ITU urges COP 17 delegates to examine potentials of ICT

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has advised delegates at the up-coming United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 17) to address the great potentials of ICT in cutting emissions across all sectors of the economy.

This call was made during the ITU Symposium on ICTs and Climate Change which held in Ghana, last weekend.

ITU in a press statement made available to NaijaAgroNet stated that there should be an approach to manufacturing and recycling in order to reduce the need to extract and process raw materials.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that ITU also asked for the recognition of the value of ICTs in monitoring deforestation, crop patterns coupled with other environmental phenomena.

ITU, Secretary General, Dr. Hamadoun Toure was quoted as emphasizing on the organisation’s commitment to provide the technical know-how to mitigate and adapt to climate change.

“… It's clear to observers that ICTs have a very cogent role to play,” he declared.

Equally, he said, recognizing the role ICTs at the international level would pave the way for solid argument for countries in rolling out climate change strategies with a strong ICT element.

Also speaking, the Director, Telecommunication Standardization Bureau at ITU said, a world without ICT in this era is unthinkable as it integrated into almost every parts of the society.

Malcolm also said the increasing use of ICTs have changed lives with a boost to the economic growth.

"The success of technology means it is itself a growing contributor to greenhouse gas emissions." he said.

He also said a message that must be carried to COP 17 is that ICTs is providing the most significant opportunity to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, waste disposal, building and transport.

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AU, NEPAD urge implementation of SUN

Stakeholders involved in the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) across the continent have been urged by the African Union and New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) to assist in the management and implementation of SUN policies, reports GNA.

This call was contained in a joint statement by the duo to the UN General Assembly on Africa Food and Nutrition Security recently.

According to the statement, AU recognized the huge problems of hunger, poverty, food and food insecurity with its result in malnutrition affecting mostly children and women.
They also noted that the success of SUN and related initiatives in Africa depend on capacity building and the effective usage of structures and policies within the continent.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that the launch of SUN in September 2010 was acknowledged in the statement, while appreciating the global initiative meant to address the problems. Read more

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‘No Agriculture, no deal’ goes to COP-17

The Chief Executive Officer of Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN), Ms Lindiwe Sibanda has urged African negotiators to ensure that they secure a deal for agriculture at the forthcoming 17th Conference of the Parties (COP 17) billed for Durban, South Africa next month.

According to Lindiwe, a deal that would promote food security so as to ensure that climate change does not bring any further devastation to the continent, reports SA.

If they should fail to make a deal at during the COP 17, Sibanda noted that the meeting to be held in Durban between November 28 and October 9, then the civic society would rise against it as any deal that does not have agriculture as a stand-alone sector betrays the farming sector and anybody that needs food to survive.

Lindiwe affirmed that the “No Agriculture, no deal” campaign is being put in place by FANRPAN not for protest but to ensure that African negotiators going for the COP 17 come out of the conference with a responsible deal about climate change that affects agriculture. Read more

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World Bank increases support for Africa's worst drought

With countries in the Horn of African facing the worst drought in decades, the World Bank would increase the aid going to this region by over $500 million to $1.88 billion, an estimated N284.4 billion.

This gesture assistance also coincides with the UN mini-summit to the affected region, reports CNN.

A source from the Bank Head on Saturday said the worst famine in African has caused malnutrition, food insecurity and people's displacement.

Ban Ki-Moon, the UN Secretary General also said 13 million Africans from Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Djibouti were in dare need of help.

While describing the drought in the Horn of Africa as the "worst humanitarian crisis in the world", Ban Ki-Moon said additional $700 million about N110.6billion is needed this year to assist the region. Read more

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China donates grains to Africa worth N11.7bn

The Chinese Foreign Minister, Yang Jiechi, has concluded plans to donate emergency grains and fund wotrth N11.7bn to assist Africa, reiterating the Chinese resolve to continuously contribute to the food security in African countries in partnership with other international communities, reports GlobalTimes.

He made these known in an address at the Ministerial Mini-Summit on the Humanitarian Response to the Horn of Africa at the United Nations General Assembly's 66th Session on Saturday, noting that the drought and famine in Northern Africa is a great concern to the Chinese government.

According to him, the Chinese government woud give emergency grains' aid and monetary donations worth $70million about N11.07billion to the affected African region.

"It is the largest amount of grain assistance in Chinese foreign aid since the founding of the New China" Yang said. Read More

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ECOWAS trains 358 more youths on agriculture

As part of the efforts by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS') to build-up human capacity the sub-region, the community has concluded training of about 71 youths on agriculture.

The latest training brings the figure of beneficiaries to 358 youths who have so far participated in the previous editions of the programme, just as 287 had earlier benefited.

This, ECOWAS said would encourage and empower youths for self reliance, reports StarAfrica.

Director for the ECOWAS centre, Mr. Francis Chuks Njoaguani confirmed this, saying the programme is aimed at enabling youths to contribute to the regional food security started five years ago.

He noted that already some 287 youths have participated in the previous editions of the programme.

He said that the latest training was organized by ECOWAS Youth and Sports Development Centre based in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, the training programme which was held at the Songhai Centre in Porto Novo, Benin run for a month and covered various production aspects of agriculture.

He urged the participants at the end of the programme to optimize the benefit of the training so as to realize a future of their dream. Read more.

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Biosafety: Gates Foundation supports NEPAD with N236.9m grant

The African Union's NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency would soon receive a grant of $1,489,098, about N236.9 million in support of the African Biosafety Network of Expertise (ABNE) that is in progress by January 2012.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that assisting Africa is the major goal of ABNE in the effort to build a functional biosafety system for sustainable and safe application of agricultural biotechnology.

