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Showing posts with label Africa. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Africa. Show all posts

Tuesday, February 27, 2018

Africa to witness reduced harvests, courtesy of dry weather conditions


The lack of adequate rains and rise in hot temperatures has triggered water stress and adversely affecting crop development in several areas in Africa, reports NaijaAgroNet.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations, this weather conditions is very high in the Southern Africa.

The latest Special Alert issued by FAO's Global Information and Early Warning System (GIEWS), indicated that while cereal stocks in the region are ample, the spell of dry weather and erratic rains earlier in the season signals multiple risks to agricultural yields and may aggravate the impact of the Fall Armyworm pest.

Reduced harvests are "foreseen to intensify food insecurity in 2018, increasing the number of people in need of assistance," part of the alert noted.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that maize production hit a record level in 2017 in the Southern Africa subregion, a welcome development after sharp output declines in the previous year caused by an unusually strong El Niño.

Also, FAO said, Cereal production in the sub-region in 2018 is foreseen to fall due to erratic rains, along with an intense dry period in January.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that the alert comes as FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva, spoke in Khartoum, emphasizing the importance of boosting the resilience of communities, particularly in Africa - in making sure that "Zero Hunger is possible".


Isaac Oyimah/GEE

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Monday, January 1, 2018

Canada responds to multiple food crises in sub-Saharan Africa with $19.8m

The Canadian government has responded to multiple food crises in the sub-Saharan Africa, including Nigeria, with the sum of $19.8 million, about N70,967,741,935.48 billion, reports NaijaAgroNet.

This, Canada said, would assist in addressing the critical needs of millions of vulnerable people across sub-Saharan Africa, including women and children suffering from a lack of access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their daily needs —the result of severe drought and conflict.

Proclaiming this via the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of International Development and La Francophonie, Ambassador Marc-André Blanchard, Permanent Representative of Canada to the United Nations, the $19.8 million is additional funding to address extreme levels of food insecurity in Cameroon, Chad, Ethiopia, Niger, Nigeria, South Sudan and Uganda.

In these seven countries and neighbouring regions, Canada’s funding of experienced and trusted Canadian and international partners will respond to critical humanitarian needs. This includes the provision of basic necessities, such as emergency food, potable water, adequate sanitation, health care, shelter and protection services.

“Canada is pleased to provide critical humanitarian assistance to address the effects of drought and conflict in Sub-Saharan Africa and to ensure those requiring emergency assistance are reached. Today’s announcement will help save lives, alleviate suffering and bring relief to people who need urgent help,” Marc-André Blanchard said.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that in March 2017, Canada voted close to $120 million in humanitarian funding in response to severe food crises in Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen.

Also, between March 17 and June 30, 2017, Canadians generously donated over $21.3 million to registered Canadian charities in response to humanitarian crises, including an unprecedented famine, food insecurity and conflict-induced displacements affecting over 55 million people across Africa.


Uj. N. Dominic/ED, Ops

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Tuesday, November 21, 2017

UCLG Africa climate task force makes a debut

The 23rd Conference of the Parties (COP23) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) held in Bonn, Germany from November 6 -17 2017, ended with the debut of the United Cities and Local Governments of Africa (UCLG Africa), reports NaijaAgroNet.
This, NaijaAgroNet reports provided the framework for the launch of the UCLG Africa (www.AfriqueLocale.org/en) Climate Task Force and the presentation of its members to the political authorities and the general public.

The official launch of the UCLG Africa Climate Task Force was held in Bonn on Tuesday November 14, 2017 under the chairmanship of His Excellency Mr. Barnabé Dassigli, Minister of Decentralization and Local Governance of Benin, Chairman of the Specialized Technical Committee N° 8 of the African Union, in the presence of representatives of the first institutions that volunteered to join the Task Force. 

