John Kufuor is special envoy for tropical disease

Mr. John A. Kufuor

Former Ghananian President, Mr. John A. Kufuor, has been honoured by the Global Network for Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs) as the organization’s new special envoy, reports MarketWatch.

NaijaAgroNet gathered this was to honour the former president for his political and humanitarian achievements in Africa and beyond.

Dr. Neeraj Mistry, Managing Director of the Global Network expressed the organization’s delight to have President Kufuor joining the cause of the organization.

"His record of progress in human development for the people of Ghana and globally speaks for itself,” Mistry said.

John Kufuor in his response affirmed that NTDs is a major factor in improving health systems and reducing poverty in endemic countries.

"I am delighted to apply my experience in improving health, nutrition, and food security programs in Africa to work with governments around the world," he said.

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Scientists call for new solutions to prevent fungal infections in plants and animals

Maize Plant affected by Fungi

Scientists has called for new solutions in order to prevent the proliferation of existing and emerging plants' and animals' fungal infections, a bid to prevent further loss of biodiversity, ScienceDaily reports.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that the call was made following a data reviewed by scientists that revealed that emerging fungus is behind the problem where infectious disease causes extinction of a type of animal or plants.

The scientists who are from University of Oxford, Imperial College London and institutions in the United States affirmed that about 125milllion tones of the top five food crops - rice, wheat, maize, potatoes and soybeans - are being loss yearly, the loss they say could have been used to feed those in need if prevented.

NaijaAgroNet further gathered that the damage caused by fungi to rice, wheat and maize alone costs global agriculture $60 million, about N9.44 billion yearly. Read moreAdmin/LS

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Employ modern techniques to boost farm productivity - Experts

Mechanized Farming

Experts have called for incorporation of modern techniques and methods to boost farm productivity as the next revolution in farming, IBNLive reports.

The Deputy Director-General, Crop Science, Indian Council of Agriculture Research, Swapan Datta said at a discussion panel that biotechnology can improve biodiversity and also help with the improvement of farm productivity as well.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that Datta said science and technology can be used to develop value added genetically engineered or modified crops and that crops can support our environment and farmers' need. 

S L Kothari, Professor of Botany Department, University of Rajasthan, another member of the panelist laid emphasis on increase in farm productivity so that farmers can get more benefit from crops. Read more

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Horn of Africa famine position, still worrisome - UNICEF

A recent report by the United Nations International children Education Fund (UNICEF) made known that the outlook of the drought is still a threat as more than 8 million people are in need of emergency assistance.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that various international institutions, UNICEF included, lend helping hands towards the revival of the Horn of Africa, saving tens of thousands of children's live in 2011 when the region witnesses drought and famine, the worst in decades.

According to the UNICEF report, the outlook of the famine is threatening the tentative gains, the humanitarian support gotten so far, as it is really worrisome.

This was revealed to NaijaAgroNet in a press statement made available by UNICEF, despite supports received since 2011 the prospects for a sustained recovery are increasingly precarious.

UNICEF Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa, Elhadj As Sy said the child survival crisis in the region is far from over, "Millions of children require sustained assistance in the critical months ahead. Otherwise we can easily see a reversal of the hard-won achievements."

Elhadj As Sy, who is also the UNICEF Global Emergency Coordinator for Crisis in the region said the most recent weather outlook in combination with prevailing insecurity and violence in many areas can lead to new shocks and disruptions, "A development which again puts the lives of hundreds of thousands of children at risk," he said.

NaijaAgroNet further gathered that almost one-third of Somali, about 2.51million are still in acute humanitarian crisis with over 323, 000 acutely malnourished children. 

Others include 463,000 Somali refugees in the Dadaab camps in north eastern Kenya, 142,000 people in the Dollo Ado camps in Ethiopia as well as 22,000 people in the Ali Addeh camp in Djibouti as well as 1.35 million Somalis displaced within their own country, totally over 8million.

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Less rain may worsen food insecurity in Horn of Africa - FEWS

The US Agency for International Development’s Famine and Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) had warned that food insecurity may worsen in the Horn of Africa as a result of less rain in the key March-to-May season, AfricaPresss reports.

FEWS NET made this known in a report released on April 3, and that rainfall in March-to-May Season would be 60-85 per cent of the long-term average, there was a 30 percent chance of the lower figure materializing.

There will be an expansion in the size of the food insecure population, this NaijaAgroNet gathered and that there is likely an increase in the severity of food insecurity.

Commenting on the issue, the European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian AID and Crisis Response, Kristalina Georgieva affirmed mobilization of funds to support resilience programmes and the importance of appreciating the need for long-term investments in areas as education, water and others since the problems cannot be solved overnight. Read more

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