Trafficking: UNICEF facilitates release of 527 chi...

Trafficking: UNICEF facilitates release of 527 chi...: ITRealms : The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has facilitated the release of 752 persons including 527 children, reports ITRealm...

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Respite for millions of children in West Africa

NaijaAgroNet:

Respite may have come the way of millions of children in West Africa, as all member states of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) agreed to a range of concrete measures to protect children from violence, abuse and exploitation, reports NaijaAgroNet.

 Arising from the ECOWAS First Ladies’ Forum in Niamey, which ended Thursday, October 5, 2017, Ministers responsible for the care and protection of children across the 15 Member States adopted on 4 October the ECOWAS Strategic Framework for Strengthening National Child Protection Systems to Prevent and Respond to Violence, Abuse and Exploitation against Children in West Africa.

In doing so they are committing to concrete measures to protect children from the most damaging forms of abuse, by focusing on five priority areas: sexual, physical and emotional violence against children, including female genital mutilation and cutting (FGM/C); child marriage; child labour; civil registration and vital statistics; and children on the move.

Led by the ECOWAS Commission, the Strategic Framework was developed in collaboration with a Regional Child Protection Working Group comprised of United Nations agencies and international non-governmental organizations and networks.

Almost 9 out of 10 children in West Africa experience violent discipline. While child marriage exists throughout the continent, it is especially prevalent in West Africa, which hosts six out of the ten countries with the highest rates of child marriage in the world: about four in ten young women in West Africa were married off as children. Less than one in two children in West Africa have a birth certificate, which is their basic right to an identity. In addition, the region is the theatre of complex migration routes where children are especially vulnerable to abuse and exploitation.

“The Ministerial adoption marks a major step forward for the protection of children in our region”, said ECOWAS’ Commissioner for Social Affairs, Dr. Fatimata Dia Sow, whose organization convened the gathering of experts and ministers from the 15 Member States. “We stand together more strongly than ever to ensure children are safe and protected. With the right framework, the right actions, the right resources and the right positive changes in attitudes and practices, we can ensure they have an opportunity to fully contribute to our societies.”

Strong child protection systems can ensure that no child falls between the cracks. They provide the surest safeguards against child abuse, neglect, exploitation and other forms of violence through a concerted effort between formal and informal actors. The adoption of the Child Protection Framework provides a joint platform for action on the protection priorities for children. As programmes for children are strengthened at national and community level, Ministerial commitments made during this week’s meeting will be submitted for approval at the next ECOWAS Heads of State meeting in December 2017.

“In West Africa, urgent action is needed to address the acute vulnerabilities of children”, said Andy Brooks, the Chair of the Regional Child Protection Working Group. “We count on the commitment shown by the Ministers being echoed and supported by the Heads of States and the First Ladies’ network in West Africa. We will continue to support States to strengthen services on the ground and the ECOWAS Commission in tracking accountabilities to commitments made here today.”

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1.3bn tonnes of food produce wasted

NaijaAgroNet:

Globally, one-third of all food produce for human consumption estimated at 1.3 billion tonnes is lost or wasted, annually, reports NaijaAgroNet.

This disclosure was made by the officials of Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and which has caused massive financial losses while squandering natural resources.

In Europe alone, according to European Union (EU) Commission, about 88 million tonnes of food are wasted each year, with associated costs estimated at €143 billion.

FAO also said, the increased use and abuse of Anti-Medicines in both human and animal healthcare has contributed to an increase in the number of disease-causing microbes that are resistant to antimicrobial medicines used to treat them, like antibiotics.

This makes AMR a growing threat that could lead to as many as 10 million deaths a year and over $100 million in losses to the global economy by 2050, according to some studies. And in addition to public health risks, AMR has implications for food safety as walls as the economic wellbeing of millions of farming households across the globe.

For this, FAO and EU are synchronizing efforts to quantify food losses and waste at each state of the food chain.

To enhance the exchange of information and evidence related to antimicrobial use in food production as well as AMR management best practices, paved the way for the recent agreement signed between the two.

For them, joint advocacy and education efforts to promote the responsible use of antimicrobials and improve farm-level hygiene to reduce the need for their use in the first place

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Pix: Courtesy: https://www.geo.tv

EU, FAO agree to deepen strategic alliance, halve food waste

NaijaAgroNet:

The European Union (EU) Commissioner of Health and Food Safety Vytenis Andriukaitis and FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva have agreed to ratchet up collaboration between the two organizations to address food waste, food safety, and antimicrobial resistance in supply chains, reports NaijaAgroNet.

