AU member states urged to increase agric funding

African Union (AU) members have been urged to increase the funding meant for agriculture in other to boost food security and as a means of reducing poverty among Africans, reports CAADP Newsletter

This call was made at the end of the 7th Partnership Platform meeting of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) by Tumusiime Rhoda Peace, AU Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture.

Rhoda Peace stressed that priority should be given to agricultural sector as it provides employment for African youths and women.

The session with the theme “Mutual Accountability in the formulation and implementation of country CAADP investment plans” had over 260 participants, with at least 21 countries in attendance at Yaoundé in Cameroon meeting.

CAADP Newsletter also revealed that the roles of development partners are being appreciated while noting that no success will be recorded without their active partnership.

While drawing attention to the need for an increased mutual accountability structures and process in Africa, Rhoda Peace, reaffirmed AU continued commitment in taking leadership collaboration with partners.

Ms Julie Howard who speaks on behalf of the developing partners assured the gathering of their continuous support in capacity building and regional CAADP plans in ensuring that the plans are being achieved. Read more

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Namibian government to help Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia with N75m

The government of Namibia will give the sum of $500, 000 to aid Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia to fight drought, one the worst drought in decades, reports NewEra

Recently an appeal was made to international community by the United Nations to assist Somalia and other affected countries with emergency aid.

'Save Somalia', an initiative of the Namibia Red Cross Society and Mobile Telecommunications Company (MTC) has also been launched to assist people of the affected nations.

While looking at proper channel to fund the needs of targeted populace, Utoni Nujoma, Namibian Foreign Affairs Minister disclosed decisions by government to assist Somalia at the launch of 'Save Somalia'. Read More

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Food Security: Global food prices increase by 40.4%

An analysis by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) revealed that the price of global food has increased by 40.4 per cent between July 2010 and February 2011, reports TheDailyStar.

Also, ADB noted that demand and supply sides as major factors affecting the rate at which the price increases, other factors, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

FAO said these include increase in world population and strong income growth in developing economies.

The use of food grains like corn and rapeseed oil in the production of bio-fuel, the study said contributed a great deal to the food price inflation.

Further, the study stated that with agricultural land being converted to commercial use, a rise in the cost of input, neglect suffered agricultural investment, low crop yield all reduces the farm produce which in really affects the price as more people will be after few supplies.

A study by The Oxford Economics Global Models reveals that the food price hike will lead to higher inflation, reducing economic growth rate of developing Asia but this will lead to an increase in GDP of food exporting countries like Thailand, China and Korea.

Increasing food production worldwide has become the first priority now for meeting the challenge of growing demand of food this year, with FAO giving an estimation of two per cent increase in the production of cereal. Read more

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N246m boost for sugarcane production in Africa

Yinka Awosanya

The United Nation’s Common Fund for Commodities has given $1.6 million about N246m for a research project on Ivory Coast and Nigeria to test different species of sugarcane in an effort to boost production, reports Reuters.

Head of the Ivorian National Center for Agronomic Research, Amoncho Adiko, affirmed that researchers from the two West African nations would test about 40 different types of sugarcane with the aim of helping small-scale farmers boost output.

This effort, NaijaAgroNet gathered would increase the production for small-scale farmers which covers just 3,700 hectares of land, whereas large-scale uses up to 22,000 hectares of land for sugar cane production in Ivory Coast.

Adiko said the two nations will contribute the remaining amount needed for the project as the total amount required is $2.1m about N315million.

Part of the essence of the project is to identify sugarcane that small-scale farmers could grow during rain, in order to bridge the gap between them and large-scale farmers that uses irrigation on their farms.

“Villagers need a variety of cane that grows with the rain,” Adiko said

The test is to be taken on varieties of sugarcane from Mauritius, Brazil, Sudan, South Africa and Swaziland. The research is expected to last for about half a decade after which the new varieties of sugarcane will be distributed. Read more

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Two-thirds of Africans derive income from agriculture

Yinka Awosanya

With two-thirds of African population depending on agriculture for their incomes, yet between 50 and 80 per cents of these are spent on food; these two figures well illustrate the importance of agric to the continent.

