TONY KARUMBA/AFP via Getty Images "If the infestation were to spread to the entire country (beyond the counties currently affected), we estimate that a fall in agricultural output similar in scale to previous outbreaks would directly hit Kenyan GDP growth by 0.8 percentage points," Fórizs told CNBC. TONY KARUMBA/AFP via Getty Images "The UN warned of an unprecedented threat to food security in a part of the world where millions face hunger, and the FAO estimated that 70,000 hectares of crops in Kenya and around 30,000 hectares in Ethiopia had been infested. "Consequently, this has the potential to result in humanitarian disasters in a region all too familiar with these tragic events." Feisal Omar/REUTERS The other plague: Locusts are devouring crops in East Africa and the Middle East. Patrick Robert/Sygma/CORBIS/Sygma via Getty Images In terms of the macroeconomic implications, these post-harvest losses will place upward pressure on food crop prices and reduce exports.
Reuters Feisal Omar/REUTERS
Culture Club/Getty Images KAMPALA, Uganda – Weeks before the coronavirus spread through much of the world, parts of Africa were already threatened by another kind of plague, the biggest locust … A LOCUST plague, dubbed the worst in generations, is set to leave nearly five million innocent people starving as the horror disaster erupts in East Africa and the Horn of Africa… Ben Curtis/AP Photo "This would be painful, but given that the economy expanded by about 5.5% last year, even a worst-case scenario would be unlikely to trigger a recession.
Amir Cohen/REUTERS Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis.Locusts infesting East Africa could inflict significant economic damageA local resident tries to swot away a swarm of desert locusts in Mathiakani, Kitui County, Kenya, on Saturday, Jan. 25, 2020. The number of locusts in East Africa could expand 500 times by June, the UN's Food & Agriculture Organization said last month.Locusts swarm acros a highway at Lerata village, near Archers Post in Samburu county, approximately 300 kilomters (186 miles) north of Kenyan capital, Nairobi on January 22, 2020. Government spending has been a key driver behind growth across the region. Locusts 'plague' Middle East, Asia, Africa One swarm in Kenya was three times the size of New York City; the number of locusts could multiply 400-fold by June if not treated, according to reports. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations earlier this week called the situation "extremely alarming. Plague of locusts threatens East African economies as UN sounds alarm Published Thu, Feb 20 2020 9:09 AM EST Updated Fri, Feb 21 2020 3:02 AM EST Elliot Smith @ElliotSmithCNBC