Parliament has summoned Agriculture Minister to appear before the House tomorrow to answer an urgent question on what is being done to deal with fall armyworm invasion of farms.

Dr Akoto Owusu Afriyie was scheduled to appear before the House on Tuesday but Majority Leader Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu told MPs he is out of the country.

His invitation follows Joy News’ checks reveal despite repeated assurances by government that the fall armyworm invasion is under control, the pests continue to attack farm fields in various parts of the country.

Currently, an estimated 20,000 hectares of farm fields have been infected, up from only about 1,400 hectares as at April this year. Farmers have made huge losses as a result of this. 

The country is once again suffering from an attack by fall armyworms which are still permeating through farm yields in various parts of the country.

In April 2017, about 1,400 hectares were attacked by the fall armyworms.

Related: Armyworm invasion spreads to 20,000 hectares but Ministry says it's under control

The Agriculture Minister, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto had said then that “it is under control, we’ve seen them spraying and by the end of the week, all the farms affected would have been sprayed and that will be the end of it.”

But by the end of May 2017, an estimated 18,200 hectares of maize farm had been affected by the worms.

The Technical Advisor at the Ministry of Food and Agriculture has assured that although hectares of farm yields have been affected by the invasion the infestation is under control.

“We are managing the situation and we are on top of the issue” Kwesi Korboe stated.

Speaking to Joy News' Joseph Gakpo he said there is no need for panic.

But Member of Parliament for Mion Constituency has filed an urgent question seeking answers on what government is doing "to tackle the outbreak of fall armyworms which are destroying large hectares of farmlands in most parts of the country."

Mohammed Abdul Aziz tells Joy News farmers are struggling as a result of the invasion, hence the question. 

He said, farmers, especially peasant farmer who might have gone for a loan to grow an acre or two of crops only for the armyworms to attack and ravage their farms have nowhere to turn to. 

"That is why I wanted the Minister to tell us what immediate steps they are putting in place to deal with the situation.