FAO says ‘When protecting forests, don't forget the trees’

NaijaAgroNet:

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has said that forests have an acclaimed role as a carbon sink needed to tackle climate change and called to mind that when protecting forests, people should not forget the trees, reports NaijaAgroNet.

FAO, in its latest study said that less known is how their contribution could be scaled up even after a tree has been logged.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that the new publication, Forestry for a low-carbon future: Integrating forests and wood products in climate change strategies, offered insights in how to catalyse a "virtuous cycle" that exploits the life cycle of wood products - ranging from home furniture to wood pellets burned for fuel - to enhance and even multiply the well-known ability of forests to remove and store carbon from the atmosphere.

The Assistant Director-General for Forestry, René Castro-Salazar, said that forests are at the heart of the transition to low-carbon economies, stressing "not only because of their double role as sink and source of emissions, but also through the wider use of wood products to displace more fossil fuel intense products."

Forests, Castro-Salazar pointed out, do herculean work in locking carbon dioxide into leaves, branches and soils, while deforestation and forest degradation account for up to 12 percent of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. The relative speed and cost-effectiveness with which forests make their presence - or absence - felt is one key reason they figure prominently in the plans countries are crafting to meet commitments made in the Paris Agreement on climate change.

Designed primarily for policy makers and experts but of interest to architects and the energy industry, the report - the fruit of innovative collaboration involving more than 100 experts - looks at how forests can be harnessed to the global climate change challenge.

FAO further said that its guiding message is that optimal engineering of the carbon lifecycle of trees and wood products allows, over the long term, for sustainably harvested forests to complement and even enhance the climate mitigation benefits provided by conserved forests.

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Nyaggah calls on African media to adopt open data journalism

NaijaAgroNet:

The Executive Director, Local Development Research Institute (LDRI), Mr. Muchiri Nyaggah has called on African media to adopt open data to enable more evidence-based story delivery, NaijaAgroNet reports.

Nyaggah made this call at the opening session of the 4-day open data training for members of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Journalists Network which commenced in Nairobi, Kenya on Monday.

He highlighted the essence of the training as building the capacity of media practitioners to enable monitoring of progress and report on the implementation of the CAADP through the use of agriculture data and research.

He told NaijaAgroNet that the objectives of the training include enthroning innovative ways to disseminate news and advocacy content to increased awareness on the agricultural transformation agenda in Africa.

The LDRI boss further said that the session would enable them to keep an eye on and provide technological support to the participants in implementing what they learn within their organistions and becoming greater champions.

As such, participants, Nyaggah said, would be trained on how to find, present and visualise data suitable to journalists’ needs, such as creating charts, maps or galleries, whereas providing the essential concepts, techniques and skills to effectively work with data and produce compelling data stories.

Remmy Nweke in Nairobi/ED, Ops

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Pix: Muchiri Nyaggah speaking on Open Data at the Nairobi training 

Anambra still savouring $5m export of vegetables

NaijaAgroNet:

The Anambra State governor, Chief Willie Obiano has said that his four pillars of economic blueprint including Agriculture, Industrialization, Trade and Commerce and Oil and Gas, has started yielding dividends, even as the state still savouring the exportation of vegetables (Ugu) punkin leaves and (Onugbu) bitter leaf,  valued at $5 million to Europe, NaijaAgroNet reports.

Experts also defined Ugu as Telfairia occidentalis, a tropical vine grown in West Africa as a leaf vegetable and for its edible seeds. Common names for the plant include fluted gourd, fluted pumpkin, and ugu.

While Onugbu - Bitter leaf also known as Vernonia amygdalina, is a vegetable used for preparing the popular Bitter leaf soup. Also known as Onugbu, Shiwaka and Ewuro by the Igbos,

Speaking in Abuja in an interactive session which attracted Ndi Anambra residing in the North central part of the country at Transcorp Hilton recently, Gov. Obiano said that the state is now a socially stable, business-friendly environment attracting both indigenes and foreigners to seek wealth-creating opportunities.