These were notably:
•             The African Development Bank (AfDB), represented for this purpose by Ms. Louise Helen BROWN, Climate Change Task Manager, Coordinator of the AfDB Fund for Climate Change in Africa;
•             The West African Development Bank (BOAD), represented by Mr. Bio Sawe, Director of the  Environment and Climate Finance;
•             The Local Government Capital Investment Fund of Morocco (FEC);
•             The Special Fund for Equipment and Inter-Municipal Intervention of Cameroon (FEICOM), represented by Mr. Côme Awoumou, Deputy Director of Cooperation and Partnership;
•             OECD, represented by Ms Marie Trémolières, Senior Policy Analyst at the Sahel and West Africa Club (SWAC) of OECD;
•             The Environment Agency for Territorial Development of the Presidency of the Republic of Benin, represented by Mr. Jean Claude Grisoni Niaki, expert in resource mobilization and structuring of projects for Climate Finance;
•             The 4C Agency of the Ministry of the Environment of Morocco, represented by its Director, Mr. Mohamed Nbou;
•             Cadi Ayyad University of Marrakech, represented by Professor Fatima Arib, Sustainable Development and Major Projects Task Manager at the Presidency of the University;
•             The National Associations of Local Governments in Africa, represented by Ms. Florence Radzilani, Mayor of the Municipality of the District of Vhembe (South Africa), Climate and Environmental Planning Officer at the South African Local Government Association (SALGA);
•             NGO ENERGIES 2050, represented by its CEO, Stéphane Pouffary.

Jean Pierre Elong Mbassi, Secretary General of UCLG Africa, stated the intention of the Task Force to bring together, within the same ecosystem, the various stakeholders working with climate issues. This is to enable them to support local governments in Africa in the implementation of NDCs and in the access to climate finance and most notably the Green Climate Fund. This is open to all those who wish to join it who can do so by applying to the General Secretariat of UCLG Africa.

On behalf of the African Ministers of Public Service, Urban Development, Local Governments and Decentralization, the Hon. Minister Barnabé Dassigli of Benin, Chairman of the Specialized Technical Committee N° 8 of the African Union, commended UCLG Africa for its wonderful initiative, supported by STC N° 8. He expressed confidence that the UCLG Africa's Climate Task Force would have a significant impact on the engagement of African local governments in the implementation of the Paris Agreement and pointed out that within the same support platform for local governments, development banks, institutions specializing in the financing of local governments, technical support agencies for local governments, academic and research institutions, associations of local governments and NGOs active in the field of climate, was a commitment to the synergy of the different stakeholders around the Climate Agenda. Hon. Minister Dassigli confirmed that the African Union's STC N° 8 also supports requests made by local and regional elected officials during the preparatory Forum for COP 22 held in Cotonou in September 2016, especially with regard to the urgency of establishing a capacity building and technical assistance program for local governments to enable them to develop climate plans and prepare eligible funding applications for the Green Climate Fund; as well as for the recognition of UCLG Africa as an "Implementing Partner" of the Green Climate Fund.

The role of territories was recognized as essential for the realization of NDCs (Nationally Determined Contributions). Local policy choices in terms of infrastructure, equipment and basic service delivery methods have made an impact on energy efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions. Priorities for elected officials include giving a climate perspective to the everyday actions they carry out. There is also a need to build their capacities to measure, report and verify the contribution of their actions and policies in the reduction of emissions and adaptation to the effects of climate change. This requirement for the Measurement, Reporting and Verification of climate actions (MRV) is one of the requirements of the Paris Agreement and one of the conditions to be met in order to access the Green Climate Fund. The National Associations of Local Governments will be required to advocate with the representatives of the NDC Partnership and the focal points of Green Climate Fund in their respective countries.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE  


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Friday, November 17, 2017

Unveiled: 3 key emerging trends for Africa

The 2017 version of Ecobank Research’s Fixed Income, Currency and Commodities (FICC) Guidebook, has identified tripod future for the African continent, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The Senior Public Relations Director at Ecobank group, Sherelle Folkes, disclosed in a press statement made available to NaijaAgroNet and listed these to include that the continent’s economy rebounding after a trying year, just as gas has been discovered as the next oil in West Africa, whilst the continent is evolving in Financial Technology (FinTech) leadership.

NaijaAgroNet quoted Folkes as saying that expert knowledge and analysis on African markets for investors and businesses, was launched at AfricaFICC, indicated a positive outlook for the continent, with three key trends forecast to take hold during the next 12 months.

NaijaAgroNet reports that the first indicates an economic rebound in sub-Saharan Africa driven by a recovery in the region’s economic heavyweights, such as Nigeria and South Africa, and ongoing growth in the top performers, Ethiopia, Côte d’Ivoire and (more recently) Ghana.

Growth will be driven by a rise in oil production (notably in Ghana, Republic of Congo, Nigeria and Angola), strengthening infrastructure investment across West and East Africa, and improved weather conditions which bode well for crops.

Strengthening economic activity, plus a moderate improvement in oil and mineral prices, will help narrow the current account deficit, but pressure on SSA currencies will remain.

