Johannesburg - An outbreak of fall armyworms destroying
crops across Africa may cost the continent about $3 billion in lost corn output
in the coming year, according to an estimate by the Centre for Agricultural and
Biosciences International.
The alien pest, which is prevalent in the Americas,
attacks more than 80 different plant species, according to a joint statement
issued Friday by the Food and Agriculture Organisation, the International Maize
and Wheat Improvement Center, known as Cimmyt, and the Alliance for a Green
Revolution in Africa.
The caterpillars pose a “frightening risk” to food
security on the continent, said B.M. Prasanna, director of the Global Maize
Program at Cimmyt.
The group issued the statement following a conference on
the outbreak held this week in Nairobi and cited a “conservative” cost estimate
by CABI sanitary and phytosanitary coordinator Roger Day.
Read also: Counting the devastating cost of Fall Armyworm
Fall armyworms have already been reported in countries
across southern, west, east and central Africa.