He also told the profile audience which comprised the Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Alfred Achebe, Dr.  Oby Ezekwesili both PDP and APC members of the National Assembly, former Governor Chinwoke Mbadinuju and leadership of the Anambra State Investment Agency (ANSIPPA), charged with the mandate of attracting and fast-tracking investments in the state has so far attracted over $4.2 billion deals to the state.

The latest investment he confirmed was sealed on Tuesday last week with Zolt Energy Limited to build a 40 megawatts Embedded Power Generating Plant in Ogbaru. When completed in the next 18 months as scheduled, all the power generated from it will be distributed mainly in Anambra State.

On the state of agriculture, Obiano who was giving a score card of his two and half years stay in office disclosed that “in January this year, Anambra made headlines when it became the first state in Nigeria to export vegetables (Ugu and Onugbu) valued at $5million to Europe. 

Further, Obiano said "Our locally produced brand of rice known as Anambra Rice recently emerged the Best Rice in Africa at an African Products Forum in Lagos. Anambra Rice was adjudged better and more wholesome than other competing brands from South Africa, Egypt, Ghana, Morocco, Namibia and Cameroon.”

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Open data training kicks off for CAADP journalists

NaijaAgroNet:

A week-long open data training for members of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Journalists Network kicked off in Hilton Hotels, Nairobi, Kenya, reports NaijaAgroNet.

CAADP, NaijaAgroNet gathered, is a growth-focused on agricultural development agenda by African Union (AU) Heads of States and Government, aimed at increasing agriculture growth rates to a minimum of six per cent annually to create wealth.

According to the Programme Manager, Policy, Markets and Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) at CTA, Lamon Rutten, the ACP-EU Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) is leading the partnership for the open data training holding in Nairobi, Kenya from July 25-28, 2016.

This training, Rutten said, is part of the Global Open Data for Impact and Capacity Development on Agriculture and Nutrition (GODIVAN) scheme, a Department for International Development (DFID) project, implemented under a joint venture of international partners with the aim to increase production of the agricultural sector, improved nutrition for consumers and more evidence-based policy making, in which these desired changes are based on enabling communities practically engage with open data.

NaijaAgroNet also gathered that within the context of this project, CTA in partnership with the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Agency as facilitated by Local Development Research Institute (LDRI), is organising this 4-day open data training with the goal to build the capacity of media practitioners so as to monitor progress and report on the implementation of the CAADP through the use of agriculture data and research.

Remmy Nweke in Nairobi/ED, Ops

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Global per capita fish consumption rises above 20 kilogrammes a year

NaijaAgroNet:

The new State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture report urged for more work to rein in over-fishing, just as global per capita fish consumption has risen above 20 kilogrammes a year, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Global per capita fish consumption, NaijaAgroNet gathered rose above 20 kilogrammes per year for the first time, thanks to stronger aquaculture supply and firm demand, record hauls for some key species and reduced wastage, according to a new FAO report published today.

“Yet despite notable progress in some areas, the state of the world's marine resources has not improved, the latest edition of the UN agency's The State of World Fisheries and Aquaculture (SOFIA) says that almost a third of commercial fish stocks are now fished at biologically unsustainable levels, triple the level of 1974,” a press statement from Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) highlighted.

NaijaAgroNet also said that global total capture fishery production in 2014 was 93.4 million tonnes, including output from inland waters, up slightly over the previous two years. Just as Alaska pollock was the top species, replacing Anchoveta for the first time since 1998 and offering evidence that effective resource management practices have worked well.

“Record catches for four highly valuable groups - tunas, lobsters, shrimps and cephalopods - were reported in 2014,” FAO said.

SOFIA also said that there were around 4.6 million fishing vessels in the world in 2014, 90 per cent of which are in Asia and Africa, and only 64,000 of which were 24 meters or longer.

