Locals said the swarm had already covered a radius of 2-5 km by Sunday evening.
Other confirmed areas of the invasion are in Amudat and neighboring areas. The desert locust has invaded parts of Amudat in Northern Uganda. Swarms of locusts – billions in total – have spread to eight countries in east Africa, after they crossed the Red Sea from Yemen at the end of last year. The insects can travel roughly 90 miles a day and eat their own body weight in crops. The UN has warned the locust swarms could increase 500 times by June, posing a major threat to the region.
Uganda state Minister for Karamoja Affairs Moses Kizige confirmed the reports.
It’s believed on Sunday , the said locusts were seen from Kalita to Amudat in Karamoja region.
“Crop protection officials instructed to monitor the ground have established positive sightings of the locusts that were first reported to have arrived ” he said in a statement.
Uganda is ready to fight the insects that can destroy crops in a short period of time. , The Minister said.