To this end, the former Prime Minister of Niger, Dr. Ibrahim Assane Mayaki, said that its necessary to invest in the agricultural sector as it’s the only sector that could absorb millions of youths, noting that over the last two decades aid dedicated to agriculture have declined from 18 per cent to four per cent.

Mayaki, warned that Africans could be left to face a phenomenal bomb if youths are not fully engaged in agriculture; a means to curb the high rate of unemployment in youths on the continent. Read more

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Cocoa affected by economic crisis - ICCO

Yinka Awosanya

The London-based International Cocoa Organisation (ICCO) has said that the economic crisis of 2008 and 2009 affected the cocoa industry.

ICCO in its annual report 2008/2009 made available to NaijaAgroNet revealed that Cocoa grinding within the year under review was affected by the global economic crisis, although the year was a good year for cocoa farmers and the cocoa exporting nations.

The annual report showed that despite the 6.6 per cent estimated global decline of cocoa grinding, Asia and Oceania had the hardest hit in cocoa grinding upon having a decline of 20 per cent in the two regions.

The effect of the crisis has a limited effect on chocolate production and consumption with price development remaining positive.

Confirming this, the chairman of ICCO, Dr. Victor Iyama, noted with the expiration of the current International Cocoa Agreement of 2001 in 2012, also gave high priority to the preparation of a future International Cocoa Agreement since signature and ratification of concerned nations takes time. Read more

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GTBank loans N5.55billion to agricultural projects

In an effort to boost capacity, increase production and employment opportunity in the nation’s agriculture sector, GTBank has given out N5.55billion in loans to eight commercial agricultural projects across the country.

Vanguard reports that the funds provided by the bank through its Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme (CACS) have been put to use in almost all aspects of agriculture ranging from crop and animal farming to fishery.

Segun Agbaje, the Chief Executive of GTB was quoted as saying they believe that profitability potentials inherent in the agriculture sector would be enough to attract financing, making it a sustainable profitable business for banks like GTB. Read more.

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Nigeria contributes 5% of world cocoa - ICO

A recent report by the International Cocoa Organization (ICO) revealed that Nigeria only contributes five per cent of the world cocoa production at present, reports NigerianTribune.

The report noted that decades ago cocoa generated about 90 per cent of Nigeria’s foreign exchange, even as most of today's leaders were trained with the income from it and monuments built in the South West part of the country from the same income.

Also, the report stated that Nigeria is the only country whose cocoa production has reduced drastically of all the six leading producers in the world, despite contributing a record of eight per cent of the total cocoa production in the world, coming fourth after Ghana in 1982. Read more

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Zambia records bumper maize harvest

The 2010/2011 farming season in Zambia ended with a massive harvest of 3,020,380 metric tons maize to beat the previous season's harvest of 2,795,485 metric tons by eight per cent, reports ThePost.

Brain Tembo, the Executive Chairman of Zambian Agriculture Commodities Exchange (ZAMACE) said there are no reasons to celebrate the abundant harvest since there is a break in the marketing policies and government also spent uncontrolled expenditure on the grains.

He also advised the government to make setting up silos storage centre an investment priority and the establishment of community dryers to discourage small holder farmers from relying on sun to dry their crops. Read more

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Extinction awaits freshwater fish - Scientists

Scientists have blamed human activities for the extinction of freshwater fish, even as more than one third of the fish is threaten to extinct by overfishing and construction.

Telegraph have it that with more than 7.5million African relying on fresh water fish for food and income, the scientists further warned that the loss survive by the fish could have terrible repercussion for human.

Manager of freshwater unit at the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List in Cambridge said with some gaps in their knowledge, 36 per cent of the 5, 685 species accessed are threatened. Read more

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