The International Society of Organic Argicultural Research organised in Modena, Italy, June 17 and 18, 2008.
The congres allowed researchers and other organic stakeholders to update their knowledge on specific areas of expertise and to identify bottlenecks and research needs.
Discussion on the importance of collective marketing actions in organic farming
Identification of differences among different market environments and continents
Overview on the state-of-the-art on factors limiting / enabling (organic) farmers to pool ideas, experiences and capital
Outline on possible support strategies
Identification of further research need
African Speakers
Enhancing Organic Agriculture Research in Africa - Dr. Charles Ssekyewa, ssekyewa@umu.ac.ug
The ongoing food crisis presents an opportune moment for Southern Africa to review its policies and put in place long term strategies that will make the region food secure.
The Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN) is convening a Board and Partners meeting to update its current and potential partners on its programmes. The one-day stakeholder meeting will be held on Friday the 20th of June 2008.
The meeting will be attended by FANRPAN's Board of Governors, coordinators of our programmes, members of the Diplomatic Corps, representatives from UN agencies, donors and technical partners. The meeting will take the form of short plenary presentations with more time devoted to programme souk- exhibitions.
This video is an advertisement for the use of mobile payments. It was presented during the "Partnership Forum for Making Finance Work for Africa" in Accra on June 17 2008.
AERC will convene an International Conference on Climate Change and Economic Development as part of its 20th Anniversary activities. For presentation at the conference, papers are invited in the following areas:
1. Climate Change , Poverty, Income Distribution and Labour Market Issues 2. Climate Change, Macroeconomic Policies, Investment and Growth 3. Climate Change, Finance and Resource Mobilization 4. Climate Change, Trade and Regional Integration 5. Political Economy and Sectoral Issues in Climate Change and Economic Development
Papers will ultimately be published as the proceedings of the conference. The papers should be in English and should not exceed 15,000 words in length. Anyone with relevant experience and credentials in the topic area is invited to submit their work. Papers should be submitted to ON OR BEFORE 15 AUGUST 2008.
18-20 June. Rome, Italy. AgriBusiness 2008 aims at contributing to the growth & wealth of Africa by a further development of its agro-food industry, with the expertise, experience and involvement of knowledgeable individuals and institutions. FARA will be part of a group discussing research and innovation for a sustainable growth in agriculture: best practices and experiences learnt.
Forum's Objectives:
Contribute to a better understanding of Africa’s needs in terms of producing food for its population
Examine the role of Africa’s & Europe’s private sectors in accelerating Africa’s agro-industrial development
Showcase successful PPP practices (private-public partnership) that contribute to a sustainable growth
Strengthening the linkages alongside the supply chain in the agro-food Industry
Matching the demands from Africa with worldwide offers
Create better environment conditions to transfer successful experiences
Established in 1992 in Brussels, Belgium, EMRC is an international association composed of a vast network of entrepreneurs, financiers, consultants and officials coming from some 100 countries. EMRC’s core activity is the organisation of business events, economic missions and targeted business-development services. These activities are focused on supporting new global trends to achieve sustainability in Africa’s private sector.
16-18 June. Maputo, Mozambique. A conference was organised under an IFAD funded project, implemented by the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR), under the framework of the Global NonTimber Forest Products (NTFP) Partnership.
The Global Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFP) Partnership aims to link global, regional, and national organizations currently engaged in research and development activities concerning the systematic conservation and management of NTFPs in four regions: Africa, East and Southeast Asia, Latin America, and South Asia.
The objectives of the conference were
To understand the severity of dependence on wood for energy needs in Africa and globally
To better understand charcoal flows, specifically
To understand the trends in deforestation due to charcoal production
To identify areas suitable for charcoal production not currently utilized
To find effective and alternative sources of charcoal production, in order to curb deforestation and global warming, including the promotion of bamboo for bio-energy
To propose possible policy interventions that can be carried out in order to secure the supply of charcoal to the low-income population and to mitigate adverse effects of charcoal production
To explore the potential and facilitate technology transfer and adaptation
To establish a network and create a community of practice
To develop project concept notes
To raise awareness and create interest among the donor community
Click here for the agenda of the Charcoal and Communities Conference, Maputo, 16 - 18 June.