The second emerging trend points to West Africa’s gas sector becoming a hive of activity in 2018 from Senegal to Angola, with the development of gas pipelines, floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) platforms and major gas field projects.

Governments in the Gulf of Guinea and across West Africa have ramped up efforts to secure gas supply in order to boost domestic power generation and diversify their revenues away from crude oil.
Deregulating the gas market and allowing market-driven gas prices will be key to unlocking further gas infrastructure investment across the region.


The third trend suggests Fintech innovation in Africa picking up speed in 2018 buoyed by a new generation of Africans who are ‘digital natives’. The proliferation of tech hubs across Africa (notably in South Africa, Kenya, Rwanda, Nigeria, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire) will nurture the next wave of African start-ups and help connect them with investors.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE
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Germany backs renewable energy projects in Africa with RLSF

The German Development Bank also known as Kfw and the African Trade Insurance Agency (ATI) have on the side lines of the annual Africa Investment Exchange: Power and Renewables Meeting, unveiled a new instrument to support renewable energy projects in sub-Saharan Africa that targets small- and mid-scale up to 50 Milliwatt (MW) green power renewable energy projects, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The facility, NaijaAgroNet gathered, is designed to provide a viable solution to one of the biggest challenges facing independent power producers (IPPs) operating in Africa, specifically the requirement to provide project lenders with a liquidity guarantee. The German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) through KfW will provide funding of up to 32.9 million EUR to the facility, which aims to enable small-and mid-scale renewable energy projects in Africa to reach financial close by addressing liquidity requirements that lenders frequently require in order to fund such projects.

NaijaAgroNet reports that the launch of the new facility is happening at an opportune moment when emerging markets are seeing record investments in the renewable energy sector. The International Energy Agency (IEA) expects sub-Saharan Africa’s renewables capacity to grow by 73 per cent (24.4GW) over the period 2017-22. In addition, small-scale projects are seen as a potential solution to Africa’s energy deficit because they are easier to implement and can target energy requirements at source, but these projects find it difficult to access the type of guarantees needed to reach financial closure. The facility will kick in by providing immediate liquidity to keep the IPP afloat during periods of payment delays that are beyond the grace period provided in the power purchase agreement.

Günther Nooke, Personal Representative of the German Chancellor for Africa, BMZ, said “The Regional Liquidity Support Facility will address a key challenge in renewable energy project finance and de-risk private sector investments. We are pleased to provide the funding to this innovative instrument underlining Germany’s commitment to the objectives of the African Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI).”

The RLSF is designed to help independent power producers (IPPs) developing renewable energy projects in Africa to obtain the liquidity they need in the event that their off-taker (frequently a state owned entity) delays payment. The facility will provide immediate cash collateral supported by guarantees to a commercial bank that will in turn open a standby letter of credit to the benefit of the IPP. The amount provided will enable the IPP to operate and service the debt for up to 6 months. Furthermore, unlike most IPP letters of credit (which tend to be 12 month tenors) the facility is designed to be in place for multiple years.

Dr. Thomas Duve, KfW Director Southern Africa and Regional Funds, noted “We highly appreciate the opportunity to partner with ATI on this innovative instrument. The RLSF is a strongly market-driven concept, emphasizing KfW’s strategy to support and leverage the resources of local partners and the private sector.”

The facility, in combination with ATI’s traditional suite of political and trade credit risk insurance products (in particular ATI’s arbitration award default cover), means that ATI is able to cover the full range of political and financial risks facing investors on such projects.

Speaking at the launch, John Lentaigne, ATI’s Chief Underwriting Officer commented “We are delighted to be working with the German government, represented by KfW, on an initiative that directly targets one of the main bottlenecks preventing green power projects from being financed in Africa.”


Jef Vincent, Senior Advisor to ATI, who has overall responsibility for the initial implementation of the facility, added “Unlike some of the alternative solutions to the liquidity issue, ATI’s guarantee (as provided via the RLSF) will not require a counter-guarantee from the relevant Ministry of Finance, and as such we are confident this will be a very useful tool for those projects that we expect to support.”

Isaac Oyimah with agency report/GEE

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Monday, October 30, 2017

Africa, a hungry people and malnutrition battle

Can Maputo declaration save Africa from classification as a hungry people, malnourished region and scale up food security ambitions, asked REMMY NWEKE in this report.

Preamble:
The latest United Nations global report says 815 million are hungry people and ranked Africa second with 243m victims out of 1.216 billion population of the continent as at December 2016 by the World Bank. And the next phase is for the victims to delve into malnutrition.

