Locust plague threatens food production in Madagascar: FAOListen /
Madagascar will need more than $22 million in emergency funding to fight a severe locust plague that is affecting food security, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reports.
While the money is needed by June, FAO says Madagascar requires more than $40 million to implement a three-year strategy to tackle the crop-devouring insects.
The agency reports that half the island nation has been infected by locusts which are threatening the production of rice, the country's main staple.
FAO says Madagascar already has extremely high rates of food insecurity and malnutrition, and nearly 60 per cent of the country's 22 million people could face worsening hunger.
Dianne Penn, United Nations.