Le programme de baccalauréat en sciences forestières de cinq ans permet aux étudiants et étudiantes d'acquérir des connaissances sur les aspects environnementaux, biologiques, socio-économiques et technologiques reliés à la foresterie. Il vise aussi à leur inculquer une vision de l'aménagement intégré des ressources. Il est également offert en régime coopératif, agréé nationalement.
Hereafter follows an interview with Virginie Levasseur of the Universite de Moncton, Nouveau-Brunswick
Professor Virginie Levasseur explained at the e-Learning Africa 2008 conference in Accra 29/05 why the online course is important for francophone Africa and how the University of Moncton is trying to identify a number of training centres in West Africa specialised in distance learning which could relay this distance course in Agro-Forestry for African development and Agro-Forestry experts.
The INFONET-BioVision Information Platform aims to strengthen sustainable development of farmers and rural communities in Africa by making information on key topics available through an internet platform and other creative solutions and dissemination strategies.
The information platform is used as a resource pool for disseminating information inside and outside the internet through active cooperation with partner organizations and local farmer- and women's groups and with information and communication technologies (ICTs).
The core concept of Infonet-BioVision is the database with its processed information and pre-defined structure which facilitates the rapid and easy incorporation of new data. As the needs of users with varying levels of knowledge and experience ought to be catered for, the platform around the database is conceived in such a way that the users can access its content through different entry points. These include databases on sustainable pest and crop management, animal, human and environment as well as training modules in these areas. Furthermore, it will be possible for the users to send feedback information to the project team-members regarding their experiences.
He explains how on the platform you can find local relevant and effective information with contributions of farmer groups, local experts and international scientists on:
organic agriculture and crop husbandry for food security
effective ecological prevention and control of plant-, human- and animal targeting pests and diseases
simple and environmentally safe technologies and approaches to improve your life and generate income while at the same time protecting the environment and the natural resources
More than 250 senior level financial sector champions, from over 30 countries, have met at the "Partnership Forum for Making Finance Work for Africa" in Accra from June 17 to 18.
At the partnership forum, leaders of African and international financial institutions, government officials, central bankers, prominent researchers and international experts discussed the priorities for developing African financial sectors.
The Partnership for Making Finance Work for Africa was supported by a broad range of development partners, and financial stakeholders and was welcomed by the G8 in the 2007 Heiligendamm Declaration.
Hugh Scott, Chief Executive Officer of the African Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF) explains what this new funding opportunity is about and how it can support innovative initiatives from the private sector in rural credit, agri-business and rural media (information dissemination to farmers).
Regional Consultative Workshops for Southern Africa: Tanzania 17/06/08 to 20/06/08
The EU-funded (€ 45M) “All ACP Agricultural Commodities Programme” (AAACP) became operational in September 2007 following a long gestation period.The overall objective of this EU-funded programme is to improve incomes and livelihoods for ACP producers of traditional and other agricultural commodities, and to reduce income vulnerability at both producer and macro levels.
Supporting the participatory formulation and implementation of commodity chain strategies in Commodity Dependent Developing Countries (CDDCs)
Encouraging sustainable corporate practices and investments for sustainable commodity production
Advancing efforts to develop regional markets, policies and services in support of commodity sectors
Supporting CDDCs in their diversification efforts
Extending access to market-based commodity risk management instruments
Maximising opportunities for CDDCs in the multilateral trading system, and
Developing multi-donor cooperation and coordination in support of commodity strategies.
Lifelines was launched in October 2006 through a partnership between Cisco, British Telecom, and OneWorld. The goal of Lifelines is to help rural farmers in India improve their efficiency and earning potential by providing critical and timely answers to agricultural and veterinary questions. Roughly 65 percent of workers in India are farmers, so crop failures or cattle illnesses can be catastrophic for individuals and the economy.