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva said that globally, fish provided 6.7 per cent of all protein consumed by humans, as well as offering a rich source of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins, calcium, zinc and iron. Some 57 million people were engaged in the primary fish production sectors, a third of them in aquaculture.

Fishery products, FAO said, accounted for one percent of all global merchandise trade in value terms, representing more than nine percent of total agricultural exports. Worldwide exports amounted to $148 billion in 2014, up from $8 billion in 1976. Developing countries were the source of $80 billion of fishery exports, providing higher net trade revenues than meat, tobacco, rice and sugar combined.

"Life below water, which the Sustainable Development Agenda commits us to conserve, is a major ally in our effort to meet a host of challenges, from food security to climate change.  This report shows that capture fisheries can be managed sustainably, while also pointing to the enormous and growing potential of aquaculture to boost human nutrition and support livelihoods with productive jobs," FAO boss said.

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UN agencies jointly take stock of El Niño impacts in Africa, Asia-Pacific, gear up for La Niña

NaijaAgroNet:

Three United Nations (UN) agencies recently jointly took stock of the “Long tail” of global weather phenomenon continuing to affect food security of millions – La Niña knock-on likely effects, reports NaijaAgroNet.

A press statement by the trio of FAO’s media relations officer, Mr. Peter Mayer, IFAD Communications Officer, Joanne Levitan and WFP Media officer, Frances Kennedy, said the 2015-16 El Niño weather phenomenon has been one of the strongest and most widespread of the past hundred years, destroying the livelihoods of farming families across the globe and leaving millions of people hungry.

Drought, they said, has gripped large swathes of East and southern Africa, ravaging harvests, while in Asia and the Pacific, drought has hit East Timor, Papua New Guinea and Viet Nam, whereas, El Niño associated storms have wiped out harvests on Fiji and its neighbours.

NaijaAgroNet reports that El Niño’s impact on agriculture has continued to drive up food insecurity, even though the weather event is over, which is likely to be compounded by La Niña in a few months’ time.

Response plans, the UN agencies said, were in place that could prevent more people from going hungry – but they must be adequately funded to avoid another prolonged humanitarian crisis.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that on Wednesday 6 July, FAO, the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD), and the World Food Programme (WFP) – are convening a one-day meeting to look at these challenges and how to best respond to them.

Government representatives, regional bodies, food security experts, agricultural development practitioners, humanitarian response specialists and international donors were in attendance.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

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2bn people live in drylands globally says FAO

NaijaAgroNet:

A total of 2 billion people live in drylands globally says the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) reports NaijaAgroNet.

The new study from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) helps to fill a significant knowledge gap on the presence and extent of forests and trees in the world's drylands, where the food security and livelihoods of millions of people, already precarious, are increasingly being threatened by climate change.

The study's preliminary findings made available to NaijaAgroNet Tuesday showed the full report will be launched later this year, showed that trees are present with hugely varying densities on almost one-third of the world's 6.1 billion hectares of drylands, which cover an area more than twice the size of Africa. Almost 18 percent of this area contains forests.

In addition to an estimated 2 billion people, FAO said, 90 percent of whom are in developing countries, live in drylands. Recent studies have indicated the need to restore these areas to cope with the effects of drought, desertification and land degradation.

In particular, water availability in drylands is expected to decline further due to changes in climate and land use.  Poor people living in remote rural areas will be most vulnerable to food shortages, which combined with violence and social upheaval, are already leading to forced migration in dryland regions in Africa and western Asia.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that until now, there has been little statistically based knowledge on dryland trees - particularly those growing outside forests - despite their vital importance to humans and the environment.

FAO further said that the leaves and fruit of trees are sources of food for people and fodder for animals; their wood provides fuel for cooking and heating and can be a source of income for poor households; trees protect soils, crops and animals from the sun and winds, while forests are often rich in biodiversity.