In a new letter of intent signed between, FAO and the EU, both pledged to work closely together to halve per capita food waste by 2030, a goal established under the new Sustainable Development Goals global agenda. It also commits them to intensified cooperation on tackling the spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) on farms and in food systems.

Speaking at a signing ceremony at FAO's Rome headquarters, Commissioner Andriukaitis said: "Food loss and waste represent an unacceptable, unethical and immoral squandering of scarce resources and increase food insecurity, while AMR marks a grave societal and economic burden," adding: "We are becoming more united, more efficient and more strategic in how we tackle these issues, and as such, this agreement should be celebrated."

Calling AMR growing global concern, Graziano da Silva said: "Unfortunately the use of antibiotics, including their use to promote growth, is already widespread."

He described FAO's vision that antibiotics and other antimicrobials should be only used to cure diseases and, in certain circumstances, to prevent epidemics. They should not be used for growth promotion, he said.    

Noting that food loss and waste is linked to many aspects of sustainable development, Graziano da Silva cited the importance of strong partnerships like that between the FAO and the EU in addressing the problem.

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Novartis Access extends to sixth African country, Nigeria still aloof

NaijaAgroNet:

The Novartis Access has extended portfolio of high-quality medicines targeted at four key non-communicable diseases (NCDs) to the sixth country on the continent of Africa while Nigeria still aloof, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The latest addition being the Republic of Cameroon, just as NaijaAgroNet reports that Novartis Access had landed at Kenya, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Pakistan and Uganda before now.

According to Novartis Global Media Relations, Eric Althoff they were pleased to disclosed this in partnership with the Ministry of Public Health of Cameroon after they signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to implement Novartis Access in Cameroon.

The collaboration, NaijaAgroNet also reports include capacity-building activities with the Cameroon Baptist Convention Health Services (CBCHS) on community awareness. Initially.

Althoff said, Novartis Access medicines will be made available through CBCHS hospitals and clinics, with the objective to extend the programme to other faith-based organizations across the country.

Novartis Access, NaijaAgroNet gathered, provides a portfolio of high-quality medicines targeting four key non-communicable diseases (NCDs), namely, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, respiratory illnesses, and breast cancer. This portfolio covers the world’s most frequently prescribed medicines for chronic diseases.

“Cameroon is increasingly affected by the burden of noncommunicable diseases,” said André Mama Fouda, Minister of Public Health of the Republic of Cameroon. “The government has established prevention and control programs for chronic diseases, and having access to high-quality treatments at low cost is critical to success. This collaboration with Novartis is part of the solution.”

According to the WHO, chronic diseases cause 31% (1) of all deaths every year in Cameroon, and a survey by the CBCHS showed consultations for NCDs at some of their health facilities rose by over 40% between 2011 and 2015 (2).

“We are pleased to help Cameroonian patients better manage their chronic conditions,” said Dr. Harald Nusser, Head of Novartis Social Business. “We believe new approaches such as Novartis Access that bring governments, the private sector and social sector together are needed to expand access to medicines and healthcare delivery.”

Beyond medicines, the collaboration will also offer activities to strengthen healthcare systems in Cameroon, for example by training healthcare professionals on NCD screening, diagnosis and treatment, quality assurance and by providing community education and awareness.

“This month, CBCHS and Novartis will kick off a Know Your Numbers campaign to encourage individuals to know their vital health numbers through community awareness and screenings,” said Prof. Tih Pius Muffih, Director of CBCHS. “Activities such as this campaign are needed to ensure we combat NCDs effectively, thanks to stronger healthcare systems and high-quality medicines.”

The campaign will take place in seven health districts in five regions, reaching a potential population of 1 million people with education and NCD health checks.

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PAUWES graduates 48 on energy, water, climate change

NaijaAgroNet:

The Pan African University Institute for Water and Energy Sciences including Climate Change (PAUWES) celebrated the second graduating class of its both tracks of two Master programmes  with 47 students from across the African continent, report NaijaAgroNet.

The graduating students, NaijaAgroNet gathered have received their diplomas during a ceremony at the University of Tlemcen.

Director, PAUWES at University of Tlemcen, Prof. Abdellatif Zerga, said this year’s graduating students join the next generation of African engineers and policymakers committed to addressing the issues critical to Africa’s sustainable development. They have not only successfully completed their coursework requirements, but have conducted practice-oriented research for their master theses based on a multitude of case studies that address the water, energy, and climate-related challenges Africa faces.

NaijaAgroNet reports that in order to gain a transcontinental perspective of those same challenges, our students have also completed international internships in the private and public sectors at renowned research institutions cross Africa and beyond. Besides focusing on their studies, the students of the Class of 2017—with the support of PAUWES—launched the first student-lead clubs, the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Club and the Community of Practice (CoP), which have contributed to the overall sense of community and leadership that our institute strives to promote.