NaijaAgroNet reports that this is in spite of Africa being ranked the world's second-largest and second-most-populous continent, spanning to about 30.3 million kilometres in landmass, including adjacent islands, covering some 6 per cent of earth's total surface area and 20.4 per cent of its total land area. Africa also ranks fifth among continents by Gross Domestic Product (GDP) worth $2,190 billion, according to the online open sourced encyclopedia, Wikipedia.

However, UN’s latest hunger and food security key numbers made available to NaijaAgroNet, saw Asia continent with 520 million, that is, over 100 per cent of African quota; whereas the top three continents in the hungriest people in the world included Latin America and the Caribbean with 42 million. Shared in percentage, NaijaAgroNet gathered showed that Asia has 11.7 per cent; Africa has 20 per cent with eastern Africa alone scored 33.9 per cent, while Latin America and the Caribbean got 6.6 per cent.

This was the first time that United Nations Children Education Fund (UNICEF) and World Health Organisation (WHO), joined the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and World Food Programme (WFP) in preparing ‘The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World’ report. This change reflects the harmonization of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) agenda's broader view on hunger and all forms of malnutrition.

Thus, NaijaAgroNet noted that the UN Decade of Action on Nutrition, established by the General Assembly, is lending focus to this effort by motivating governments to set goals and invest in measures to address the multiple dimensions of malnutrition, facing the world today. So, the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2017 was re-geared for the SDG era and includes enhanced metrics for quantifying and assessing hunger, including two indicators on food insecurity and six indicators on nutrition.

Economic sense of zero tolerance for food loss, waste:
Speaking at the sideline of the recently held 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly, the Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Mr. José Graziano da Silva, renewed calls with focus on tackling food loss and waste as a pathway to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2: Zero Hunger, declaring that "Zero tolerance for food loss and waste makes economic sense.”  Noting recent report which indicated that every $1 invested in food loss and food waste policies bring $14 in return, and stressed that "Investing in measures to prevent food loss and food waste also means making investments in pro-poor policies as it promotes sustainable food systems for a zero hunger world."
According to him, one-third of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted globally each year, pointing out that this loss and waste occur throughout the supply chain, from farm to fork, insisting that beyond food, it represents a total waste of labour, water, energy, land and other inputs, lamenting “If food loss and waste were a country, it would rank as the third highest national emitter of greenhouse gases.”
Graziano was joined by Gilbert Houngbo, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), David Beasley, Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP), Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment of the United Arab Emirates, Josefa Correia Sacko, Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture of the African Union as well as representatives of the governments of Germany, the Netherlands and Angola in calling for greater cooperation by governments, business, development partners, farmers groups and others to address the problem.
Food technologists develop tools to prevent loss, waste
Of late, NaijaAgroNet reported that food technologists at FAO revealed they have developed tools and methodologies for identifying losses, their causes and potential solutions along the entire food value chain, from production, storage and processing to distribution and consumption. Obviously reacting to the latest UN disclosure that some 815 million hungry people are in the world, the majority lives in rural areas of developing countries and are family farmers, pastoralists or fishers, these experts cited South-East Asia, for example, noting that fruit and vegetable producers found that around 20 per cent of tomatoes were damaged during transportation because of the way they were packed in bulk.
Confirming this, DG, FAO, Mr. José Graziano da Silva, said the initiatives will improve packaging practices, with participation of producers and other stakeholders, resulting in an impressive 90 per cent reduction of these losses, recalling that in 2013, FAO launched a global initiative on food loss and waste called Save Food.
The platform, NaijaAgroNet gathered, includes a network of over 500 partners from international organizations, the private sector, civil society and others with the objective of promoting awareness and the exchange of ideas and best practices on preventing food waste and loss.
FAO also said, it has produced data and information so that decision-makers could better understand where and how food losses and waste occur, and the agency is working with partners to measure the impact of food loss and waste reductions on food security and nutrition.
A nation undermining her children’s development:
Then long after, United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) exposed Nigerian government over alleged putting her children at risk of under-development, both physically and mentally, because critical national policies were not adequately provided to entrench foundation for their growth. Maintaining that brain grows rapidly; thus providing good nutrition, loving care and appropriately play and provide solid foundations for a child’s learning could eventually contribution to economic and social growth.
In its Early Moments Matter for Every Child, UNICEF outlined three policies that could give parents the time and resources needed to support their young children’s healthy development, including “two years of free pre-primary education; six months of paid maternity leave; and four weeks of paid paternity leave.” Decrying that Nigeria currently has just three months of paid maternity leave, only one year of free pre-primary education and no paternity leave at all, with only about one in every 10 pre-primary children are enrolled in early education activities.
Also, NaijaAgroNet reports that according to a medical journal, The Lancet, Nigeria ranks among the 10 countries with the largest number of children at risk of poor development. Whereas the 2016 national survey indicated that 31 per cent of children under the age of five were moderately or severely underweight in Nigeria. Insisting, “Stunting as a result of malnutrition can cause irreversible physical and mental retardation. Though, the exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of a baby’s life has clearly been shown to improve physical and mental development, the same survey revealed that only 24 per cent of Nigerian children are exclusively breastfed for six months. Paid maternity leave will help to increase the number of children exclusively breastfed.
As said by Mohamed Fall, the UNICEF Representative in Nigeria, “What we call Early Childhood Development, includes physical and cognitive support, and has a strategic place in the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. Investing in Early Childhood Development including services to support caregivers, quality pre-primary education and good nutrition will help to secure healthy and productive future generations in Nigeria.”

