The Minister of Agriculture Vincent Ssempijja has said that the government of Uganda has set 4.5 billion shillings to contain the Army Worm which has destroyed over 130,000 hectares of maize this year.
“The destructive stage of the pest is the caterpillar and it can be identified in its inverted Y mark and feeds aggressively on most parts of the plant leaves, stems, maize cobs and tassels. Symptoms of damage include leaf perforation, defoliation, perforated cobs and damaged grains,” the minister said.
He disclosed that the National Agricultural Organization (NARO) in conjunction with his ministry are monitoring any other possible outbreak with the aim of getting better details about the pest, and how to contain its advance.
The Minister also advised farmers to use a pesticide combination to fight army worm as the ministry explores more sustainable management measures.
According to the Minister, Lambda-cyhalothrin, Thiamethoxam and Rocket can temporarily contain the worm that has now hit 54 districts across the country.
The Fall of Army Worm was first the detected in the three districts of Kayunga, Kasese and Bukedea between May and July 2016, however, it has now been confirmed in the 54 districts and continues to spread at a very high rate.
Scientists indicate that as a result of climate change Uganda experiences outbreaks of pests and new crop diseases such as army worm, which normally occur during the transition from dry to rainy season.
Meanwhile, other countries that have also been hit by the Army Worm include Nigeria, Kenya and Zimbabwe.