In India, where farmers have limited access to timely sources of information and are often illiterate, the telephone is the most powerful medium for information delivery. As a result, Lifelines comprises a phone-based information system that enables farmers to call the service line, submit their queries, and call back after 24 hours to hear responses provided by specialists from the Indian Society of Agribusiness Professionals.
The Lifelines service blends a Cisco Unified Messaging platform with an online application that is used to forward queries to experts or pull answers from an FAQ database of approximately 40,000 items. Farmers pay a small fee of 5 Rupees (approximately 12 cents) to help sustain the cost of the service as it moves toward self-sufficiency.
Lifelines, which was initially launched in 85 villages, is now used by approximately 40,000 farmers in 700 villages, and handles an average of 300 calls per day. An independent study of farmers in three villages who use the Lifelines service showed an increase in product quality and productivity, resulting in 25 to 150 percent profit growth.
Callers are greeted with the service name; “Soochna Se Samadahan” (Information is Solution) and prompted to record their query on an automated voicemail system. The farmer is given a reference number (query-id) by the system and told when to call back for an answer.
The query is processed by a OneWorld sponsored knowledge worker in a central office who first searches the voice database of frequently asked questions. A database of over 88,000 ‘frequently asked questions’ has been built, enabling knowledge workers to provide a very timely response to repeat queries.
If a solution is on the database the knowledge worker attaches the voice response for the farmer to access as soon as the following day. If the issue is new, before recording the reply the knowledge worker seeks advice from a specialist from the Indian Society of Agribusiness Professionals (ISAP).
The two calls – one to record the query and the second to retrieve the answer – cost the farmer just five Rupees, around six pence. This small charge serves a dual purpose. Firstly, the farmers value and respect the information they get because it is not totally free. Secondly, it enables us to create a sustainable business model.
A US$50m fund for innovative business ideas has been launched in Accra on 12/06. The fund, Africa Enterprise Challenge Fund (AECF), is a private sector fund, backed by some of the biggest names in development finance and hosted by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). The African Development Bank (ADB), the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP), the UK Department for International Development (DFID), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs (NMFA) were the initial funders of the AECF.
Chief Executive Officer of AECF, Hugh Scott
The business ideas AECF is expected to consider include agri-business, rural financial services and rural media information and other services. The fund will run two competitions per year for 6 years starting in mid-2008. The AECF has an agreed sum of money (currently US$7.5m) available (in the form of grants and non-recourse loans) for each round of its competition for which private companies are invited to submit proposals for funding. It will focus initially on 13 countries (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Ghana, Nigeria, Mali, Burkina Faso, South Africa, Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia) operating from three regional hubs (Nairobi, Accra and Johannesburg).
The AECF, will provide grants or non-recourse loans up to a maximum of US$1.5m per company (the average grant/loan size will be US$750,000) to the most innovative proposals that are adjudged to have the greatest impact on the largest number of rural poor people.
It focuses exclusively on supporting the private sector
It provides an open and transparent “competition” for donor funds
It is based in, and run from, Africa.
It is focused on funding practical projects that are both commercially viable and will have a broad developmental impact on the rural poor
It is structured and governed along private sector principles with strong and sustained business engagement to ensure a flexible, responsive, results-orientated approach that the private sector can understand
It leverages private sector and donor money to help fund successful projects and enterprises
It is able to support cross-border, regional and pan-continental projects, as well as national ones.
In Ghana, the fund is managed by KPMG Development Services Limited. The AECF is an AGRA initiative that supports AGRA’s mission. A successful applicant is expected to contribute a minimum of 50 percent of the total cost of the project. The deadline for application is June 30, this year, while funding approval for successful applications will be granted within a maximum of 90 days from the closing date for applications.
A paper Knowledge-based food democracy, the way out of the African food crisis: realising the potential of the NARS, SROs and FARA was drafted by FARA as a lot is being spent on yet another World Food Summit: this time, to consider what should be done about the global food crisis. [hereunder some extracts]
It is possible that delegates now have a better sense of urgency because the unprecedented rapid rise in food prices has caught everybody’s attention. In developing countries 100 million people are threatened with hunger but the crisis is no longer ‘somebody else’s problem’ even for citizens of the wealthiest countries, who are grappling with inflation in their cost of living. (...)
