The Head of the National Committee for Locust Control, Salah Mubarak, confirmed that they received a promise from the Government of National Unity to provide them with emergency financial support to eliminate the pest that has ravaged several agricultural areas in the country.
Mubarak stated in a press statement on Friday that their teams have controlled locusts by 60% to 65% in the affected cities despite the lack of resources, especially in Tazerbo, Sabha, Samnou and Bani Walid.
Mubarak pointed out that the Locust Control Committee has not received any support for a year, stressing that they need about 40 to 50 million to provide the shortages of spraying machines, four-wheel drive vehicles, pesticides, operating expenses and field equipment.
The Head of the National Center for Guidance and Media at the Ministry of Agriculture, Hussein Bashir, confirmed that the current capabilities are not sufficient to combat the locusts that are spreading in various regions, adding that the Ministry of Agriculture holds periodic meetings to address these pests.
Bashir reported that more than 800 hectares were treated in the Tazerbo area, and this pest was eliminated in the Teninay and Bani Walid areas, stressing the formation of emergency teams and committees in every municipality in different parts of the country.
Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah had directed during an expanded meeting on Wednesday in Tripoli with the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Mohammed Al-Turki, the head of the National Committee for Locust Control, and some relevant authorities, to provide the necessary support to the National Committee for Locust Control, stressing the need to unify efforts between the agencies affiliated with the Ministry of Agriculture to combat pests that agricultural lands and livestock are exposed to.
