20 Kenyan firms deliberate on extension advisory services

Twenty organizations under the leadership of the Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Co-operation have their representatives in Nairobi, Kenya for a deliberation and discussion on extension and advisory services for farmers, reports FijiTimes.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that Kenyan Assistant Minister for Agriculture, Kareke Mbiuki while addressing delegates at the opening ceremony affirmed that there are people in Kenya who could not afford two meals a day and that one billion people all over the world are insecure when it comes to food, hence he said investing in agriculture is of great importance.

Also speaking was Niels Roling, an emeritus professor of Communication and Innovation studies at the Wageningen University in Netherlands who said "Extension and advisory services are sick but not dead."

"There are one billion hungry people today and the world population is expected to reach 9.1 billion by 2050. There will have to be a 70 per cent increase in food production to feed the world by 2050," said Xiangjun Yao, the director of Knowledge, Exchange, Research and Extension at the Food and Agriculture Organization. Read more

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Members task IFAD on new funding sources

Aside the new funds for the Ninth Replenishment Funds (IFAD9), Member States of the International Food for Agricultural Development (IFAD) have urged the organisation to find new sources of funding.

The new sources, according to the communiqué from the IFAD9 is expected to effectively share the development burden more broadly, including raising investment from non-members and others.

At the meeting conducted for the Consultations on the Ninth Replenishment of the Fund's resources (IFAD) in Rome, member states also recognized IFAD's commitments and works.

They further commended its work in delivering value for money and making unprecedented efforts to overcome the effects of widespread budgetary difficulties to ensure the funds has sufficient resources for its purpose to poor rural people worldwide.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that though some countries donated more than the amounts contributed at previous IFAD replenishments, IFAD9 is the highest percentage increase of contributions of any international financial institution in the current round of replenishment as some countries included in the United Nations (UN) list of ‘least developed countries’ has not been participating in previous replenishments has also announced their contributions.

The Governing Council of IFAD will receive the Report and Resolution of the Consultation for adoption in February 2012.

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FG plans ban of imported cassava flour by March

The Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) has concluded plans to ban the importation of cassava flour by March this year, even as it offers 12 per cent rebate for attaining 40 per cent blending for cassava break bakers.

Addressing recently the members of the joint National Assembly session in Abuja, the federal capital territory on the 2012 budget, President Goodluck Jonathan disclosed this.

He said that the government is also introducing policies to encourage the substitution of high quality cassava flour for wheat flour in bread-baking.

Noting that wheat flour for bread-baking is usually imported into the country, but with the substitution, Nigeria would be saving huge sums of money, especially in the capital flight.

Bakeries, according to him, would have 18 months, that is, from March when the ‘cassava flour’ policy takes effect to make the transition and enjoy a corporate tax incentive of 12 per cent rebate if they attain 40 per cent blending.

“With effect from March 31st 2012, importation of cassava flour will be prohibited so as to further support this programme,” he said.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that as noted by him, all equipment for processing of high quality cassava flour and composite flour blending will enjoy a duty free regime as incentive to bakers for composite flour utilization.

Consultations, he said, is on-going with the sector to ensure a smooth transition.

“It is common wisdom that the best way we can grow our economy and create jobs for our people is for us to patronize Nigerian-made goods,” he said.

Jonathan said this is why his government is introducing enabling policies to drive this process. Hence, they are introducing fiscal policy measures that will encourage the purchase and utilization of locally produced commodities.

From July 1st 2012, he said, wheat flour will attract a levy of 65 per cent to bring the effective duty to 100 per cent, while wheat grain will attract a 15 per cent levy which will bring the effective duty to 20 per cent.

Equally, Mr. President revealed in his address made available to NaijaAgroNet that there will be a levy of 25 per cent on brown rice to bring it to 30 per cent and in addition, to encouraging domestic rice production, a levy of 40 per cent will be placed on imported polished rice leading to an effective duty rate of 50 per cent.

“Effective December 31st 2012, all rice millers should move towards domestic production and milling of rice, as the levy of 50 per cent will be further raised to 100 per cent,” he said, stressing that there will be no waivers or concessions for rice and wheat importation by end of this year, 2012.