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Buhari, 36 governors: ‘Devote 5% of security votes on child malnutrition’

NaijaAgroNet:

The President, Muhammadu Buhari and all the 36 State Governors have been enjoined to devote, at least, five per cent of their security votes to the fight against child malnutrition in Nigeria, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Participants at the a two-day Media Dialogue on Child Malnutrition organized by UNICEF in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture for media practitioners, nutritionists and other stakeholders in Nigeria, in Owerri, Imo State made this call.

For participants, there could be no greater threat to the country than the one posed by severe child malnutrition which puts the lives of over 2.5 million innocent children on the line annually.

They also noted that government at all levels should create a specific budget line for Nutrition and ensure prompt release of funds.

Participants equally urged the government to ensure the availability of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Foods (RUTFs) in every state for urgent interventions in cases of emergency.

In addition, they advocated for government to create enabling environment for local production of RUTFs to minimize cost.

According to participants, with more attention given to the prevention of malnutrition to avoid its irreversible consequences such as stunted growth and poor brain development, it is important to important to see malnutrition as part of security for the larger society through provision of at least 5 per cent withdrawn from the supposed ‘security votes’ which comes in various colour across the country.

To this end, participants pointed out that consumption of bio-fortified foods should be encouraged especially among young mothers and children.

While producers of flour, salt, vegetable oil and sugar should be closely monitored by the various regulatory agencies to ensure they are fortified with vitamin A and iodine.

The participants, further called on corporate bodies and individuals should also endeavour to devote part of their earnings to support the global efforts towards eradication of child malnutrition.

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ANEC 2016 goes to Rivers State with agriculture, investment topping agenda

NaijaAgroNet:

The 12^th edition of the All Nigeria Editors Conference (ANEC) is headed to oil-rich Rivers State with top on the agenda being agriculture and investment, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The five-day conference slated for August 3 through 7 in Port Harcourt, capital of Rivers State comes with the theme: Economic Diversification: Agriculture as Option for a Prosperous Nigeria.

The Acting President of the Guild of Editors, Funke Egbemode, said no fewer than 300 Nigerian editors, a collection of mainstream farmers, agriculture financiers, policy-makers and captains of industry would be expected to grace the event.

“The sole emphasis on agriculture for this year’s conference was in response to the falling price of crude oil at the international market which has automatically reduced government’s earnings and revenue base. This is the first the conference is focusing on agriculture in the most pragmatic sense and it is meant to draw the nation’s attention to the limitless opportunities that abound in agriculture” Egbemode said.

She also quoted the host Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, as saying in a press statement available to NaijaAgroNet that the conference would afford the state the opportunity to showcase its investment potentials.

According to the Special Assistant to the Governor on Electronic Media, Simeon Nwakaudu, Wike noted that the conference would be a fitting platform to partner with editors and the media to consolidate development in both the state and the nation at large.

Wike pointed out that the state is hosting several national and international events as a demonstration of the fact that Rivers State is an investors’ destination, stressing that the state is peaceful and the people hospitable.

“Hosting this year’s conference will also make the editors witness first-hand the development projects and programmes of my administration which has improved the living standard of the people,” he said.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that the All Nigeria Editors’ Conference is the largest gathering of Nigerian editors and has become a watering hole of ideas that shaped government policies and programmes over the years, with the maiden edition held in 2004 at Ada, in Osun State.

Also, ANEC had previously attracted both local and foreign speakers as well as editors from organizations such as the West African Editors Forum (WAEF), the African Editors Forum (TAEF), the World Editors Forum (WEF) and the World Association of Newspapers (WAN).

This year’s edition has been tailored primarily to focus on agriculture as a counterfoil to the dwindling receipts from crude oil.  Speakers include a rich mix of practicing farmers, agriculture financiers and policy-makers.

The Founder of HoneySuckle PTL Ventures, Mosunmola Cynthia Umoru, would speak on Agriculture as Panacea for Unemployment while Mr. Kola Adeniji of Niji Farms would talk on Agriculture as a Foreign Exchange Earner.