This cohort of graduating students, NaijaAgroNet reports, represents and fulfills one of the key objectives of the Pan African University (PAU) and PAUWES, which is to foster an African learning environment of the most qualified and motivated scholars while revitalizing and nurturing the quality of African higher education.

Not only are an array African Union member states and eleven female students represented in the Class of 2017, but this diverse cohort of students have had the opportunity to study alongside an international faculty of over 100 professors and researchers from across Africa and the world.

Supported by PAUWES, the University of Tlemcen and our key thematic partner—Germany, we are confident that students of the Class of 2017 are well positioned to become leaders in public administration, policy-making, research, technology, private enterprise, and civil society.

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Smallholders worst affected by lumpy skin disease

NaijaAgroNet:

The ongoing epidemic of lumpy skin disease is affecting largely the smallholder farmers’ leading to the warning by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), reports NaijaAgroNet.

In a position paper made available to NaijaAgroNet, FAO warned that even countries that have not been affected by lumpy skin disease so far but are considered at risk need to carry out risk-based vaccination to avert the spread of the disease, which can have devastating consequences for farmers, particularly smallholders.

Pointing out that for broader cattle vaccination to keep lumpy skin disease at bay, especially in Eastern Europe and the Balkans, and in areas where the risk is the highest.

Lumpy skin disease is a cattle pox virus transmitted by biting insects that can be deadly for cattle but does not affect humans. The disease used to be confined to Africa only. In 2013, it emerged in Turkey and then quickly spread through nine countries in Eastern Europe and the Balkans. 

At the height of the disease’s spread in Europe, countries hit by lumpy skin disease registered up to 200 outbreaks, which have led to significant economic losses – due to drops in milk production and reduced quality of skins – and the death of up to around 15 percent of the affected herds.

“Although the outbreak in Europe was contained in April following mass vaccinations, we have seen the disease resurface in recent months in Albania, Greece and Macedonia. It’s just another warning sign that the disease has not been fully contained yet and can keep spreading if we don’t step up efforts to control it,” said Ren Wang, FAO Assistant Director-General, Agriculture and Consumer Protection Department.

FAO urges governments across the regions at risk of lumpy skin disease to carry out vaccination campaigns, especially ahead of bug season, which usually starts in March, when infection rates are highest to prevent, control and eliminate the disease.

Preventive vaccination in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and northern Serbia, for example, would create a buffer zone and stop the disease from potentially spreading to neighbouring countries such as Hungary and Romania, which have been spared to date from the disease.

FAO warned that stamping out – the proactive culling of all animals on an infected farm – should be used as a last resort because stamping out can have a drastic impact on farmers’ livelihoods, particularly those of smallholders. If stamping out is considered necessary, FAO recommends for this to be used only in the case of clinically affected cattle, when the infection is confirmed by an authorized laboratory, and animals should be humanely culled and appropriately disposed of as soon as possible.

FAO has already played an important role in reshaping countries’ policies so that vaccination is used as a key measure to prevent lumpy skin disease, and to minimize stamping out.

“Despite the progress made in combatting lumpy skin disease, there are still some grey areas we need to focus on. For one, we need to understand better if lumpy skin disease can also be  transmitted from one animal to another via infected milk, for example, and if infected animals that do not show clinical signs could still spread the virus,” said Ren Wang, Assistant Director-General, FAO Agriculture and Consumer Protection Department.

“There is also a need for better regional coordination and heightened surveillance to deal more effectively with the spread of the disease,” Ren Wang said.

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Pix: Ren Wang

Tourism can't achieve potentials without sustainability - Minister

NaijaAgroNet: 

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has said that sustainability is absolutely necessary if tourism is to achieve its full potentials, which include being a catalyst for economic growth and poverty eradication, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Speaking in London, Wednesday to mark the 2017 World Tourism Day, he said, without sustainability, tourism cannot generate benefits to all stakeholders, solve serious problems such as extreme poverty, and preserve precious natural and man-made resources on which human prosperity is based.

Referring to the theme of this year's World Tourism Day, which is 'Sustainable Tourism - Tool for Development', he said Member States of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) are encouraged to make sure that their policies and actions for tourism development and management fully embrace the principles of sustainability.

''The sustainability principles refer to the environmental, economic and socio-cultural aspects of tourism development, and a suitable balance must be established among these three dimensions to guarantee its long-term sustainability,'' Alhaji Mohammed said.

He said that in the context of the universal 2030 Agenda for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the United Nations General Assembly designated 2017 as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, underscoring its power to help eradicate poverty.

