Huge locust swarms threaten South Sudan with famine

Locusts have crossed the border of South Sudan and spread to the most fertile part of the country, TASS reports.

According to the country's government, the insects entered Uganda, with most of them settled in the southern part of the Magwi district.

A representative of the regional office of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Meshack Malo noted that locusts appeared following a period of extreme weather, including devastating floods that have further threatened the food supply. Experts are warning that the primary March-to-May cropping season is now at risk.

Locusts have already spread to large regions of the Horn of Africa and East Africa. According to estimates by FAO experts, up to 25 million people in the area are at risk of food shortages due to the insect invasion.