Yes, early childhood development matters:
In addition, he said that by supporting exclusive breastfeeding, having Early Childhood Development policies in place will help to improve the overall health and nutrition of a child, enable parents and caregivers to be more responsive to children’s needs and provide greater safety and security. It will also provide improved early learning.

He asserted that ‘With 90 per cent of a child’s brain development occurring before the age of five, early childhood experiences can have a profound impact on a child’s development and can ultimately impact a country’s growth.”
The import of the foregoing is that if Nigeria could undermine the growth of her younger generation and due to lack of requisite policies as claimed by UNICEF, why should Africa not have a set of hungry people, even to the tune of 243m. This is because lots of people and Africans precisely look up to Nigeria as a ‘big brother’ who should show leadership.

Maputo declaration, nutrition and food security:
Of course, showing leadership is not all political, but on the practical terms, may be by domesticating the African Union 2003 Maputo Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security (Assembly/AU/Decl. 7(II)), which stressed that 10 per cent of national budget allocation should go to agriculture development, invariably to the letter in the next five years, that is till 2008.
In September 2016, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) declared that the countries which paid intense attention to farmers and food production in the past ten years achieved the most successful development in African history.
According to AGRA President, Agnes Kalibata, “The countries that made the biggest investments in agriculture were rewarded with sizeable jumps in both farm productivity and overall economic performance,” and noted that agriculture had its biggest impact in countries that embraced the African Union’s Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Program (CAADP), which called for African governments to allocate 10 per cent of national budgets to agriculture with a view to gain six percent annual growth in the sector.
AGRA report also noted that even if they didn’t hit the 10 per cent targets, early adopters of the CAADP have seen agricultural productivity rise by 5.9 to 6.7 per cent per year, thereby, boosting a 4.3 per cent average annual increase in overall Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and listed CAADP adopters to include Nigeria, Benin, Burundi, Cape Verde, Ethiopia, Gambia, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Rwanda, Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Togo and attributed their posting of higher agriculture productivity and stronger GDP growth with declines in malnutrition compared to countries that have not adopted the initiative.
Submission:
Thus, the report urged African leaders and governments for higher investment in agricultural research in the wake of climate change and increased support for youths to take up farming.
Its unthinkable that a continent with the landmass that Africa has should be graded among the hungriest people on earth. Efforts should be made to reverse trend. If technology development could be seen as slow and knowhow, do we need also tally behind on cultivating our natural resources, agriculture inclusive.

Therefore, this is a clarion call on the Nigerian government to show leadership, after all, an adage says ‘charity begins at home’ and to whom much is given, much is expected, especially on the UNICEF report, otherwise the continent’s future leaders may be stunted children which will boomerang on respective member nations.
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Pix: Moussa Faki, AUC chairperson and Audu Ogbe, Nigerian Minister of Agriculture

Friday, October 20, 2017

AfDB cultivates savannah Africa in eight countries

The President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina, has said that the savannahs of Africa cover a mind-boggling 600 million hectares, of which 400 million hectares are cultivable, reports NaijaAgroNet.

But just 10% of this is cultivated, a mere 40 million hectares, Adesina said Wednesday, while speaking at a session titled “Transformation of the African Savannah Initiative” at the 2017 World Food Prize-Borlaug Dialogue.

