Desert Locusts: Situation Under Control in Morocco
Is Morocco prepared to face a locust invasion? While the situation remains under control and poses no immediate concern, a series of preventive and responsive measures have been implemented, according to a statement from the Ministry of the Interior. Among these is the reactivation of command centers in all relevant provinces, aimed at monitoring developments and taking necessary action.
Intervention teams have been mobilized to carry out monitoring, detection, and anti-locust operations. In addition to technical equipment and insecticides, logistical resources, including aerial support, have been made available to them. The Ministry confirms that ample stocks of insecticides are on hand to deal with any emergency.
The intervention teams have also taken various necessary precautions to protect ecosystems, preserve biodiversity in natural environments, and safeguard water, plant, and animal resources. All concerned services and departments will remain mobilized to reinforce operations related to monitoring, surveillance, and detection, especially in known natural gathering zones for locusts. The objective is to take all appropriate measures to limit the spread and ensure eradication.
As a result, levels of vigilance, mobilization, and alert have been raised, particularly in light of developments regarding the spread of desert locusts in neighboring countries, especially in the African Sahel and Northwest Africa, with the potential northward movement of some swarms. Swarms have recently been observed—though in limited numbers and restricted areas—in some southeastern regions of the Kingdom.
As early as January, the FAO had already flagged the presence of desert locusts in Morocco. In its desert locust bulletin providing forecasts through mid-April 2025, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization urged caution:
“Groups will persist in southern Algeria, southern and central Libya, and parts of northwestern Niger, northeastern Mali, and northern Chad. As temperatures rise in the Sahara, locust numbers will increase with a spring breeding generation forming groups and bands. Small-scale breeding is expected in Morocco. Control operations will be necessary,” the bulletin notes.
F.Z.T