The achievement of this objective, it was also gathered by NaijaAgroNet, to be achieved through the empowerment of African regulators with science-based biosafety information, training and education, in addition to technical assistance and biosafety capacity building programmes.

The fund, NEPAD officials said, is granted following the submission of a proposal to the foundation for supplementary grant in order to expand the support to African regulators with more staff and to also align with the African Union (AU) remuneration policies.

NEPAD further revealed that the grant would be accessible by January 2012.

The grant from Bill Gates foundation made the total grant awarded for the Phase II to be $11,929,537 which is about N1.9 billion.

NaijaAgroNet equally gathered that the grant is important to bridge financial shortfalls in meeting programmatic activities and to ensure ABNE delivers on its objectives as revealed in the grant proposal.

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NaijaAgroNet wins Highway Africa new media prize

The 2011 edition of the Highway Africa conference ended recently in the city of Cape Town, South Africa, with Nigeria winning the first runner up by a Lagos-based NaijaAgroNet, an initiative of DigitalSENSE Africa (DSA) Media.

DSA was honoured for the innovative use of new media for corporate category at this year's Highway Africa New Media Award, which held penultimate Sunday night.

The prize was presented to the Executive Director, Operations, DigitalSENSE Africa Media, Mrs. Nkemdilim Nweke by the Honourable Minister of Information, Nigeria, Mr. Labaran Maku in the company of the Vice Chancellor of Rhodes University, Grahamstown, Dr. Saleem Badat and Group Executive Director, Telkom, Mrs. Brenda Kali among others.

Commenting briefly on the award, Maku commended the management of DSA for the initiative and invited more Nigerians to emulate such step to sustain the tempo of good image for the nation.

Equally reacting after receiving the award, the Executive Director, Operations, DigitalSENSE Africa, Mrs. Nkemdilim Nweke, expressed gratitude to God Almighty for his mercies, especially considering the fact that NaijaAgroNet was an initiative that berthed a few months ago.

This award, she said, indicates there is a brighter future for online revolution in the most populous nation on the continent and the world generally.

The event which held at the Cape Town International Conference Centre (CICC), also saw Nigeria emerging finalists in all the three categories, namely the individual, student and corporate at the award supported by the South Africa Broadcasting Corporation (SABC), and Telkom South Africa.

Other Nigerian-based initiatives that made it to the finalist included African Interest and Africa Athletes; all are online based outfits.

Welcoming participants to the event earlier, Director, Highway Africa, Mr. Chris Kabwato noted that on January 12, 2004, when his family of two adult and three children came to the university town of Grahamstown in the Eastern Cape from Johannesburg, their expectation was uncertain.

“It was a terribly hot day and the infant was irritable,” he said, stressing that the eight years after, it has been an incredible journey for the entire family.

According to him, it is not very often that one declares that certain jobs were made for some people, yet he thinks of having the Highway Africa DNA.

He pointed out that today, Highway Africa now consists of research, education and training of future journalists programme; conferences, namely the Highway Africa and Digital Citizen Indaba.

Although he said, they were not relenting; Kabwato said that his team is now morphing into a distinct entity called the Highway Africa Centre, with the support of Rhodes University, its parent entity, the School of Journalism and Media Studies, sponsors and great team to take Highway Africa to another level.

He emphasized that 15 years of Highway Africa, it is appropriate to celebrate what have been collectively achieved and look forward to the next 15 years.

“Celebrate with us; comrades and friends and I hope our timely conference will be an occasion for learning, sharing and taking action to save our world, especially with the theme of this year:

African Media and the Global Sustainability Challenge.

Meanwhile, a Nigerian new media outlet, the NaijaAgroNet.blogspot.com published by DigitalSENSE Africa Media, was recognized with enlisting into the finalist for the 2011 year.

NaijaAgroNet is a project of DigitalSENSE Africa (DSA) Media with concentration on bridging the digital gap between the teeming youths of Nigeria, technologies and agro-business.

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GEJ prioritizes agriculture - Okonji Iweala

The current Federal Government administration led by President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan (GEJ) has prioritized agriculture.

Finance Minister, Dr. Ngozi Okonji-Iweala made this disclosure at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF) meeting in Washington DC to negotiate a $550million about N86,8billion financing from the World Bank for the country, MenaFn.

She noted that the present administration is keen at creating jobs for the teaming unemployed populace and in particular the youths.

According to her, agriculture is part of the priorities of the government in driving this dream home, re

She also told newsmen that the financing is meant to meet the federal government's transformation agenda couple with the land pollution at the Niger Delta region.

Okonji-Iweala said that other sector that the loan will be put into use is environmental issues among others.

She affirmed that the responses of multilateral institution to Nigeria’s request have been quite encouraging and the deal will be finalized upon the arrival of the new World Bank Country Director for Nigeria. Read more

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Kenya urges ACP to invest more in agrotech

A call has been made by Kenya to African, Caribbean and Pacific States (APC) countries to give more funds to agricultural and technology development in order to help its marketability, reports CoastWeek

This call was made by Romano Kiome, Kenya Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture while at Eastern and Southern Africa agricultural meeting in Nairobi, Kenya recently.

He said if agriculture is to become a profitable venture in the continent, the priorities must be inputs, markets, credit and institutions.

Inputs like seeds, fertilizer, external market, loans, research and supports from governments, he said are catalysts to a revolution in agriculture within the continent.

He also said that the use of technology in agriculture in the continent is low when compared to other nations of the world, hence the result in low productivity. Read more

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