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Nigerians lament unaccessible water

Considering the fact that water is one of the essentials to life, its source and accessibility seems to become a problem to all and sundry.

NaijaAgroNet investigations showed that in some parts of the Nigeria water remains a scarce resource and expensive while in other parts it is the cheapest and most available resources at all time.

Speaking with NaijaAgroNet, an undergraduate student of Kaduna Polytechnic, Saheedat Adegbite, said that the source of water for her household is borehole and it is always up and running all year round and serves the household accessibility to drinkable water in and out of season.

According to her, other compounds around also benefit from the water free-of-charge.

Dada Adedeji, a 300 level student of Computer Studies, Olabisi Onabanjo University said there is borehole in his compound in school unlike in his home town where one has to walk up to about 300 meters to get a 25 litres of water for N5 or N10 depending on the source of power available at that particular point in time.

Adedeji noted that power failure in his home town for five days kept everybody on their toes as a blink of the light will make everyone rush down to the borehole for water which might take one day to fetch from a tank of 150 litres.

The water in his compound at school, he said, is up and running and when it goes off, there are public water within the street.

Speaking to NaijaAgroNet during the week a primary school teacher in Oshodi, who gave her name as Mama Juliet said that water still remains one of the major problems in this country.

"My daughter have to go to the nearby borehole, which is about 100 meters to get a 25 litres of water for N5 when there is light or N10 without light," she said.

The water in her compound, she added is faulty and the landlord is making no attempt to put it in order and this is the reason why every tenant has to walk up to 200 meters or more to get water which in most cases is not drinkable.

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Govt, Nigerian banks to share 70% loans on seeds, fertilizer

The Federal Government and Nigerian banks have concluded plans to share 70 per cent loans on seeds and fertilizer.

President Goodluck Jonathan made this disclosure during his latest joint address to the National Assembly in Abuja, the federal capital territory on the 2012 budget.

He said that in order to unleash the potential of this sector, the Federal Ministry of Finance has put in place a mechanism to share risks with the banking sector by guaranteeing 70 per cent of the principal of all loans made for supply of seeds and fertilizer by the private sector.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that Jonathan noted that to get the inputs to farmers at an affordable cost, the Federal Government is subsidizing the interest rate on these loans to bring it down from 15 per cent to 7 per cent per annum.

The Minister of Agriculture and the Central Bank, President Jonathan said, would be collaborating to extend these services for credit availability for the medium term.

“We are introducing further fiscal policy measures to support the development of the agricultural sector,” he declared.

Pointing out that in this respect, the duty on machinery and certain specified equipment for the sector will, effective January 31st 2012, attract zero duty.

“We will further look at supportive fiscal policies for the rice and wheat sectors to stimulate domestic production,” he said.

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Biodiversity: Ban Ki-moon warns mass extinction affects everyone

The United Nations’ Secretary-General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon has warned that mass extinction will affect everyone.

Ban Ki-moon gave this warning at the launch of the UN Decade on Biodiversity, saying the growing of human family hangs on biological diversity couple with the vital goods and services that it offers.

Ban Ki-moon who was represented by Kiyo Akasaka at the event in Kanazawa Japan also affirmed that the poor will be the first to suffer from biodiversity loss and that every society also stands a chance to lose from this mass extinction.

"There are also the opportunity costs; what cures for disease, and what other useful discoveries might we never know of because a habitat is destroyed forever or land is polluted beyond all use," he said.

Additionally, he said people consider natural capital as an endless reserve instead of the limited and fragile resource they have come to be known.

"Fortunately, it is not too late to stem the tide," he said, emphasizing that considering the targets as realistic, the achievement of the 20 Aichi Biodiversity Target included in the 2011-2020 Strategic Plan for Biodiversity calls for greater engagement by all relevant actors and partners.

He commended Japan for its leadership in the support of Strategic Plan and the Decade, submitting that all the parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity and related conventions should rally round the United Nations Decade on Biodiversity.

"Let us work together to live in harmony with nature. Let us preserve and wisely manage nature's riches for prosperity today and for the future we want," Ban Ki-moon.

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