ADDIS ABABA, May 29 (Xinhua) -- The Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock said Tuesday that the fall armyworm has been spotted in over 87,000 hectares of maize across the country.

Tewabe Chane, communication expert at the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, told Xinhua that out of the total 353,000 hectare of maize production currently under harvest in Ethiopia, the fall armyworm has stretched its spread into 87,000 hectares.

The pest, which was first spotted in Ethiopia in late February last year, has currently stretched its presence into eight maize harvesting regions of the east African country, according to the ministry.

More than 30,000 hectares, of the total 87,000 hectares where the fall armyworm was spotted, has been saved by applying both traditional methods and modern ones, which use chemical protection approaches, he said.

According to Chane, the remaining close to 57,000 hectares still require proper treatment so as to halt the impact of the pest.

Maize is a major source of livelihood for Ethiopian farmers, both as a source of food as well as a source of income.

The ministry has previously announced that, even though more than 80 varieties of cereals and other plants are vulnerable to the fall armyworm, the pest has not been so far spotted in any other cereals other than maize in the east African country.

Fall armyworm, the larva of night-flying moth, is a pest indigenous to the Americas. It was first detected in Africa in 2016. Reports say that 51 out of 54 African countries have now been affected.?