About a tenth of Zimbabwe's maize crop is estimated to have been affected by an outbreak of fall armyworm that has hit at least seven countries in the region, including South Africa, the largest maize producer on the continent. Estimates from the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation suggest that about 10% of Zimbabwe's nearly 1.3million hectares of land under tillage were affected by the pest outbreak. Crops in Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia and Tanzania were also affected. The fall armyworm, which originates in Brazil, can destroy up to 70% of the crops it appears on. Zimbabwe was spared even worse effects thanks to an intensive drive costing millions of dollars to support agricultural activity this season by President Robert Mugabe's government, and an above-normal rainy season. This is rare good news for Zimbabwe's struggling economy, affected by high unemployment, a liquidity crunch and ominous signs of inflation on the rise. Peter Gambara, an agricultural economist, said Z...
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