The Chief Executive of Bank of Agriculture, Professor Danbala Danju would be explaining the 'Role of Banks in Agriculture Financing while Kano-based farmer, Muhammad Abubakar, the Managing Director of L&Z Integrated Farms would experientially explore the topic: Making the Most of Agriculture Value Chain.

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AU identifies priority actions for sustainable small-scale fisheries

NaijaAgroNet:

The Head of NEPAD’s Natural Resources Governance Programme, Dr Hamady Diop, has said that they have identified priority actions for sustainable development of small-scale fisheries, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Diop made this known at an AU-IBAR and NEPAD Agency’s joint side-event on Fisheries and Aquaculture in Africa, held in Rome recently.

“The Policy Framework and Reform Strategy acknowledges the diversity of uses of fish resources and advocates a broad, inclusive approach to fisheries management and aquaculture development,” he said.

Diop also noted that the priority is a blue print for fisheries and aquaculture to effectively contribute to Africa’s transformational goals.

He pointed out that Africa’s priority actions for the sustainable development of small-scale fisheries include strengthening the governance of the sector; improving the contribution of small-scale fisheries to food and nutritional security, and wealth creation; as well as reducing the susceptibility of small-scale fisheries to climate change and related risks.

In the case of aquaculture, priority actions, he said, among others include establishing an enabling environment; improving service delivery; capacity building; trans-boundary ecosystem management for aquaculture, and; innovation, which also entails research and development.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that the Policy Framework and Reform Strategy for Fisheries and Aquaculture in Africa addresses  conservation and sustainable resource use; Small scale fisheries development, Sustainable aquaculture development, Responsible and equitable fish trade and marketing, Strengthened regional and sub regional cooperation, Awareness Enhancing and human capacity development and High seas fisheries.

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Acute child malnutrition in Nigeria no longer for North-East only

NaijaAgroNet:

Stakeholders in the health, especially on children welfare have raised alarmed that acute child malnutrition in Nigeria is no longer problem of North-East, reports NaijaAgroNet.

This alarm was contained in the communique issued in Owerri after a two-day  Media Dialogue on Child Malnutrition organized by UNICEF in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture for media practitioners, nutritionists and other stakeholders in Nigeria.

The event which held with the theme “Good nutrition- An investment for the future” at the end of the deliberations at De Legend Hotel, Owerri, Imo State, participants noted that child malnutrition is on the rise in Nigeria despite concerted efforts by government, UNICEF and other development partners to combat it.

They stated that more worrisome was the fact that cases of acute child malnutrition, contrary to erroneous perceptions in some quarters, are no longer a problem of only the North East and parts of North West affected by insurgency.

“Acute child malnutrition now cuts across every state in Nigeria, as there are confirmed and shocking cases of malnutrition in other states of the country,” part of the communique read.

For them, government should declare a state of emergency on child malnutrition as findings and researches have shown that over 2.5 million children suffer from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) annually in Nigeria with about 20 per cent of them at the risk of imminent death unless there is quick intervention.

They also call on the Nigerian government to show more commitment towards the global efforts against child malnutrition, stressing that government at all levels should do more to complement the efforts of UNICEF and other development partners in fighting child malnutrition in the country.

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Pix: Baby Daniel Osuagwu ... a malnutrioushed child from Imo State

Fisheries contribute 1.26% to Africa GDP – Jia

NaijaAgroNet:

The Deputy Director at the Fisheries and Aquaculture Department of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), Mr. Jiansan Jia, has disclosed that fisheries contributes 1.2 per cent to Africa’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), reports NaijaAgroNet.

Jia made this disclosure in his welcome remarks to the side event organised by the African Union Inter African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) and the NEPAD Agency.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that the event was convened at the 32nd FAO Committee on Fisheries, on 14 July in Rome, in order to share the African Union’s agenda on sustainable development and management of small-scale fisheries and aquaculture with the global community.

