UN General Assembly
1988

The scourges of drought and desertification are still a serious threat to the Sahelian region, of which Mauritania is a part. In October 1978 another disaster occurred. I am speaking of the pilgrim locust, which has great mobility and destroys everything in its paths crops, pastureland, date palms, and so forth. In order to deal with this scourge, which specialists agree will continue to afflict us for several years, various meetings of west African and Maghreb countries have been convened to co-ordinate the policies of the various States and to advocate common action. My country, which is particularly affected by this infestation, has combined its national efforts with the international efforts. I also thank here the friendly countries and the international organizations for the aid they have already supplied as well as for their sensibility to Mauritania's concerns.