According to the AfDB President, so huge is the potential of African savannahs that the World Bank called the Guinea savanna zone “one of the major underutilised resources in Africa.”

He noted that Africa’s savannahs were better than the savannahs of Brazil, a country notable for turning its savannahs into agricultural wealth, saying Africa’s soils were not acidic and therefore did not need liming which had to be done at massive scales in Brazil.

“The initiative will start by bringing approximately two million hectares of savannah in eight African countries — Ghana, Guinea, Democratic Republic of Congo, Central African Republic, Uganda, Kenya, Zambia, and Mozambique under the cultivation of maize, soybean, and livestock production in optimum conditions,” he said.


The goal of which, Adesina informed NaijaAgroNet, is to double production in those eight countries.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE
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Thursday, September 21, 2017

Africa ranks second in global hungry people with 243m victims

The African continent has been ranked second in the number of hungry people in the world which the United Nations (UN) said was 815 million, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The UN in its latest hunger and food security key numbers made available to NaijaAgroNet, which has overall number at 815 million, saw Asia continent with 520 million, over 100 per cent of African quota.

Also, NaijaAgroNet gathered that in the top three continents in the hungriest people in the world included Latin America and the Caribbean with 42 million.

The global hungry population as shared in percentage, NaijaAgroNet gathered showed that Asia has 11.7 per cent; Africa has 20 per cent with eastern Africa lone scoring 33.9 per cent, while Latin America and the Caribbean got 6.6 per cent.

NaijaAgroNet further gathered this was the first time that UNICEF and WHO join FAO, IFAD and WFP in preparing The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report. This change reflects the SDG agenda's broader view on hunger and all forms of malnutrition.

The UN Decade of Action on Nutrition, established by the General Assembly, is lending focus to this effort by motivating governments to set goals and invest in measures to address the multiple dimensions of malnutrition.

The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2017 has been re-geared for the SDG era and includes enhanced metrics for quantifying and assessing hunger, including two indicators on food insecurity and six indicators on nutrition.

Remmy Nweke/ED, Ops 
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Wednesday, July 19, 2017

Green energy offerings comes to Africa

The solar pioneer, Gigawatt Global has extended its services to Africa with provision of solar street lights in Bujumbura, Burundi, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The Chief Executive Officer, Gigawatt Global , Yosef I. Abramowitz, made this disclosure, saying that by expanding investments from commercial scale projects to include off-grid additionally, the company has positively impacted lives of millions of people in Burundi and throughout Africa.

Downtown Bujumbura, he said, just got a little brighter, thanks to an innovative partnership between Mayor Freddy Mbonimpa and Gigawatt Global, a founding member of United States Power Africa's Beyond the Grid programme.

Abramowitz also said that this week solar-powered ‘light islands’ began appearing in the heavily-trafficked central bus station and nearby marketplace, extending commercial hours and personal safety. 

“The city of Bujumbura is very pleased to be working with Gigawatt Global on this important solar street lighting project,” said Mayor Freddy Mbonimpa. “This project will enhance security as well as provide opportunities for economic development to the citizens of Bujumbura. It is the hope and wish of all involved that this project can spread throughout the city, as well as expand to other cities in Burundi within the near future.”

Gigawatt Global is now in discussions to scale the solar-powered ‘light islands’ program throughout the city and in other major Burundian towns.

“We are grateful and pleased to work with the city of Bujumbura, and the Honorable Mayor Freddy Mbonimpa to realise this important first step of the solar street lighting project,” said Michael Fichtenberg, Managing Director of Gigawatt Global Burundi.

“We intend to expand throughout the capital and to other locations as part of our larger program of green electrification in Burundi, with 40 'light islands' planned in the first phase of the program,” Fichtenberg continued.

“Every country in which we develop commercial scale solar fields will receive additional benefits like these ‘light islands’ and rural electrification with mini-grids.”


Gigawatt Global, which provides 100 per cent financing for its projects, pioneered commercial scale solar power plants in sub-Sahara Africa, launching the first one in Rwanda in 2014, which is currently supplying 6 per cent of the country's generation capacity. Gigawatt Global will complete a 7.5 Mw solar field in the Gitega region of Burundi in the next six months, which will supply 15% of the East African country's generation capacity. Similar projects are currently being developed in 10 African countries, including Liberia and South Sudan, among many others. 