According to him, fish is a valuable and vital renewable resource which, if managed properly, and could provide huge benefits to both present and future generations.

African aquatic resources, he said, contributes significantly to food and nutritional security, income generation and economic welfare.

“The sector currently contributes 1.26 percent to Africa’s GDP and 6 percent to the continent’s agricultural GDP, but it could contribute so much more,” he declared.

With effective and sustainable management, Jia pointed out that aquatic resources have the potential to make even greater contributions to Africa’s economies and livelihoods.

Equally speaking, the AU-NEPAD Senior Advisor to Rome-based African Ambassadors, Ambassador Haladou Salha said priority actions have been identified.

“To this end, priority actions with clear milestones, indicators and responsibilities of stakeholders have been identified in the Policy Framework and Reform Strategy for Fisheries and Aquaculture in Africa,” he said.

Salha, also pointed out the need to transform fisheries and aquaculture into a more vibrant sector as was reaffirmed by African leaders in the 2014 Malabo Declaration on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation for Shared Prosperity and Improved Livelihoods.

“It is therefore in support of the goals of the Malabo Declaration, that the Policy Framework and Reform Strategy for Fisheries and Aquaculture in Africa was developed and endorsed by the African Union Heads of State and Government.

For AU-IBAR’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy Analyst, Mr. Obinna Anozie, AU-IBAR’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy Analyst, presented the continental strategy’s focus on the development and management of small-scale fisheries and the development of aquaculture.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

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Pix: Dr Hamady Diop (Head of NEPAD’s Natural Resources Governance Programme); Mr Obinna Anozie (AU-IBAR’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Policy Analyst); Ambassador Haladou Salha (AU-NEPAD Senior Advisor to Rome-based African Ambassadors)

Grazing Reserve: FG has no cattle business - South-South, South-East Legislators

NaijaAgroNet:

The Legislators from South-East and South-southern States of the Federation have asked the Federal Government (FG) to hands off the proposed bill before the National Assembly seeking for the creation of National Grazing Commission, insisting that FG has no cattle business, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The lawmakers who met in Owerri, the Imo State capital on the theme: "Alternatives to Militancy and the Harmonisation of South-East/South-South Grazing Reserve Proposals" unequivocally condemned the proposed National Grazing bill.

They insisted that it is glaring that the Federal Government thus far has no cattle business and at such should not pass a Discriminatory Law that favours cattle rearing which is a private enterprise, like any other private business.

The motions moved on the floor of the house, with all the Speakers of the Houses of Assembly in the two zones was presided over by the Speaker of Imo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Acho Ihim.

The motion on the position of the legislators of the South-East and South-south Houses of Assembly in respect of the Grazing reserves proposals and the activities of the herdsmen in the Geo-political zones, urged the Presidency among other things to step up action and direct security agencies in the country to brace up and be alive to their constitutional responsibility of protecting lives and property and save the people of the Geo-political zones from the hands of the marauding herdsmen. 

The response so far, they maintained, is below expectations, not proactive, and serious enough in tackling the challenges posed by the activities of the herdsmen.

They also moved for alternative measures to resolve the present dispute in the Niger Delta instead of the Militancy approach adopted by both the aggrieved people of the Niger Delta and the Federal Government.

And urged the Federal Government to reassess and revisit the performance of the Amnesty Programme, the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) Report and the Hydrocarbon Pollution Restoration Project (HYPREP) with a view to strengthening grey areas and improve their implementation.

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Pix: a cross section of participating lawmakers

South-South, South-East States’ Lawmakers say ‘NO’ to grazing reserve

NaijaAgroNet:

The first joint parliamentary session of South-East and South-south State Houses of Assembly ended in Owerri, Imo State, Friday with a declaration to prohibit grazing of cattle in the geo-zones in all ramifications, report NaijaAgroNet.

