EU boosts world wheat production with 20m grains

The United Nations (UN) says that the European Union (EU) will boost the recovery strategy in the world wheat production in 2013-2014, by lifting the industry with about 20 million tones of grains.

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), said that early prospects for 2013 cereal production points to increased world wheat output and by contributing largely to this outlook is an estimated 4-5 per cent increase in the winter wheat area in the European Union where, additionally, winter wheat conditions have been generally favourable so far.

NaijaAgroNet recalls that EU is the world's top wheat producer, ahead of China and India.

The FAO also highlighted that prospects are "satisfactory" in Russia and Ukraine, where winter plantings had remained in line with the previous year's levels.

Moisture conditions, FAO noted are somewhat improved in the region, except for areas of southern Russia, an important source of export supplies, which was worst affected by drought last year.

Equally, prospects are reported favourable in China, boosted by a higher minimum purchase price which has encouraged seedings, as said by FAO, to allay the fears from some other observers earlier in the winter of potential damage from unusually cold temperatures.

In India, plantings are around last year's good level, and another bumper crop is in prospect, the organization said, raising the drought-hit US as the exception to the upbeat picture.

NNEKA ALAMAEZE/LS

 ... Linking agrobiz, people & technology

NOVUS AGRO BOOST AGRIC INFORMATION TO FARMERS

Novus Agro, a Nigeria-based entity has outlined plans to boost the agricultural information for farmers in the country.

Giving this assurance in Lagos were the duo of Messrs Victoria Ononuju and Obiajuru Igborgbor from Novus Agro, at a forum in Lagos, Wednesday, said the organization helps to bridge agriculture information in the country in the past three years with many enterprise signing up.

The main objective of Novus Agro, they said, is to contribute to the growth of agriculture in the country by getting information about agriculture and enlightening the farmers as well as people in the country about the importance of Agriculture.

Also, by helping individuals and farmers involved in agricultural business to be successful via taking the time to understand their problems and how they could best help them to meet their needs.

They said farmers as well as some people in the country have been turning away from agriculture because of lack of information and lack of production.

"Whereby a farmer does not know what to produce for sale in the market at a particular time and the farmer also does not know where and when to sell their produce and it is not encouraging; that the farmers need to know the selling price of a particular produce in the market," they said.

According to them, agriculture could better the lives of the farmers and how the beneficiaries could take control of agriculture in Nigeria.

Novus Agro, they pointed out also gets in touch with the farmers as well as people who want to know the price of a produce in the market through a Short Messaging Service (SMS) or through the internet.

Even as they are planning on creating a link between the farmers and the consumers so that they could have a better relationship. While assisting people who want to buy large amount of produce.

Citing the need to purchase about 500 bags of garri, for instance, Novus Agro will help such a person to contact the head of the farmers in a community and also one of the members so as for all of them to work together and produce the bags of garri.

Plans are up to deploying Interactive Voice Response (IVR) in delivery of the SMS in different languages including Pidgin English, Yoruba, Igbo and others.

Special Assistant on Media and Strategy to the Minister of agriculture and rural development, Dr. Olukayode Oyeleye express thanks to the participants at the forum, enjoining them to ensure that people get to know and be enlightened about agriculture.

Nneka Alamaeze/LS/DSB News

 ... Linking agrobiz, people & technology

Ezu River corpse: MASSOB cries foul says they are our members, petitions UN, FG

Information reaching NaijaAgroNet puts credence to the story ran by us that initial investigations at the break of the news that some corpses dumped in Ezu River in Anambra State boundary with Enugu State was the handwork of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), with serious implication for upstaging epidemics in over 100 communities along the riverines.

Reports by Leadership stated that the Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) has identified the corpse as its members in Police custody.

MASSOB went on to list some of their names, alleging that they were in Police custody, invariably killed and dumped in Ezu River, just as the group petitioned the United Nations, Federal Government, United States’ President Barack Obama, United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC), and Amnesty International to name a few.

The group also insisted they identified the corpses of those found floating in the Ezu River at Amansea community, Awka North Local Government Area of Anambra State as those of their members arrested by Police on November 9, 2012.

Director of Information, MASSOB, Comrade Uchenna Madu, maintained in a press statement made available to newsmen Friday that the controversial corpses were those of their members who were arrested by security agencies in different parts of the Anambra State last year but were never released, nor charged to court.

He contended that Police secretly executed them alongside other criminals and dumped same in the river to cover their tracks. 

