UK leads stakeholders’ dialogue to reshape agro-research

Some stakeholders comprising the United Kingdom (UK) Parliamentarians and Civil Servants joined the African farmers, international donors and scientists for a policy dialogue targeted at reshaping agricultural research.

The reshaping of agricultural research as revealed in a press statement made available to NaijaAgroNet is to serve development goals and the public good.

The agenda of the dialogue is to include prioritising for plant breeding and seed selection, options for managing soil fertility, options for developing accessible markets, ways of governing, organising, funding and practising research, and the types of policies needed to transform Africa’s agriculture, comprising changes to tenure, subsidies and investment.

The event organized by International Institute for Environmental and Development (IIED), was held between February 1 and 3, 2012 in Accra, Ghana.

The Executive Director of Oxfan-Novib, Farah Karimi reportedly co-chaired the event with Olivier de Schutter, who is the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food.

Emphasizing the importance of the dialogue the Director of IIED, Dr. Michel Pimbert said it is a valuable platform for smallholder farmers to get their voices heard. 

 "We’d like to see this constructive dialogue setting an agenda for future research priorities across the region,” he said.

A major funder of agricultural research in African with a total budget of nearly US$400million about N64.396billion, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), NaijaAgroNet gathered also participated in the dialogue.

The AGRA team at the dialogue followed-up on what the small-scale farmers and food producers from West Africa think agricultural research should be about. 

“Publically funded research can make a huge contribution to eradicating hunger and poverty.  But the way it is designed, managed and implemented rarely involves the people who produce, process and consume agricultural produce,” Dr Michel Pimbert, an expert in agricultural ecology and the governance of food systems and natural resources.

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UN declares end to famine in Somalia

An end has been declared over the drought in the Horn of Africa by the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO).

The drought, NaijaAgroNet gathered, affected over 13 million of people and claimed thousands of lives.

The United Nations also made a sound warning that with the recurrent droughts in that part of the continent, hunger remains a threat to life unless long-term measures are taken in restoring food security.

At the height of the food crisis, about 750,000 people are at risk of death, as was disclosed to NaijaAgroNet in a press release by FAO.

According to a new report jointly prepared by FAO-managed Food Security and Nutrition analysis Unit (FSNAU) and USAID's Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET) revealed that there has been a reduction in people that need emergency humanitarian assistance in Somalia from 4 million to 2.34million, amounting to 31 per cent of the population.

The reduction in the number of victims, FAO Director-General, Jose Graniano da Silva said links to the long-awaited rains coupled with substantial agricultural inputs and response from humanitarian organisations in the last six month.

“However, the crisis is not over. It can only be resolved with a combination of rains and continued, coordinated, long-term actions that build up the resilience of local populations and link relief with development," he said.

He further said that drought could be avoided but measures could equally be put in place in order to prevent drought turning into famine, and assured FAO would boost current efforts to the affected region.

Highlighting some of the responses, the Director General confirmed FAO had distributed seeds and fertilizers to Somali farmers, and the rehabilitation of 594 kilometers of irrigation canals and treating 2.6 million livestock at risk of diseases and infections associated with drought.

After visiting villages in Somalia, he said “I had a rare opportunity to meet with Somali farmers and herders in Dollow. I witnessed the impact that we can make in their lives. And, most importantly, I saw what they can do for themselves, if they receive the right support at the right time.”

Jose Graniano da Silva further urged stakeholders to renew their commitment to fighting the drought while assuring of FAO's commitment to work within the framework of existing initiatives such as the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).

Further, NaijaAgroNet gathered that within 2009 and 2010, the UN agency, FAO had assisted 1,500 agricultural households and 35,000 pastoralists’ households in Gedo Region to boost their resilience in order to cope with the recent famine without outside assistance.

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IFC provides N4.846B to Armenia's small scale farmers

Local micro, small and medium enterprises and agribusiness in Armenia received a loan of $30million, about N4.846billion from a member of the World Bank Group, International Finance Corporation (IFC).

This was revealed to NaijaAgroNet in a press release, IFC gives the loan to Armenia's ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank in order to support the bank's lending program in rural areas through its extensive network of branches in Armenia.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that the $30m loan is the second of its kind from the World Bank Group member, as IFC once provided the bank with a loan of $20million which was used in support of about 3,000 local clients. It is also gathered that IFC with the partnership of ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank established ACBA Leasing in 2003, the first leasing company in Armenia.

The loan is also provided in order to boost job creation in the country.

Stepan Gishyan, the CEO of ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank said the new loan will further increase the banks capacity for lending to micro, small and medium enterprises including agribusiness.

"With this new loan, IFC significantly emphasizes its role as one of our largest lenders. During these challenging economic times, lending to micro and small businesses is very important for both of our institutions," affirmed Gishyan.

 The Regional Head of IFC for Caucasus, Thomas Lubeck affirmed IFC's commitment to play an important role in supporting banks in emerging markets in order to help expand their lending programmes in priority sectors like agribusiness.

"With this second loan to the leading lender to the agriculture sector in Armenia in a short time span, we aim to support development of micro and small businesses, the sector that employs a significant part of Armenian workers,” Thomas Lubeck.

A total sum of $147million has been invested in 28 projects in Armenia since Armenia's membership with IFC in 1995.

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EU adopts a four-year strategy for animal welfare

In order to improve the welfare of animals in the European Union (EU) member states, a four-year strategy starting from 2012 to 2015 has been adopted.

The Health and Consumer Policy Commissioner at EU, Mr. John Dalli, affirmed that the new strategy would give room for appropriate flexibility to allow operators to attain the necessary welfare stands by different routes.

As gathered by the NaijaAgroNet, he said, "Optimizing policy coherence and market transparency in a comprehensive animal welfare legislative framework will minimize real or perceived tensions between welfare and economics."

The commissioner also noted that the strategy is cost-effective and economical in terms of welfare.

Highlighting one of the setbacks of the union, Dalli said there is lack of enforcement of EU legislation by Member State in a number of areas which is adversely affect animals in the EU.

Hence, the new strategy was adopted in the form of a commission communication to the European Parliament, the Council and the European Economic and Social Committee.

Another means to address the issue of low enforcement is the provision of two-pronged by the strategy: a proposal for a comprehensive animal welfare law and a reinforcement of current actions.

Reinforcement and the optimization of current commission actions was also proposed couple with enhancing tools that will boost Member State's Compliances with the legal requirement and boosting the already existing international co-operation on animal welfare.

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AU to motivate African countries to increase budgetary allocation to agric

Fighting food security in Africa, African Union is set to motivate African countries to increase their national budgetary allocations to agriculture a minimum of 10 per cent, SierraExpressMedia reports.

This, the AU Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture, Mrs. Rhoda Peace Tumusiime said at a press conference about the issue of agriculture and food security in the context of the comprehensive African Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).

The 10 per cent minimum requirement for agriculture budgetary allocation, NaijaAgroNet gathered is to ensure agricultural growth of 6 per cent.

Part of the efforts of the Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture as revealed by the commissioner includes coordination of multi-institutional support of the preparation of agricultural sector investment plans both at country and regional levels, this in order to for CAADP to reach its set goals.

Commissioner Tumusiime said that out of the 54 member states of the AU, only 30 have already yielded to the CAADP 10% strategic plan, and a number of them have surpassed the 10% requirement. This shows great commitment, she said. Read more

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