Isaac Oyimah/GEE 
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Bujumbura Mayor and Gigawatt Global leaders Michael Fichtenberg and Nathaniel Johnson sign the solar 'Light Islands' deal

Thursday, June 1, 2017

Africa spends $818bn annually on dementia

Countries in the Sub-Saharan Africa are estimated to have been spending some $818 billion, about N257,2 trillion, annually on dementia, reports NaijaAgroNet.

According to the World Federation of Science Journalists (WFSJ) latest toolbox on Dementia, the number of people with dementia will continue to rise significantly in the next coming years.

The Toolbox, NaijaAgroNet reports, has a special section focusing on covering dementia in Sub-Saharan Africa, and because of a dramatic increase in the number of elderly people in the region, dementia will rise substantially in the coming years.

Also, NaijaAgroNet reports that dementia is one of the major causes of disability and dependency among older people worldwide.

The Toolbox on Dementia, NaijaAgroNet further gathered was developed with the financial support of the World Dementia Council and the assistance of World Young Leaders Fund (WYLF) in Dementia Network.
NaijaAgroNet reports that the collaboration believes that in sub-Saharan, the chronic malnutrition, particularly in older people is often a big contributing factor leading to dementia.

The WFSJ says the Toolbox on Dementia for Journalists allows them to cover this mental illness with knowledge of the facts so that they can report reliable and truthful information to the public on a medical condition that could be stigmatizing and certainly life changing for patients, their families and caregivers.

NaijaAgroNet pointed out that the dementia is not just forgetfulness, but is an acquired complex of intellectual deterioration which affects at least two areas of cognitive function, such as being able to make a plan and carry it out; weigh information and make good decisions; initiate activities; able to gauge appropriate social behaviour.


People with dementia are often also affected by dramatic changes in personality with often experiencing changes in mood, judgement and personality as well as difficulty in communicating and increased difficulty coping with day-to-day tasks.

Remmy Nweke + Isaac Oyimah/ED, Ops
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Tuesday, May 30, 2017

AHF prescribes 3-phased PPP strategy for Africa

The African Healthcare Federation (AHF) has proposed a new Public and Private Partnership (PPP) strategy for the continent, to be phased in in three stages, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Chairman of the African Healthcare Federation, Dr Amit Thakker, gave this description, saying that phase 1, will include dialogue between government and private sector federations to clarify roles and agree on a shared vision.

On the phase 2, he said, will include creating or adapting regulatory frameworks and contractual obligations and the institutionalisation of PPP Acts.

While the phase 3, he said, will be the project implementation phase, which will include building and operating projects and products, followed by evaluation and sharing of information and case studies.


“Innovation should be driven by the private sector, while the public sector should be responsible for creating an enabling environment for innovation to flourish,” he said.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE
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Thursday, May 18, 2017

She Leads Africa launches 2017 accelerators for women

A social enterprise dedicated to supporting young African women towards professionalism, the She Leads Africa (SLA) has launched its 2017 accelerators programme to last for some 90 days, reports NaijaAgroNet.

SLA, NaijaAgroNet gathered focuses on guiding young African women to success through online content and offline programmes, leveraging on its alliances.

NaijaAgroNet  also reports that the 2017 Accelerator consists of one week residencies in the four locations where entrepreneurs would receive training from the SLA team and business leaders and experts.

The four locations across Nigeria, NaijaAgroNet reports include the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, Lagos Island, Lagos Mainland, and Kaduna.

NaijaAgroNet  further reports that the 3-month programme has been designed to identify, support and fund the next generation of Nigeria’s brightest entrepreneurs.

According to the organisers, during these residencies, entrepreneurs will be focused on business strategy, growth, marketing, finance and distribution.

“They will also receive a host of on and offline training as well as an opportunity to pitch their business to national and international investors,” NaijaAgroNet  was told in a press statement.

This 2017 SLA Accelerator is run in partnership with the Work in Progress! Alliance - a consortium of Oxfam, Butterfly Works and VC4A focused on driving job creation and youth employment in Nigeria. The Kaduna Agribusiness cohort is sponsored by OCP.

Entrepreneurs interested in applying should visit www.SheLeadsAfrica.org/accelerator for more information on or before June 25, 2017.


Uj. N. Dominic/GEE
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Monday, April 24, 2017

Earth Day 2017: GROHE shares tips on water saving in Africa

The German leading brand in sanitary fittings, GROHE, has shared some tips on water saving on the continent of Africa, as part of the 2017 World Earth Day through its commitment to innovative design with a strong focus on sustainability, reports NaijaAgroNet.

This year’s theme for Earth Day is “Environmental and Climate Literacy,” GROHE said that for sustainability sake, is a corporate value with a tradition and a future.