“MASSOB, with a deep sense of grief and sorrow, wishes to inform Mr. Ban Ki Moon (UN Secretary General), President Goodluck Jonathan, US President Barack Obama, United Nations Human Rights Commission (UNHRC), and Amnesty International about the gruesome murder of MASSOB members by the Special Anti-Robbery Squared (SARS) of Nigeria Police Force, Awkuzu, Anambra State,” he said.

Some of the victims’ names as given by MASSOB include Basil Ogbu, Michael Ogwa, Sunday Omogo, Philip Nwankpa, Eze Ndubisi, Ebuka Eze, Obinna Ofor, Joseph Udoh and Uchechukwu Ejiofor. 

Madu further pointed out that these victims were arrested at MASSOB’s security office at Onitsha, Anambra State, on November 9, 2012, by a combined team of Nigerian security agents - Army, Police and SSS - and were later handed over to SARS’ headquarters in Awkuzu, Anambra State, where they were detained until their suspicious disappearance. 

“We got information from an insider at SARS headquarters, Awkuzu, that armless MASSOB members detained at SARS were secretly killed alongside other robbery suspects,” he alleged. 

Reacting, the acting spokesman of the Anambra State police command, Mr. Emeka Chukwuemeka, said that it was only the outcome of the autopsy being conducted on the specimen taken from the corpses that could state whether the claims by the group were true or false.

NaijaAgroNet equally confirms that MASSOB may have visited the SARS in Awkuzu only to discover that their members in custody are missing.

Meanwhile the Anambra State government have began to build borehores to enable the affected communities have some alternative water supply, especially the Amansea town. 

... Linking agrobiz, people & technology

FAO expects favourable production in 2013

 The Food Price Index by the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) has shown optimistic favourable production for the year 2013.

The index made available to NaijaAgroNet shows that this is coming after three months of decline, while increases in oil and fats prices offset lower cereals and sugar quotations whereas dairy and meat values remain unchanged.

FAO's monthly Cereals Supply and Demand Brief  available to NaijaAgroNet indicated that the revision mostly reflects adjustments to maize production estimates in China, North America and the European CIS countries.

But even at the new level, the brief stated that global cereal output would still be 2 per cent down on record.

However, FAO early prospects for 2013 cereal production point to increase world wheat output, contributing largely to this prospect in an estimated 4 to 5 per cent increase in the area under wheat in the European Union, where weather conditions have also been generally favourable so far, but in the United States, the outlook is less favourable, which is attributed to because the condition of the crops are reported to be very poor.

FAO Senior Grains Economist, Abdolzreza Abbassia said that even with the tight supply situation, the weather still remains an important determinant of prices.

“So, cereals productions need to increase this year in order to avoid unexpectant price surges,” he said.

NNEKA ALAMAEZE/LS

... Linking agrobiz, people & technology

2014: FG to begin oil & gas exploration in Chad Basin

Oil and gas exploration is to begin in the Chad Basin near Borno State in Nigeria by 2014 with the government financial prospect in the region depicting optimistic outcome, reports Oil Review Africa.

This was disclosed by the Vice President Nnamdi Sambo that the government project cost  US$75 million, about N11,797,498,301 billion in 2012, with a further US$100 million about N15,729,997,734 billion, has been earmarked for this year.

“The government is committed to the oil and gas searched in the Lake Basin,” he said.

VP Sambo was quoted as saying that three blocs have been identified in the area after series of research with potentials for oil and gas exploration were found.

“Our plans is to make commercial oil and gas exploration start in the Basin by the fourth quarter 2013, or first quarter of 2014,” he said.

Mike Effiong/ED

  

... Linking agrobiz, people & technology

USAID, ECOWAS food security confab ends in Accra

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have concluded a three-day conference to improve food security, free movement and services in Accra.

The Ghana News Agency (GNA) reports that the objective of the conference was to jump-start the actions needed to unleash the full potential of regional trade to help safeguard the region’s food security in the future.

NaijaAgroNet also notes that the three-day conference attended by officials of civil society groups, governments, technical partners and private institutions in West Africa had the theme: “Food Across Borders: Improving Food Security through Regional Trade in West Africa.”

Mr Salifou Tiemtore, Director of Customs, Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), said there were many barriers to free movement of goods including lack of understanding of legislation, high tariffs and non-compliance with products.

He said a lot of countries within ECOWAS were refusing to implement the ECOWAS regulations, saying “the lack of regional trade policy within the sub-region is also a challenge”. Read more

Nneka Alamaeze and Sherif Ayilara/LS

... Linking agrobiz, people & technology