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The 2020–2021 desert locust upsurge

How anticipatory action prevented a full blown humanitarian crisis









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    Booklet
    Desert locust upsurge
    Progress report on the response in the Greater Horn of Africa and Yemen, May–August 2021
    2021
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    The fight against desert locust continues in the Greater Horn of Africa and Yemen, now raging for 20 months – since January 2020. Collective efforts from governments, FAO and partners are proving extremely effective in controlling this upsurge, which is the worst to hit the region in 70 years. Thanks to generous contributions from 29 partners, in addition to FAO’s own resources, close to USD 220 million have been mobilized towards FAO’s desert locust appeal for the Greater Horn of Africa and Yemen as of the end of August 2021. This represents 95 percent of the resources needed to continue the operation until the first quarter of 2022.
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    Booklet
    Desert locust upsurge
    Progress report on the response in the Greater Horn of Africa and Yemen, September–December 2021
    2022
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    This sixth and final progress report details FAO’s work to mitigate the effects of the desert locust upsurge – an unprecedented threat to food security and livelihoods – across the Greater Horn of Africa and Yemen between September and December 2021, while outlining the outcomes of the response in all of 2021. Overall, resource partners contributed USD 230.5 million towards FAO’s desert locust crisis appeal for the Greater Horn of Africa and Yemen between January 2020 and December 2021. The fully funded appeal allowed ground and aerial operations to treat nearly 2.3 million ha of desert locust-infested land in the targeted countries during this period. These efforts averted 4.5 million tonnes of crop losses, saved 900 million litres of milk production, and secured food for 41.5 million people. The commercial value of the cereal and milk losses averted through the response is estimated at USD 1.77 billion. By the end of 2021, FAO had completed the delivery of livelihood packages reaching over 305 000 households, providing them with the means to meet their immediate needs and to restore their productive capacity. Given the combination of human intervention and changing weather conditions, which were unfavourable to breeding, there were positive signs that desert locust populations were declining by the end of the year. While a few hotspots requiring continued surveillance remain, the upsurge is finally coming to an end.
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    Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet
    Real-time evaluation of FAO's response to the desert locust upsurge 2020–2021: Phase II
    Executive summary
    2021
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    A devastating desert locust upsurge has spread across parts of the Near East, the Greater Horn of Africa and South West Asia in 2020–2021, posing risks to livelihoods and food security in the region. FAO's intervention has been to curb the spread of desert locust, safeguarding livelihoods and providing recovery, and coordinating and preparing the rapid surge support. This report showcases the second phase of the real-time evaluation, in which the following issues have been investigated: i) country-level results from case studies; ii) management and operational processes; and iii) extent to which lessons from countries and regions are transferred to other contexts. Six priority areas emerged from this process: i) country-level training and capacity development; ii) national locust control and architecture; iii) procurement; iv) pesticide management; v) livelihoods support; and vi) innovation and learning.

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