GROHE, NaijaAgroNet gathered, has developed a wide portfolio of advanced product technologies and launched also a series of awareness campaigns and programs to change mindsets and habits.

Since 2009, NaijaAgroNet also gathered that GROHE has launched the Green Mosque Initiative in many countries, whereby the company partners with local entities to install water-efficient products in the ablution rooms of mosques to help the respective regions achieve sustainable reduction in water consumption.

The Vice President of GROHE Egypt, North and West Africa, Mohammed Ataya, said Muslim worshippers' ritual ablutions consume between 10 and 15 liters of water per day, stressing that every possibility to save water therefore has a great impact on consumption, asserting, “mosques play an important role in people’s day-to-day lives.”

The initiative, NaijaAgroNet reports, has reduced water consumption for the cleansing rituals by roughly 30 per cent which is good for the environment and helps cut costs.

“Water saving taps and showers and water saving flush systems are two of the main ways that everyday citizens can contribute to protecting the environment, and sustainability is one of the core values and a top priority in the creation of every GROHE product for bathrooms and from the design to development stages.” Ataya said.

In addition, Ataya said, quality materials, first-class design and advanced engineering all play an important role in saving water, citing for example, GROHE EcoJoy hand showers with the feature as an integrated flow limiter, an Eco button or spray dimmer which lets user choose when to reduce the water flow.

GROHE, says it agrees strongly with the Earth Day ethos that everyone needs to be empowered with the knowledge and the products to inspire action and protect the environment. Noting that the individual choice to reduce water consumption is only one of the many strategies needed to address the issue of water scarcity but it gives each person a role to play in protecting the planet.


Isaac Oyimah/GEE with additional report from APO
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Thursday, December 29, 2016

Hunger looms in Horn of Africa – UN agency

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has pronounced that with continued drought, that another hunger season looms in the Horn of Africa, reports NaijaAgroNet.

FAO also said that the subregion needs agricultural support in order to protect livestock, equip families to plant in rainy season.

According to FAO, countries in the Horn of Africa are likely to see a rise in hunger and further decline of local livelihoods in the coming months, as farming families struggle with the knock-on effects of multiple droughts that hit the region this year.

This is coming as the growing numbers of refugees in East Africa, meanwhile, are expected to place even more burden on already strained food and nutrition security.

NaijaAgroNet gathered from FAO in an official statement made available to correspondent, that currently, about 12 million people across Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia are in need of food assistance, as families in the region face limited access to food and income, together with rising debt, low cereal and seed stocks, and low milk and meat production. Terms of trade are particularly bad for livestock farmers, as food prices are increasing at the same time that market prices for livestock are low.

Farmers in the region, the UN agency said, need urgent support to recover from consecutive lost harvests and to keep their breeding livestock healthy and productive at a time that pastures are the driest in years. 

Production outputs in the three countries are grim,” part of the statement read.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE
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Tuesday, November 1, 2016

Agro experts to seek adoptive solution for Africa @COP22

A set of high-level experts in African agriculture and climate change issues would be converging at the city of Marrakech, Morroco to proffer solution as part of the 22nd session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 22), reports NaijaAgroNet.

Discussions, NaijaAgroNet gathered will centre on how to implement an ambitious new initiative launched by the Moroccan government that seeks to mobilise some $30 billion for Africa to transform and adapt its agriculture to a changing climate.

NaijaAgroNet also reports that the event would showcase the most promising climate adaptation strategies for the continent, which could deliver food security to the 230 million people still suffering from chronic hunger in the region.

The high-level experts, NaijaAgroNet gathered would include representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Morocco and Senegal, members of the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Mohamed Badraoui, Deputy Director General, INRA-Morocco, Richard Mrabet, Member of the Scientific Committee of the AAA initiative (INRA), Mohamed Ait Kadi, President, General Council of Agricultural Development (CGDA) , Olga Speckhardt, Head of Global Insurance Solutions, Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture, Bruce Campbell, Director, CCAFS, and Sonja Vermeulen, Head of Research, CCAFS among others.

NaijaAgroNet recollects that some 100 per cent of African countries have included agriculture in their climate action plans, known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), highlighting the grave risk that climate change poses both to food security and economic growth on the continent. Yet African nations remain underequipped to act on these pledges.


Key policy recommendations from each session will be captured and developed into a framework for implementation for the Moroccan Adaptation of African Agriculture initiative.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE
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