Beyond food insecurity: the risk of desert locust disasters to human security

Desert locust disasters pose existential threat to lives and livelihoods. Although risks from desert locust disasters go beyond food insecurity, there is limited empirical evidence on effects of the pest to other human security dimensions. This study sought to assess desert locust disaster risk to human security in Kenya. The study used a mixed methods approach through ex-post facto evaluation and cross-sectional survey designs, to retrospectively assess desert locust disaster risk using eyewitness accounts from different clusters of respondents. The target population was desert locust affected persons. Multi-stage sampling approach using stratified, purposive and systematic random sampling techniques was used to target a sample size of 900 respondents drawn from 30 counties that were affected by desert locusts. Structured questionnaires and focus group discussions (FGD) were used to collect quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative data was analysed through descriptive and inferential statistics using frequencies, percentages and ordinal logistic regression. Qualitative data was analysed using thematic analysis and incorporated in the discussion. The findings revealed that food insecurity due to desert locust disasters contributed 27% of the overall human security risk while health and economic insecurity contributed 19% each. In addition, the results showed that personal and environmental insecurity due to desert locust disasters contributed 18% and 17% to the overall human security risk, respectively. The study shows that while food and economic insecurity due to desert locust disasters contributed 46% of the overall human security risk; 54% of the risk was associated with other human security dimensions. As such, the study notes that these indirect risks could be ignored despite having higher threat to human security. The study concludes that persistence of desert locust invasion, or an increase in the pest's population following in-country breeding or re-invasion, would escalate the threat to food, economic, health, personal and environmental security, and consequently worsen the overall human security risk. The study therefore recommends development of a comprehensive desert locust disaster risk management strategy that seeks to broaden countermeasures beyond food insecurity.