Desert locust, COVID-19 pushing IGAD "to be more adaptable"

An agricultural expert sprays locusts in Mandera County after they invaded farms in the county.

The series of crises that are affecting the East African region, mainly the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, desert locust invasion and flooding, are pushing the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) "to be more adaptable than ever before," the regional bloc said.

The statement was made by Executive Secretary of IGAD, Workneh Gebeyehu, who emphasized on Sunday that it is working to mitigate the adverse impacts of the healthcare as well as natural catastrophes in the region. "The succession of crises that afflicted our region through the COVID-19 pandemic, desert locust invasion and flooding has compelled us to be more adaptable than ever before," the Executive Secretary of IGAD, Workneh Gebeyehu, said."It has been a year of learning lessons, adapting to new ways of working and sharpening our simultaneous response to multiple threats," says the IGAD chief said.