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Friday, October 23, 2015

South Sudan 3.9m citizens face severe hunger– UN


Three United Nations agencies haveraised alarm thatestimated3.9 million South Sudanese now face severe hunger, NaijaAgroNetreports.

These agencies include Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Food Programme (WFP).

This was revealed in a new Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis made available to NaijaAgroNet, which although noted that the number of food insecure households has decreased - as expected - during the harvest season, it is almost 80 per cent higher than in the same period last year, as even people living in states not directly affected by conflict with its long-term effects, erratic rainfall, depleted livelihood options, high food prices, fuel costs and inflation, equally experience the downturn in a generally degraded economic environment.

They called on the parties to the conflict to grant urgent and unrestricted access to Unity State, where a newly released Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis shows that at least 30 000 people are living in extreme conditions and are facing starvation and death.  
Since the war in South Sudan began nearly two years ago, NaijaAgroNet learnt,it is the first time that an IPC analysis has found any parts of the population in phase five (catastrophe) on the five-point IPC scale.

 “This is the start of the harvest and we should be seeing a significant improvement in the food security situation across the country, but unfortunately this is not the case in places like southern Unity State, where people are on the edge of a catastrophe that can be prevented,” said WFP Country Director, ,Joyce Luma. “The people of South Sudan need peace, nutritious food and other humanitarian assistance and livelihood support to survive and rebuild their lives," she stated.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that unless unrestricted humanitarian access is urgently granted, the food insecurity could deteriorate to famine in parts of Unity State, where humanitarian assistance has been hampered by the dreadful violence and lack of access in recent months. Some displaced families say they survive on just one meal a day consisting of only fish and water lilies.

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Planet Earth Institute gets new VC, Trustee


The President of Mauritius, Dr. Ameenah Gurib-Fakim, has been appointed Vice Chairman and Trustee, Planet Earth Institute (PEI), an international NGO and charity working for the ‘scientific independence of Africa,’ NaijaAgroNet reports.

She will host the official launch of the PEI on an event at the State House on November 23, 2015 along with Dr Álvaro Sobrinho, the PEI’s founding Chairman, and the full Board of Trustees.

NaijaAgroNet  learnt that as Vice Chairman and Trustee of the PEI, Dr. Gurib-Fakim will work alongside fellow Board Members, Dr Álvaro Sobrinho, the prominent Angolan philanthropist and businessman, Rt Hon Lord Boateng, a member of the UK House of Lords, Prof. Sir Christopher Edwards, the distinguished academic, and Prof. Sir MagdiYacoub, the pioneering cardio-thoracic surgeon.

The PEI’s expansion to Mauritius will build upon its international work to support African science, technology and innovation, as well as develop a number of locally focused initiatives to be announced in early 2016.

Gurib-Fakim, NaijaAgroNet reports, became President of the Republic of Mauritius in June 2015, following a highly distinguished career as a scientist and businesswoman, including a role as Pro Vice Chancellor of the University of Mauritius. In recognition of her significant contributions to scientific research, she was awarded L’Oréal-UNESCO Award for Women in Science in 2007, report NaijaAgroNet.

The PEI’s launch on November 23will be an exclusive, high-level meeting for a range of key stakeholders including African government ministries, international institutions, private businesses, local and pan-African universities, and civil society.

The private launch will be followed by an expert policy round-table focusing on ‘Mauritius and Africa’s scientific independence: the role of business.’
 
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Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Women cornerstone of agricultural production in Nigeria



The Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Sunny Echono, said women are the cornerstone of agricultural production, processing, marketing and utilisation in the country, NaijaAgroNet reports.

He added that Nigeria’s agriculture could never achieve any meaningful development without mainstreaming concern into the nation’s policy and programme.

“Women supply 70 per cent of agricultural labour; 50 per cent of animal husbandry related activities and 60 per cent of food processing, yet they have access to only 20 per cent of available agricultural resources They play vital roles in the maintenance of our families, investing as much as 90 per cent of their income.”

NaijaAgroNet learnt that Echono was represented by the ministry’s Deputy Director, Extension, Dele Onorunfemi at the launch of African women in agriculture report titled: “Economic empowerment of African women through equitable participation in agricultural value chains’’ on Monday in Abuja.

Also speaking at the occasion, the Nigeria Country Director, African Development Bank, Ousmane Dore, said Nigerian women contribute close to 70 per cent of agricultural workforce yet get less of accruing returns.

He said the report aimed at contributing to the economic empowerment of African women in agriculture, through identification and proffering of possible solutions to hindrances to women’s active participation in agricultural value chains.

 “Lack of ownership of land and other productive assets due to existing social norms has created a significant negative impact on the family income and the nation’s GDP at large,’’ Mr. Dore said.