''Tourism was singled out in three of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of sustainable economic growth and decent employment, sustainable production and consumption, and the conservation and sustainable use of oceans (Goals 8,12 & 14).

''Today, tourism generates 10% of the world’s GDP, one in every 10 jobs, and 30% of world trade in services. It is key to many countries’ economies and livelihoods. It has evolved from an industry engaged in and patronized only by the rich and elites of the society, to an industry enjoyed by all with significant impact on the nation’s economy.

''As an invisible export, tourism creates a flow of foreign currency into the economy of a nation through public revenue which comes in the form of taxes, duties, licenses etc; business revenue derived from services provided by restaurants, hotels, transport, shops etc and from local resident revenue which come in the form of wages, salaries, rent, interests in investments. Most of these revenues especially those that accrue to the business establishments and the local residents are usually ploughed back into the economy to create additional business thereby generating grater revenues and increasing employment opportunities,'' the Minister said.

He said while Government will play its part in the development and management of tourism and in making it more sustainable, the real key to making Nigeria's tourism industry flourish lies with the industry itself and the businesses and organizations at its heart.

''Governments use a number of mechanisms to encourage greater private-sector engagement, capturing its expertise in ways that will be beneficial to the companies themselves as well as population. The private sector, on the other hand, has an opportunity to work collaboratively with government to yield unprecedented returns in both economic and human capital, and fulfilling the promise of a more equitable, productive, and prosperous global community,'' Alhaji Mohammed said.

Overall, he said, sustainable tourism requires the informed participation of all relevant stakeholders, as well as strong political leadership to ensure wide participation and consensus building.

The idea of World Tourism Day was initiated by a Nigerian, late Mr. Ignatius Amaduwa Atigbi, the then Secretary General of the Nigeria Tourism Association (NTA), now Nigeria Tourism Development Corporation (NTDC), and Chairman of Africa Travel Commission (ATC). It was adopted at the 22nd General Assembly of the International Union of Official Travel Organizations (IUOTO) in 1971.

The 27th of September of every year is marked as the World Tourism Day to create awareness for tourism as a tool for economic growth and promotion of international peace and understanding.

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Nigeria under-developing children, physically, mentally - UNICEF

NaijaAgroNet:

The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) has lamente that Nigeria is putting her children at risk of under-development, both physically and mentally, because critical national policies are not providing an adequate foundation for their growth, reports NaijaAgroNet.

During the first years of a child’s life, UNICEF said in its latest report that the brain grows rapidly; providing good nutrition, loving care and appropriate play provide solid foundations for a child’s learning – and eventual contribution to economic and social growth.

The UNICEF report, Early Moments Matter for Every Child, outlines three policies that can give parents the time and resources needed to support their young children’s healthy development.

The recommended policies are: two years of free pre-primary education; six months of paid maternity leave; and four weeks of paid paternity leave. Nigeria currently has just three months of paid maternity leave, only one year of free pre-primary education and no paternity leave at all. Only about one in every 10 pre-primary children are enrolled in early education activities.

According to the medical journal, The Lancet, Nigeria ranks among the 10 countries with the largest number of children at risk of poor development. 

A 2016 national survey indicated that 31% of children under the age of five are moderately or severely underweight in Nigeria. Stunting as a result of malnutrition can cause irreversible physical and mental retardation. Even though 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% of Nigerian children are exclusively breastfed for six months. Paid maternity leave will help to increase the number of children exclusively breastfed.

“What we call Early Childhood Development, which includes physical and cognitive support, has a strategic place in the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals,” said Mohamed Fall UNICEF Representative in Nigeria. “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,” he added.

As well as supporting exclusive breastfeeding, having good 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.

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 can ultimately impact a country’s growth.

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Good agricultural practices according to FAO

NaijaAgroNet:

The importance of good agricultural practices has been stressed by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), reports NaijaAgroNet.

FAO, through its Deputy Director-General, Maria Helena Semedo, at a United Nations General Assembly side event on Anti-Microbial Resistance (AMR), Semedo said that good health, good productivity and good economies depend on safe and nutritious food, which underscored the importance of work done at field level to bring AMR under control.

"Progress in the fight against AMR depends on good agricultural practices. We need to promote sustainable agriculture and food systems," she said.

In addition, she said, "The use of antimicrobials in agriculture is not a substitute for insufficient hygiene and bad management practices."

She also said that "we need improved mechanisms for the quality assurance of pharmaceuticals because counterfeit, substandard medicines contribute to resistance. Although Codex Alimentarius develops impressive global surveillance guidance and codes of practice, there remains a staggering lack of capacity for adequate surveillance of AMR at national levels."

Semedo, therefore, urged the international community to act now to invest in the future “we want to build together.”

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