Madagascar to get rid of locust plague by 2014

ANTANANARIVO, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Madagascar will get rid of the locust plague by 2014, the national center for locust control (CNA) said on Tuesday.

The director of CNA, John Rene Walson, told Xinhua that the Indian Ocean island country will conduct close cooperation with donors, who have already promised the center to support their action.

The center plans to treat 200,000 hectares to 250,000 hectares of infested areas, especially in the south for the next anti- locust campaign scheduled for October.

John said a meeting will be organized this week with financial and technique partners as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and others to discuss the plan.

The center had some problems because of insufficiency of budget in April, with the recrudescence of locust reported in the southern part of the country. The situation has been brought under control.

Minister of Agriculture Rolland Ravatomanga on Monday said the areas infested by locusts were increased in April because of the lack of budget allocated to the fight against the pestilence. Enditem

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