Outbreak of Army Worms contained!

Agriculture Minister Dora Siliya

Agriculture Minister Dora Siliya says the army worm pest that invaded maize fields in most parts of the country has been contained, but not completely eradicated.

Ms Siliya has told parliament in a ministerial statement that government will therefore continue with surveillance programs up to the harvest time.

She has urged farmers to continue scouting their fields for the pest and spraying until after harvest time as the worm may even attack maize crops.

Ms Siliya told the house that as at 16^th February,2017, a total of 234,147 farmers and a total area of 191,930 hectares of land had been affected by the outbreak of the army worm in the country.

And Ms Siliya says the survey on the invasion of fields by the Red Locust by the International Red Locust Control Organisation for Eastern and Southern Africa has revealed that a totalm of 82,000 hectares has been affected by the Red Locust.

She says to date only 2,000 hectares of farmers fields especially maize has been affected by the African migratory locust in Namwala and Itezhi tezhi including the neighboring areas.