Nahud, September 22 (Darfur 24)
Farmers in West Kordofan State are warning of severe damage to millet crops after harmful pests swept across large areas of farmland, threatening the region’s main food source.
Millet, the staple crop for most families in the state, has been wiped out in many fields just as it began to form seeds, according to Al-Tayeb Suleiman, a farmer from the countryside of Nahud.
“The pests attacked the millet and destroyed it while it was still in the seed formation stage, before it matured and was ready for harvest,” Suleiman told Darfur24.
He noted that crops planted earlier, in late May and early June, have mostly escaped damage, as they ripened before the pests spread.
During a recent field visit to Nahud and Ghubaish, Darfur24 observed large swathes of millet destroyed at the start of the harvest season.
Farmers attribute the spread of these pests to the lack of timely access to pesticides and delays in planting millet, which allowed pests to wreak havoc during the crops’ early growth stages.
The crisis comes as West Kordofan continues to suffer displacement caused by ongoing fighting between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces. Farmers say the conflict is jeopardizing the agricultural season and reducing cultivated land, compounding the threat of food insecurity in the region.