Technology key for productivity in Africa

NaijaAgroNet

Technology has been described as a major factor for improved productivity in Africa, so said Dr. Hannah Bissiw, Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) in charge of Livestock in Ghana, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Dr. Bissiw,NaijaAgroNet gathered, stated this at the opening of Ghana/Kenya Trade and Investment Mission in Accra, stressing the need for African countries to expand trade among themselves.

She also said that as most African countries depend largely on their agricultural sectors to lead the transformation of their economies, “we cannot but strive to improve our agricultural sectors through the application of science and technology,” NaijaAgroNet learnt.

Dr Bissiw further said that the mission provided both countries the opportunity to elaborate cooperation in the MOU and put in place a plan of action to realise the ideals.

The Mission follows the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in December 2014 in Nairobi to promote trade, investments, exchange of science and technology and knowledge between Ghana and Kenya.

President John Dramani Mahama during an official visit to Kenya last year, NaijaAgroNet learnt, also signed seven bilateral agreements with the country to ease the conditions for doing business and boosting bilateral trade relations.

Cyriacus Nnaji/ GEE

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Ghana has high cattle mortality rate

NaijaAgroNet:

The West African country of Ghana has been rated high in cattle mortality rate, reports NaijaAgroNet.

It was also reported that Ghana currently imports over 85 per cent of its beef South America and United Kingdom (UK) other than from local farmers, which amounts to some 95,000 tonnes of meat annually.

This was disclosed at the unveiling of the new concept to boost Ghana’s cattle rearing tactics through an initiative by a United States (US) and Ghanaian-based deal to launch a crowd-funding for cattle farmers in Ghana and other selected African countries.

Dubbed Farmable, the portal is expected to support farmers in Africa and other emerging markets through crowd-farming such as through provision of equipment for farmers with the tools and resources necessary to ensure they mitigate hunger and build a sustainable food supply.

The chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder, Farmable LLC, Damian Brennan says Farmable has developed a crowd-funding platform to channel funding from social investors around the world for capacity building activities of smallholder farmers.

By this act, he said, a cow for instance, through the Farmable website, online is classified as ‘CowBackers’ and could as matter of return on investment get the unique experience of being connected to their own cow on a real farm in Ghana.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE with agency reports

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Invest in yam research and development-IITA

        

Anthony Nwakaegho/NaijaAgroNet

The first ever global yam conference kicked off in Accra, Ghana with a call for an increased funding for yam research and development in order to help unlock the potential of the crop and enhance food security in Africa.

Director General of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Dr Nteranya Sanginga said that what is needed to unlock the crop’s full potential is the political will by sustaining and enhancing funding support for yam research and development.

Sanginga commended the government of Japan, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and the West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development (CORAF/WECARD) for supporting IITA on yam research and called on researchers to develop a vision for the crop.

NaijaAgroNet gathered from the researchers that yam known as the ‘king of crops’ has high cultural value especially in traditional marriages in Africa and has contributed to incomes and food security, but under-researched due to low funding,

The Executive Director, Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), Dr Yemi Akinbamijo noted that in spite of the contribution to food security and incomes, African crops such as yam have not commanded the attention they deserved, and have as a result remained underutilized.

The IITA Director for Western Africa, Dr Robert Asiedu  and the Convener of the Global Conference on Yam said that the event provided a platform for consultation and development of a global strategy for improving the yam sector based on genetic enhancement; crop protection and mitigation of risks due to pests, diseases and climate change; conservation of genetic resources; prevention of postharvest losses; improved seed systems; crop diversification; and enhancing industrial potential of yam and improved market access.

NaijaAgroNet learnt that the Global Conference on Yams provides a platform for stakeholders to explore recent innovations in yam improvement, share lessons learned, identify research and development needs, and develop global alliances.

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ECOWAS partner UNDP to boost food production

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have partnered in a scheme towards value addition for a number of key crops in the West Africa sub-region.

The partnership seeks to boost food production in the sub-region while creating jobs, increasing farmers' income opportunities and Small and Medium Enterprise that deal with cash crops.

Some of the crops sidelined for the initiative include mangoes, onions and cassavas. NaijaAgroNet learnt that Cassava has been chosen following its classification as staple food in Sierra Leone and Ghana over the past three years while Nigeria is on the forefront of its producers in the region.

Nigeria, Burkina Faso and Mali are the leading producers of onion in the region, however NaijaAgroNet further gathered that these three countries face stiff competition from farmers in Europe, Asia and North Africa as regards quality and packaging.

Yinka Awosanya/LS

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