FAO projects new jobs, food to vulnerable Iraqis

NaijaAgroNet:

An estimated 200,000 people from Mosul and across Iraq will be able to earn an income for the first time since the Islamic State of the Levant (ISIL) took parts of the area in 2014, thanks to a new FAO project that is restoring irrigation to 250 000 hectares of farmland, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Water will soon be flowing again through the canals that used to feed the once-fertile land some 30 km west of Mosul - Iraq's third largest city. Through the cash-for-work component of the project, FAO supports vulnerable families who need money for daily needs, including food and clothes, heating and transport. Many of them have not had paid employment for at least two years.

Participants are clearing the main canal of the northern Al Jazeera irrigation scheme of dirt, stones and debris, which will allow it to again feed small canals throughout the farming landscape.

FAO has also repaired the pumping station that feeds the canal system from Mosul Dam. And, for the first time, the agency is collaborating with a demining company to clear valuable farmland around the canals of undetonated ordinances, so farmers can plant crops and graze their livestock safely.

The project is already benefiting more than 3 000 people and is essential in getting farming activities in the area back underway.

"Farmers here haven't been able to grow vegetables for two years, since the irrigation canals were destroyed by armed groups who also contaminated the area with explosive devices," said Fadel El-Zubi, FAO Representative in Iraq. "Restoring people's ability to farm and trade in this area is not only important for food security but also for building prosperity and lasting peace in the country," he added.

Farmers in the region used to export vegetables and crops, including wheat and barley, to Syria and other countries, as well as supplying millions of people in Iraq. Now the country relies on fruit and vegetable imports.

"We collect debris in piles, and then merge every four piles into one big one for the excavator to pick up and remove from the canal," said 23-year-old Ahmed Mohammed, a father of three. "My brother has agricultural land and he'll benefit from the project as well. He used to grow wheat and barley in the winter and vegetables at other times. Now he can only grow vegetables when the rain falls."

The Al Jazeera irrigation scheme used to be an essential source of water for agriculture, livestock and domestic use. Some 100 smaller canals in the system were damaged, bridges were also blown up and the damaged pumping station was working under capacity, resulting in extreme water shortages.

As the Government of Iraq retakes control of more areas, a major effort is needed to rehabilitate critical infrastructure so that agricultural production can resume and livelihoods can be restored. FAO is seeking urgent funding of $89 million to strengthen its emergency response, including rehabilitating damaged agricultural infrastructure, supporting farmers to vaccinate and feed their livestock, and expanding cash-for-work and other income-generating activities.

FAO's work, in coordination with the Iraqi government, supports families returning to reclaimed areas, internally displaced families, host communities and refugees from Syria. The current project on the Al Jazeera irrigation scheme is funded through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). 

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Pix: Da Silva, Director-General, FAO

New farming methods sack workers in South Africa

NaijaAgroNet

The two new farming methods expected to revolutionize agriculture globally namely, Precision farming and Conservation, have succeeded in reducing jobs in South Africa’s agric sector, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Precision agriculture, experts say, taps into Global Positioning System (GPS) technology such thatfarmers could gather precise soil data to target exactly what inputs they need and where, while conservation involves trying to preserve South Africa’s erosion-prone soils.

Information reaching NaijaAgroNet said that samples are scooped from each hectare of a field, which is marked off into grids. The field map that emerges is colour-coded to denote exactly what needs to be applied in each square.

Analysts say this is at odds with policy proposals by the ruling African National Congress, which is seeking to limit farm size and create rural jobs. Technology, NaijaAgroNet gathered, is threatening to uproot such efforts.

South African farmer,Cobus van Coller, report said, usedthe technology to demonstrate “precision” farming for maximum profit. He scans the computer screen in the cab of his harvester. As the machine mows down corn stalks, numbers are updated on the screen, giving the precise moisture levels and yield in each section of his field. “This shows you if you’re going to make money,” he said in an interview with Reuters.

Van Coller also uses the technology for planting. “The GPS tells the computer where you are, and the computer tells the seeder which product to apply and how much.”

“We need to build up our soils again because they have been so degraded,” said Hendrik Smith of industry group GrainSouth Africa.

Cyriacus Nnaji/ GEE

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Modern ideas key for improved jobs and income

 NaijaAgroNet

Innovation, modern ideas have been identified as the only key to engender improved jobs and sustainable income as joblessness among young people is one of the most pressing social, economic and political challenges facing Africa in the 21st Century, NaijaAgroNet  reports.

African Development Bank's Special Envoy on Gender, Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi stated this in Abidjan at a consultative workshop organised by the Bank's Agriculture and Agro-Industry Department in collaboration with the Office of the Special Envoy on Gender and the Human Development Department.

The workshop NaijaAgroNet gathered, was designed to deliberate on a proposed innovative programme titled “Empowering Novel Agri-Business-Led Employment for Youth in African Agriculture (ENABLE Youth)”.  The programme once developed, will be implemented in 20 Regional Member Countries of the Bank under the coordination of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).

The programme will be designed to reinforce the roles of disenfranchised young African adults through a comprehensive outreach approach involving providing information, life-skills education (effective and functional job training), proven technologies and opportunities to at least 800,000 youth in 20 RMCs.

“Over 10 million young people in Africa are entering the job market each year. Despite the strong growth performance of African economies over the recent years, the continent has failed to create the number of jobs needed to absorb these young people,” said Fraser-Moleketi.

NaijaAgroNet reliably learnt that the meeting was attended by key players in the agricultural sector such as the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), and West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development

Cyriacus Nnaji/ ED,OPs

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