To have a lasting impact the proposed remedies must be developed andowned by those who are expected to implement them. This is not an easy task because there are many actors involved in Africa’s agricultural development: farmers and their associations, government ministries, cooperatives, international centres, non-governmental organisations, and private businesses, to name just a few. (...)
To cope with this a structured evidence-based approach is needed which links the producers to the consumers into which other actors can fit efficiently and effectively. Fortunately, there are models of success, such as smallholder dairying in Kenya, which can be up-scaled.However, the responses to today’s crisis cannot rely on what was done in the past. Firstly, because the sum of past successes did not change the livelihoods of the majority and secondly, the circumstances in which they succeeded no longer exist and the rate of change is accelerating. Radical innovations in agricultural production and marketing are needed, which are adapted to the prevailing socio-economic and environmental circumstances, and which above all are owned by those expected to implement them. (...)
Conclusion Africa has not been standing idly by letting the food crisis unfold. It has been engaged in difficult wide ranging institutional restructuring involving farsighted reforms. Within the limits imposed by huge demands on limited budgets, African governments are increasing their investment in agricultural research, development and capacity strengthening. However, to avoid a continent wide calamity Africa also needs the support of its development partners to facilitate the engagement of all stakeholders in true knowledge-based food democracy in line with their commitment to increased better harmonised and better quality development assistance.
Reference: Knowledge-based food democracy, the way out of the African food crisis: realising the potential of the NARS, SROs and FARA May 2008 6 pages Download as PDF file
Commissioned by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Danemark, the Institute of Food and Resource Economics, University of Copenhagen, has elaborated “A note on the causes and consequences of the rapidly increasing international food prices”.
The report will contribute to the Ministry’s general assessment of the global food situation – and to the debate on the key issues to be addressed in a development context. May 2008 36 pages.
To summarize, there are different stories behind the large increases in world prices for maize, wheat and rice. [extracts]
Developments in the maize market are largely driven by the long term structural shifts in global food demand towards a greater dietary content of meat and dairy and, more recently, rapid growth in the biofuel industry using maize as a feedstock.
The current high wheat prices are mainly caused by three consecutive years of weather-induced harvest shortfalls in some of the most important exporting regions, Australia, Europe and North America, at a time where wheat stocks are historically low.
Finally, the soaring price of rice is primarily a product of hoarding by some of the most important actors in the international rice markets, which have imposed severe export restrictions in attempts to secure rice supplies.
Within the developing countries the rising food prices lead to redistriubtion as some households benefit from the higher prices while others are hurt by them. At the most general level the income for net producers of food will increase while net consumers will experience a tighter consumption budget. Using this broad distinction between net producers and consumers one must expect poverty to increase in urban areas while it may decrease in rural areas. The latter depends, in part, on the distribution of land, though, because landless poor in the rural areas will only benefit if the price increases spill-over on the wages for unskilled labor.
Moving beyond these general statements is difficult because the distribution of urban and rural poor varies greatly across countries and, furthermore, there is large variation in the types of food commodities produced across countries. This report can be downloaded here
The Eastern African Farmers Federation was formed in 2001 and its chapter registered in member counties. EAFF is a non-political, non-profit and a democratic apex organization of all Framers of Eastern Africa. Its role is to voice legitimate concerns and interests of farmers of the region with the aim of enhancing regional cohesiveness and social-economic status of the farmers.
A regional farmers congress is organised by EAFF constitution biannually. The Congress gathers about 150 people drawn from: national member platforms in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and DR Congo; governments and regional economic communities (RECs); farmers networks from ACP; development partners; NGOs and larger civil Society; EAFF networks and alliances.
Stephen Muchiri comments NAFIS: the National Farmers Information Service which was launched as a pilot project begin of May 2008 and links this to the Accra workshop of AFAAS/FARA & Neuchatel Initiative. The National Farmers Information Service (NAFIS)enables farmers and other interested parties to receive timely agriculture information through their mobile phones in national language (Kiswahili to start with).
