Armyworm outbreak spreads across Malawi, threatens maize crop

Reuters
Agricultural officials spray maize plants affected by armyworms in Keembe district, Zambia, January 6, 2017. REUTERS/Jean Mandela

LILONGWE (Reuters) - An infestation of armyworms, a pest that has hit maize fields in southern Africa, has spread across the length and width of Malawi, a senior government official said on Tuesday. "The armyworms have now spread affecting all the 28 districts (and) threatening the crop for this year ...we are prepared and we will put it under control," Erica Maganga, principal secretary in the ministry of agriculture, told Reuters. (Reporting by Mabvuto Banda; editing by Ed Stoddard and Jason Neely)