By Boureima Hama
Niamey - Locusts have devastated huge swathes of Africa this year, but in Niger the insect that fell from the sky is a delicacy, best eaten fried and dusted with spices.
"It's delicious, it's crunchy," Zakari, a young Koranic scholar squatting in a makeshift shelter exclaimed, as he tucked into a couple of the insects, whose voracious appetites are responsible for wiping out crops across the extremely poor west African country.
He was less happy about the price, having forked over 50 CFA francs (about 60 cents) for his 'meal'.
'Eating locusts, that's not a sign of famine, that's like eating caviar' "That's expensive, it shouldn't be that way after the invasion" of the locusts, he complained.
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Around two-thirds of Niger is desert, with the rest parched from a four-year drought.
The millions-strong locusts plague only made things worse - hitting 200 000 hectares of fertile land, according to the Burkina Faso-based Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS).
Niger, a country of about 10 million people, faces a cereal shortage of 250 000 tons this year alone because of the locust invasion - a problem mirrored in many other states in the Sahel.
The swirring brown insect is also full of nourishment, with one major caveat.
Locusts "are very rich in protein, if they haven't been exposed to pesticides" Yahaya Garba, a technician who oversees the protection of plants, explained.
Fields around Niger have been sprayed with tons of liquid pesticide to kill off the locusts, but beware the unaware and unlucky soul who chomps down on a contaminated locust.
"We've recorded a certain number of cases of stomach troubles, but it is difficult to prove whether they are connected to the locusts," Jamir Aissatou, a nurse in the Daizaibon quarter of the capital Niamey said.
To guard against poisoning, the health ministry runs public service ads on the radio each time a spraying is carried out, though it is impossible to tell whether one of the fried locusts has gotten a dose of the toxin.
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