POTENTIAL IMPACT OF DESERT LOCUST Emma Apo Ouma TO NUTRITION SECURITY IN SOMALIA WHAT IS THE CURRENT SITUATION?

•Triple threat of Desert Locust, Gu flooding and COVID-19, •April and June 2020, an estimated 2.7 million people across Somalia are expected to face Crisis and deteriorate to 3.5 million between July and September 2020 WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR NUTRITION SECURITY? CROP AND PASTURE DAMAGE Threat to current Gu season crop production and may also threaten pasture availability and crop cultivation across Somalia through the following 2020 Deyr (October-December A swarm can eat enough food in one day to feed 34 million people. FALLING LIVESTOCK PRICES •Livestock diseases •Poor livestock nutrition; increased price of livestock feed •Reduced quality of livestock products eg milk, meat LOSS OF LIVELIHOODS •Disruption of food systems; critical value chains have been affected e.g. livestock, cereals such as sorghum, maize •Loss of wage and employment opportunities e.g. labor in the fields, value chain actors •Increase in livelihood based coping strategy: eg selling last breeding animal, spent savings, begging, reduced expenditure on livestock and agriculture •Reduced spending on non-food needs health care, education FOOD CONSUMPTION AND DIETARY DIVERSITY •With poor harvests, there is likelihood of poor food consumption at hhd level •Depletion of food stocks •Food Prices have increased •A majority if households rely on markets for food: increased reliance on purchased and processed foods •Compromise the nutrition of the most vulnerable: children less than 5, PLW, elderly, adolesents •Increased rates of acute malnutrition ONGOING EFFORTS Household Level Screening and referral of acute malnutrition cases Targeting of the most vulnerable (UCT) Community level ▪Burying locusts, setting fires, and making noise to scare them off. Spraying of hectares; motorized, mounted sprayers, helicopters Surveys to identify breeding areas for spraying Protection of livelihoods; inputs, range cubes to supplement livestock resources, treatment Cash assistance LONG TERM RECOMMENDATIONS •Nutrition objectives are embedded in agriculture policies, and that agricultural interventions are integrated in multisectoral nutrition strategies. •It supports the creation of an enabling environment and capacity development for successful field level interventions to be taken to scale. •Improve processing, storage and preservation •Nutrition information, communication and education •Response strategy: management of DL at community level, cushions livelihoods, diversified livelihoods and addresses immediate food needs WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU LOCUSTS, MAKE FRIED LOCUSTS

Procedure: Ingredients: 1. Pour your lemon juice in a large Locust meat bowl and add your pepper. Stir Cooking oil well and add your locust meat. 1tbsp. cayenne Make sure the juice covers the pepper meat. Leave it to marinate ½ cup lemon properly for one hour juice 2. Sauté your onions, and garlic 4 garlic cloves for one minute and remove the (crushed) pieces from the oil Diced onion 3. Sauté your locust meat in the oil 1 lemon until it turns crispy Salt 4.Remove your meat and squeeze your lemon juice and enjoy