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USAID supports Asia, Africa, Middle East with N17.33b




The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has announced further $87 million, about N17.33 billion to  combat pandemic animal disease threats in Asia, Africa and the Middle East, reports NaijaAgroNet.
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The funding which backs the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) efforts to combat global animal disease, covers the 2015-19 period and is expected be channeled into monitoring and surveillance, epidemiological studies, prevention and control activities as well as improving veterinary capacities in Asia, Africa and the Middle East and promoting links between animal health specialists and the public health sector.

FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva, NaijaAgroNet gathered, thanked the U.S. for its support and longstanding partnership.

"This shows how important transboundary diseases are for FAO and the UN system, and how much more important they will be in the future if we want to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. Millions of people rely on livestock for survival, income and nutrition, and their livelihoods must be protected," he said.

The Director, Global Health Security and Development with USAID's Bureau for Global Health, Dennis Carroll, said: "We are pleased by what our partnership with FAO for emerging pandemic threats has so far achieved, and the important contribution FAO's work is making to the U.S. Global Health Security Agenda programme to address threats posed by the natural emergence of new diseases and the intentional and/or accidental release of dangerous pathogens.

The latest USAID contribution of $87 million to FAO, NaijaAgroNet learnt, will further strengthen the programme and partnership between our two organizations, and build upon the good work already underway in the second phase of the USAID Emerging Pandemic Threats program (EPT-2). 

 Nearly $50 million of this contribution will support the global fight against the Ebola virus by building global capacity to prevent, detect, and respond to future outbreaks and prevent them from becoming epidemics."

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Monday, October 19, 2015

Africa can be world’s breadbasket


Paul Kagame, president, Republic of Rwanda and K Y Amoako, founder, African Center for Economic Transformation, a Ghana-based think tank have concurred that Africa can and should be the world’s breadbasket, NaijaAgroNet reports.
The two leaders took this stand in their contribution to Project Syndicate, an organisation that provides readers with original, engaging, and thought-provoking commentaries by global leaders and thinkers. By offering incisive perspectives from those who are shaping the world’s economics, politics, science, and culture, creating an unrivaled global venue for informed public debate.
They argued that to realise this vision – and to do it in an environmentally sustainable way – its agricultural sector must undergo a genuine transformation that entails higher capital investment, significant crop diversification, and improved linkages to burgeoning urban consumer markets.
Africa, NaijaAgroNet gathered, must start manufacturing more value-added food products for both internal consumption and export, especially to countries like India and China, where demand is growing.
From Europe and North America to East Asia and Latin America, agricultural advances have proved to be key precursors of industrial development and gains in living standards.  Africa has the added benefit of technologies that other regions lacked at this stage of their agricultural development, from cost-competitive off-grid solar power to mechanisms for mapping soil characteristics, regulating water use, and ensuring farmers’ access to accurate price information.
And innovation is already happening. Rwanda, for example, is working to link agriculture support with broader services like electricity and education. And the country’s farming communities are pioneering participatory decision-making structures for agricultural planning and conflict-resolution mechanisms to settle disputes among growers, NaijaAgroNet  learnt.
To bolster agricultural innovation and modernisation, governments must ensure that farmers have secure titles to their land, and thus an incentive to make the needed investments. The challenge lies in the fact that, in many parts of Africa, land is communally owned, with almost everyone in a village having traditional rights to some farming land – a system that has helped to prevent landlessness and destitution in rural areas.
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 Pix: Paul Kagame and K Y Amoako,

Ethiopia requires N118.75b to tackle food insecurity



Ethiopian government and humanitarian agencies, has said that the country urgently needs $596 million, about N118.75 billion to address food insecurity for the remainder of the year adding that only $258 million has been received in donor contributions, NaijaAgroNet reports.

"A lot of the funds provided earlier in the year are already spent and key sectors such as supplemental food, livelihoods and agriculture are critically short of funds," said the appeal by the Ethiopian government and humanitarian organisations operating in the locountry

The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWSN ), an organisation that provides timely information on food insecurity recently said that the El Niño phenomenon  contributed to suppression of the long rains limiting agricultural and pastoral potential, NaijaAgroNet reports.

Regions of the world adversely affected include northern East Africa, Central America and the Caribbean.

"These impacts are contributing to acute food insecurity for approximately four million people in these regions," said the US-funded organisation.

A statement by the group added that the most affected areas in the Horn of Africa are northern Ethiopia and eastern Sudan, which have been experiencing shortages due to poor rainfall between June and September.

"In northern Ethiopia and eastern Sudan, late rains with intermittent dry spells contributed to reduced area planted, late planting, and households planting shorter cycle crops. Forage and water availability are significantly below average," it further said.