The session hosted by Imo State House of Assembly, with the Theme: "Alternatives to Militancy and the harmonisation of South-East/South-South Grazing Reserve Proposals" condemned the proposed National Grazing bill currently being sponsored on the floor of the National Assembly.

Also the session urge the various Houses of Assembly in the South-East and South-south zones to pass bills restricting cattle rearing, prohibit grazing of cattle from one location to another through farmlands which has the tendency for causing damages to farm farmlands, health hazards, and obstruction of vehicular and human traffic.

“And to reject the proposed Bill to Establish and Control Grazing Routes and Reserves before the National Assembly and State Houses of Assembly,” the parliamentarians said in a public statement made available to NaijaAgroNet.

According to the Deputy Speaker of Imo State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Ugonna Ozurigbo, the session equally urged the Governors of the South-East and South-South to establish special task forces drawn from various security agencies and neighbourhood watch in each Local Government to checkmate the excesses of herdsmen and prosecute them.

They argued that the proposed bill tend to authorize the National Grazing Commission to take over any piece of land they so please, and pay a token as compensation for such, completely negates the spirit of capitalist economy which Nigeria runs.

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Pix: South-South+South East Speakers of House of Assembly with Gov. Okorocha,

Malnutrition: NEMA commences feeding of 1.6m IDPs in Borno State

NaijaAgroNet:

The North-East zonal office of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) in Maiduguri, has commenced direct responsibility of daily feeding of estimated 1.6 million Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), reports NaijaAgroNet.

This present activity, NaijaAgroNet learnt has taken off at various resettlement camps and other satellite centres across Borno State, in effort to address malnutrition and other related humanitarian issues currently being faced by IDP camps.

The North East Coordinator of the agency, Mallam Mohammed Kanar, made this disclosure at the flag-off of the distribution and presentation of relief items to officials of State Emergency Management Agency, SEMA, for onward delivery to IDPs in the state.

“The decision to resume 100% feeding of IDPs by NEMA is to complement effort of the state government and other humanitarian agencies. With sustained effort by the military in liberating many communities, more IDPs are now willing to go back to their communities to continue their normal lives” he said.

He pointed out, NEMA was solely feeding the IDPs, but it stopped doing so in the last two to three months following coordinated effort by the federal and the state government and other international donor agencies in managing the crisis.

He noted that with concerted efforts of President Muhammadu Buhari towards the plight of IDPs and victims of insurgency, NEMA had been mandated to resume and take care of feeding of IDPs.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that recently, officials of Medicine San Frontiers, known as Doctors without Borders, reported that there was acute malnutrition and food crisis at various camps in Borno State, leading to deaths, but the state government through Governor Kashim Shettima denied the report.

The governor insisted that those that suffered severe malnutrition in Bama and other camps were some hostages freed from insurgency, who spent over two years in captivity without enough food and access to health care delivery before they were taken to IDP camps.

Uboshe Uboshe/GEE

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What Pope Francis told FAO

NaijaAgroNet:

The Catholic pontiff, Pope Francis, has told the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) his desire over its role in the new Mediterranean migration initiative to save 2,500 people food insecurity, reports NaijaAgroNet.

The Holy Father in a meeting with FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva commended the agency's efforts to address migration in the Mediterranean region as well as its work to promote the strong links between peace and food security, climate change and sustainable development.

Graziano da Silva while briefing the pontiff on FAO's Blue Hope Initiative said it seeks to transform Southern Mediterranean coastal zone communities into engines of stability and growth, in particular by supporting the activities of small-scale fisheries.

"Migration is an issue which is very close to Pope Francis' heart. Much more needs to be done to tackle what is happening in the Mediterranean where more than 2,500 people are estimated to have died so far this year in attempts to reach Europe by sea," the FAO Director-General said after today's meeting.

