Rodent Pest Management in East Africa
Rodents are by far the greatest vertebrate pest problem in East Africa. They are
responsible for substantial damage to food and cash crops, structures and industrial
and domestic property. More than 25 species of rodents have been recorded as
pests in agriculture, causing a wide range of damage and losses in cereals,
legumes, vegetables, root crops, cotton and sugarcane. Pest species occupy a
diversity of habitats, including cultivated fields, urban environments and domestic
areas. Other than being instrumental in crop damage, they are also reservoirs and
carriers of zoonotic diseases, which in some areas of East Africa have claimed many
victims.
The management of rodents has focused on conventional methods, mainly the
use of rodenticides as a symptomatic treatment approach. These methods are
supported by government, especially to contain outbreaks. However, conventional
control methods have remained largely ineffective.
An ecological approach for management of rodent outbreaks is not widely
practiced for lack of basic experimental data to substantiate its efficacy. Measures
that are practiced on a limited scale but have a wide scope for future management
of rodents in East Africa include various techniques of environmental manipulation
that specifically focus on altering the suitable habitats for rodents to reduce their
carrying capacity. Strategies for management of rodent populations in urban areas,
in post-harvest crop systems and in response to disease outbreaks are not well
developed. For the future, a more pragmatic approach is required, involving among
other things, better planning of urban housing schemes, sanitation and hygienic
measures; improved storage structures and practices; and ecologically focused
rodent management techniques.
Recent studies on rodent ecology in East Africa have enabled the development
of models to forecast outbreaks. These, when incorporated in development and
implementation of control activities, may assist in alleviating the damage and losses
due to rodents in the future.