AgroCredit Scheme gets N151 billion from CBN

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has voted the sum of N151.015 billion to 170 beneficiaries under the auspices of the Commercial Agricultural Credit Scheme, reports ThisDay.

According to the apex bank, the beneficiaries of the funds include 163 private promoters and 27 state governments with each states accessing N1 billion each while the Federal Capital Territory gets only N16 million.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that 16 banks participated in the project and the analysis of the number of project financed under CACS by value chain revealed that production accounted for 44 per cent of the 163 CACS private sector sponsored projects.

The bankers’ committee revealed recently that agriculture lending increased by N212.64 billion as at October last year, representing a 37.6 percent increase over the 2010 figure. Read more

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Malnutrition affects one in every four children - Save the Children

Almost half a billion children are at the verge of high risk permanent damage despite global efforts to address food insecurity and chronic childhood malnutrition.

Save the Children, a leading independent organization that creates lasting change for children in need worldwide, said malnutrition as a largely hidden crisis affects one in every four children around the world.

A press release made available to NaijaAgroNet revealed that malnutrition weakens young children's immune systems which leave them more likely of childhood diseases like diarrhea, pneumonia and malaria, according to Carolyn Miles, the President and CEO of Save the Children.

“It wreaks lifelong damage and is a major killer of children. Every hour of every day, 300 children die because of malnutrition,” she said.

NaijaAgroNet also gathered that the present drought in the Sahel of Africa left children more vulnerable to extreme suffering and death.

Save the Children also made known that malnutrition underlies 2.6million child deaths every year, or one third of all child deaths.

Ms Miles said the world could no longer afford to wait until visibly emaciated children grab headlines to inspire the action these children need and deserve.

“Unfortunately, for millions of the world’s chronically malnourished children, permanent damage to their physical and intellectual development is not as obvious, and so it’s too often overlooked,” she said.

The world leaders, she noted, are searching for ways to strengthen their economies over the long term, hence she advised that through helping children get the healthy start they deserve may boost this agenda.

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UN urges assistance for drought-prone Sahel region

Following the looming drought in the Sahel region of West Africa, delegates at a United Nations meeting have called for a comprehensive and rapid assistance to the affected, reports UNNewsCentre.

The meeting NaijaAgroNet gathered was convened by the United Nations and has in attendance Leaders of UN agencies, government representatives of the affected countries and donors.

Delegates at the meeting emphasized the need for a combination of relief, early recovery and longer-term development programmes.

They also agreed to work together in order to meet immediate food security and nutritional needs of the affected people.

Part of the resolution reached at the end of the meeting was to support programmes that will address the causes of the problems and strengthen the resilience of communities living in areas affected by chronic drought.

It was also stressed that there is need for regional organizations to strengthen their capacity to address the structural causes of the recurring food crisis in the region and a continued support to the affected countries. Read more

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FAO to boost Afghanistan's traditional irrigation

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations is working towards the boosting of technical support for the rehabilitation of Afghanistan's dilapidated traditional systems.

The organization in a press statement available to NaijaAgroNet, FAO revealed that dilapidated irrigation system is attributable to the decades of war and migration away from rural areas, and has left many farmers without sufficient water for their farmland.

The degraded irrigation system, FAO noted, had also led to the country's Ministry of Energy and Water to place a priority on water resources development within its National Development Strategy.

The UN agency also signed a $27.7 million, about N4.36 billion agreements with the Afghan Ministry of Energy and Water to provide the needed technical assistance.

The agreement further covers expertise and training for implementation of the Irrigation Restoration and Development Project (IRDP).

Information available to NaijaAgroNet indicated that FAO is equally working to use the initiative to help Afghan by training personnel and assisting in the use of modern design and management methods.

“There will also be training for farmers in improved water management practices, and operation and maintenance of irrigation systems,” part of the statement read.

Pasquale Steduto, the Unit Head, Water Development and Management at FAO, affirmed that the irrigation systems has suffered over the past three decades as people moved away from the rural areas and this could not be attributed to lack of investment.

The migration, he said, left the maintenance of the traditional irrigation systems to younger generation.

“So, farmers in rural areas were not able to get enough water to cultivate their fields. As a result, they produced fewer crops," said Pasquale Steduto.

The project is primarily supported by a grant from the World Bank with an additional contribution from the government of Afghanistan.'Yinka Awosanya

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Jerry Rawlings warns of renewed food crisis in Somalia

Ghanaian former President, Jerry John Rawlings has said Somalia may face another phase of food crisis if there is shortage of humanitarian aid, reports PeaceFM.

Rawlings who is also the African Union’s High Representative for Somalia affirmed that crisis ridden state of Somalia needs the sum of $1.5billion, about N238.7billion in order to sustain the present state of food security in the country.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that Rawlings sounded this warning in his address to the second annual conference of the Center for Technology and Economic Development (CTED) of the New York University in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirate recently.

He disclosed that the total population of those facing famine presently in the Horn of Africa is 9.5 million out of which 2.3 million is from Somalia.

“Almost one-third of the population, are still in need of aid. Across the Horn of Africa region, a staggering 9.5 million people still need help,” he said. Read moreAdmin/LS

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Experts call for policies to tackle environmental crises

Scientists and experts in the field of sustainable development have called for immediate changes in the policies and institutions to enable humanity to combat environmental crises.

The group made this known in a press release made available to NaijaAgroNet by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).

The scientists and experts, who are all past winners of the Blue Planet Prize, a yearly award programme organized by Asahi Glass Foundation with which individuals or organizations globally are recognized for their outstanding achievements in scientific research and its application.

The Blue Planet Prize past recipients assembled in London in order to put a final touch to a paper which will be launched at the United Nations Environmental Governing Council meeting to be held in Nairobi between 20 and 22 February.

Unveiling the major conclusions and recommendations of the paper titled 'Environmental and Development Challenges: The imperative to act', Bob Watson, the Chief Scientific Adviser to the UK government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural affairs (Defra) and a co-author of the paper said the paper focus on transformational solutions to key environment and development challenges.

NaijaAgroNet gathered the paper also highlights the policies, technologies and behaviour changes necessary to protect the local, regional and global environment, and stimulate the economy and enhance the livelihoods of the poor.

Emphasizing on the focus of the paper, Bob Watson who won the Blue Planet Prize in 2010 said "The challenges facing the world today need to be addressed immediately if we are to solve the problem of climate change, loss of biodiversity and poverty."

Commenting on the paper, the UN Under-Secretary General and UNEP Executive Director, Achim Steiner appreciated the efforts of the 14 authors of the paper for articulating their vision on how key development challenges can be addressed. 

"The paper by the Blue Planet laureates will challenge governments and society as a whole to act to limit human-induced climate change, the loss of biodiversity and the degradation of ecosystem services in order to ensure food, water energy and human security," Achim Steiner said.

'Yinka Awosanya

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