The pontiff and Graziano da Silva also discussed the current peace efforts underway in Colombia and in the Central African Republic and the hope that lasting solutions will be found for the conflict in the two countries.

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El Nino impact at Dry Land corridor, leaves 3.5m people food insecure

NaijaAgroNet:

The El Niño climate event is having a devastating impact on agriculture in Central America’s Dry Corridor where one of the worst droughts in decades has left 3.5 million people food insecure, reports NaijaAgroNet.

In the most affected countries of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras some, NaijaAgroNet gathered that some 2.8 million people are dependent on food aid.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and World Food Programme (WFP) at the end of June organized a high-level meeting in Rome, to focus on the urgent need for long-term action to address the impact of El Niño, including building resilience for food security and nutrition for the most vulnerable populations in the affected countries.

El Niño and its counterpart La Niña occur cyclically, but in recent years, mainly due to the effects of global climate change, extreme weather events associated with these phenomena, such as droughts and floods, have increased in frequency and severity.

This situation, NaijaAgroNet report, is also putting at risk the livelihoods of millions of small-scale family farmers in the Dry Corridor, many of whom are heavily dependent on subsistence agriculture.

The aim of the high-level meeting is to increase awareness of, and the response to, this protracted and recurrent crisis, and to mobilize the international community to support the efforts of governments, UN agencies and other partners.

This includes strengthening of early warning systems, disaster risk management, and improving preparedness and coordination for emergency responses at national and regional levels.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE
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Conde urges improved fisheries governance in Africa, reiterates AU commitment

NaijaAgroNet:

The President of the Republic of Guinea, Professor Alpha Conde, has urged for improved fisheries governance on the continent of Africa, reiterating African Union (AU) commitment to conducive environment, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Conde in a keynote address at the 32nd Session of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Committee on Fisheries (COFI) held recently in Rome, declared that his initiatives as champion will reinforce the efforts already undertaken by the African Union in creating an environment conducive to dialogue on African development issues.

Conde who also doubles as the NEPAD Agency’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Champion, implored African Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives to the United Nations agencies based in Rome to drum support for continuous improvement in the governance of the fisheries sector in Africa.

President Conde further committed himself to support the implementation of reforms in the fisheries sector for effective governance of this important sector towards Africa’s development.

The contribution of fisheries to national economies in Africa is quite significant.  Revenues amount to nearly $24 billion per year, representing 1.26 per cent of the continent’s GDP and 6.02 per cent of its agricultural GDP.  Moreover, the sector provides more than 12 million people with direct employment. Women account for a quarter of the workforce in the sector and are also active in fish processing.

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva, in his remarks, emphasised that fisheries and aquaculture are not only important for eradication of poverty and hunger, but are also key to improving nutrition.

Challenges, he said, exist in the fisheries and aquaculture sectors that require urgent action, stressing that among them are the over-exploitation of fishery resources, the growing expansion of international demand for fish to which is added the lack of capacity of African institutions for adequate management of fisheries resources on the continent. 

Mr. Jose further said that the result of this is that Africa generally has the lowest fish consumption, estimated at 9 kg per capita, which represents less than half of the world average of 21 kg.  The per capita consumption is expected to decline further due to illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing.

NaijaAgroNet, to counter the challenges of fishing on the continent, African Heads of State and Government adopted a policy framework and a fisheries and aquaculture reform strategy in July 2014 in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea, with the aim of improving governance of the sector for the benefit of its people.

In addition African countries including Benin, Mauritius, Mozambique, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa and Sudan are party to FAO’s international accord aimed at stamping out illegal fishing which came into effect in June 2016.  The Agreement on Port State Measures to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing (PSMA) is the world's first illegal fishing treaty.

Mr. Jose Graziano da Silva encouraged other countries to also be party to this agreement as soon as possible. “The agreement must be used with other tools in order to attain sustainable and legal fisheries. Generations to come will recognise the importance of this achievement,” he said.

Isaac Oyimah/GEE

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