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Saturday, October 17, 2015

India aligns relation with Africa on AU 2063 agenda



The India Secretary (West) in the external affairs ministry, Navtej Sarna, has said that India is aligning its relations with Africa alongside Agenda 2063 by the African Union, NaijaAgroNet reports.

He said India and Africa have been "brothers in arms in the fight against apartheid and colonialism,"  adding that there is a positive move towards democracy among African countries and following the adoption of the Agenda 2063 by the African Union, India is aligning its relations with Africa alongside this agenda, a global strategy to optimize use of Africa’s  resources for the benefit of all African and an Integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in the global arena.

Sarna, said that India's approach to ties with African countries was that of partnership adding that education and skill development is another area crucial to India-Africa relations.
Agriculture, blue economy and security are key aspects of India's ties with African countries, he said recently while addressing the media ahead of the third India Africa Forum Summit (IAFS) to be held late October.

He said India has also given a line of credit of $7.4 billion, about N1.47 trillion to Africa which is being utilised in 137 projects across 41 countries, NaijaAgroNet learnt.

"India has played a key role in terms of security in Africa. We have had 11 peace keeping forces. Even now, we have four peace keeping forces deployed there and 4,500 security personnel on the ground there." Sarna also said that Indian Navy has also played a key role in the east coast of Africa in terms of curbing piracy.

Blue economy was another area of cooperation India was building on with Africa, he noted. "Blue economy or ocean economy is very important for Africa. We are in talks with countries like Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, Seychelles and Mauritius," he said. He identified agriculture as another area of partnership.

"Despite having vast arable land, Africa still needs to get food from outside," said Sarna, adding that getting people from outside to farm agricultural land would be another point of discussion among the leaders.

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CFS side-event: Da Silva, Le Foll call for paradigm shift, curb global warming



NaijaAgroNet:
The Food and Agriculture Organisaion (FAO) Director-General, Graziano da Silva, has called for a paradigm shift towards agriculture and food systems that are more adapted to climate change, if the Sustainable Development Agenda (SDA) by 2030 will be achieved, NaijaAgroNet reports.

"We can end extreme poverty and hunger by 2030. We know what works and we have the tools for it, but we know climate change threatens to derail our efforts. It is already impacting on food security and making hunger eradication even more difficult.

"We believe that agriculture in the broad sense - including forestry, fisheries and aquaculture - can and must play a central role in addressing climate change, particularly in adapting its impacts, such as water scarcity, soil salinity or increasing pests and diseases of plants and animals," he added.
  
On his part, the French Minister for Agriculture, Stéphane Le Foll, said that every man and woman on the planet would bear the consequences "if the world's leaders cannot find agreement on tangible and concrete objectives" to curb global warming, NaijaAgroNet learnt.

Noting that agriculture is often viewed as a problem due to its role in greenhouse-gas emissions, Le Foll called for the need to make progress with techniques that "allow us to be more economical and consume less energy."

"But anyone who looks at agriculture cannot just sit back and sort out the problem with scientific measures...because the technology must be combined with the social aspect," Le Foll said, adding: "We need to revise our agriculture model to adapt to each ecosystem, we need a revolution that is going to use natural mechanisms to benefit production."

Graziano da Silva and Le Foll made their appeals at a side event of the Committee on World Food Security (CFS) which is meeting in Rome this week. They both urged countries to find an agreement on how to combat climate change ahead of the 7-8 December United Nations climate change conference, COP21, in Paris.

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Africa needs GMO tools to overcome weeds, pests, drought



Genetic Literacy Project, a Science trumps ideology group, has said that what Africa needs are genetically modified organism (GMO) tools to overcome weeds, pests and drought, NaijaAgroNet reports.

“One major problem is that we don’t benefit from the latest technologies. From Africa, we look at North and South America farmers with envy, wishing we could use the same genetically modified organism (GMO) tools to overcome weeds, pests and drought they have access to.

“We don’t need handouts from wealthy countries. We just need the same opportunities to succeed. Africa’s current drought has not yet touched Ghana, but it stretches the full length of our continent. The United Nations predicts that more people in Ethiopia will need food assistance next year than in war-torn Syria”, NaijaAgroNet gathered.

The continent of Africa is suffering its worst drought in a generation. The failure of the African skies to pour nourishing rain onto the soil could cost millions of people their lives.

Drought can affect farmers anywhere. The drought in California has devastated farmers in an area world famous for its agricultural productivity. The United States, however, is a developed nation — the drought has caused hardship but nobody expects it to lead to large-scale malnutrition and starvation.

NaijaAgroNet reports that things are different in Africa, with no simple solutions to its agricultural dilemmas. Farmers  lack access to credit, land and labour. Many suffer from illiteracy, poor management skills and bad or nonexistent infrastructure. The delivery of extension services is skewed. And although agriculture is essential, it’s held in low regard.

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