2013 Madagascar locust plague

[5] News of the infestation went global the week before Passover, inspiring comparisons with the Biblical Plagues of Egypt, one of which was a swarm of locusts.

[4] On March 26, 2013, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations called for US$41 million of donations to fight the locusts.

[1] Rice is a staple crop in Madagascar, a nation where a large percentage of the population lives in famine conditions.

[1] According to the national Locust Control Centre, 100,000 out of 130,000 hectares (257,000 out of 321,000 acres) of vulnerable crop land had not been treated at the time of the FAO proposal.

[1][4] "Failure to respond now will lead to massive food aid requirements later on," said Dominique Burgeon, Director of the FAO Emergency and Rehabilitation Division.