urgent measures are undertaken by the central government and other stakeholders then residents of Bodale village shall be turned to internal displaced persons.
Residents of Bodale are not alone as thousands of people, their farmlands and livestock’s are faced with a locust’s induced soon to be hunger in various parts of Somaliland.
Support towards mitigating this problem that has engulfed the entire horn and east Africa regions has been forthcoming from the Somaliland ministry of agriculture and partner international organizations through use of biopesticides that is sprayed.
By:Yusuf M. Hassan