Stephen Muchiri explains what NAFIS is about. He often sees problems of sustainability in similar projects but farmers should not be left hungry for information.
The NAFIS project ties very well under the CAADP process [Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme] especially pillar IV [dissemination of research information and technologies]. NAFIS should be outscaled at the benefit of farmers. EAFF [Eastern Africa Farmers Federation ] will be monitoring how the NAFIS programme is implemented and rolled out. He answers following questions:
What are the conditions for a continental roll out?
Does an interactive voice service system reach better illiterate farmers?
Are you hopefull that this NAFIS experience can be out scaled to many African countries?
A nearly 8-year effort to redress a notorious act of biopiracy finally achieved its objective on April 29, 2008, when the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced it was definitively rejecting all patent claims for a yellow-seeded variety of common bean named ‘Enola’.
The International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), which has a world mandate for common bean improvement within the CGIAR, took up a legal challenge to the patent in late 2000. The Center’s efforts to reverse the patent have received significant coverage in the international media and helped arouse concern worldwide about predatory intellectual property claims on plant materials originating in the developing world.
The importance of eliminating such abuses seems especially obvious in the face of today’s global food price crisis. More than ever, developing countries must have free access to plant genetic resources that are vital for bolstering food security and adapting agriculture to the impacts of climate change.
06 Jun 2008 At the recent World Food Summit in Rome, Douglas Alexander, Secretary of State for International Development, announced that DFID will provide £150 million to support international agricultural research over the next five years. £130 million of this is allocated to the Consultative Group for International Agricultural research (CGIAR) and the balance to other international agricultural research organisations which complement the work of the CGIAR.
This major increase in funding to the CGIAR is because the “CGIAR is delivering good research.” It is also dependent upon “significant reform in the CGIAR.” The increase in funding will enable the CGIAR and other international agricultural research organisations to undertake research to:
Produce new varieties of staple crops and livestock (including adaptation to climate change);
Create new income opportunities for communities from high value commodities (fruits, vegetables, fisheries and forest products);
Conserve crop and animal biodiversity for future use;
Develop improved practices and policies for the sustainable management of water, land and forestry resources; and,
Inform global and national agricultural and food policies (including policies on markets and trade).
This support for international agricultural research is part of the £400m DFID has already announced for agricultural research under DFID’s new five year Research Strategy.
Delegations from 130 member countries of the Group of 77 plus China are taking part in Yamoussoukro in the four-day meeting of the Group of 77 + China meeting,11-14/06 which for the first time is being held in a sub-Saharan African country.
The meeting is being held at the Fondation Félix Houphouet-Boigny pour la recherche de la paix
The meeting is notably expected to review the implementation of the platform for the development of the South, which was recommended by the 2nd South-South Summit and the operationalization of the Development Fund of the South and Humanitarian Assistance.
President Gbagbo has blamed the current food crisis facing developing countries on the limitations of a skewed economic model dating back to the 19th century, saying that it had created a culture of "dependence on industrialized nations."
"The current food crisis shows clearly... the limitations of certain economic orientations dating back to the 19th century. An economic model that has notably created a situation whereby developing nations depend on the industrialized ones," said President Gbagbo. In order to overcome the current situation, the head of state called on the United Nations to put in place a "fund for the stabilization of staple foods," before adding that the G77 should also move forward and create the "Southern Fund for Development and Humanitarian Assistance" as agreed during a 2005 summit.
9-12 June 2008, Cotonou - FAO and the Benin-based Africa Rice Center (WARDA) host a workshop to explore ways of significantly boosting the West Africa region’s rice production, to help local farmers benefit from high prices and wean those countries off of international rice imports.
The workshop in Benin is also organized in partnership with the International Center for Soil Fertility and Agricultural Development and the non-governmental organization Catholic Relief Services. AGRA is also participating.
Meeting of FARA – AFAAS - Neuchâtel Initiative, Accra, 9 – 11/06/2008.
The general objectives of the meeting were:
to identify and prioritize issues, ideas and activities for collaboration
to determine thematic scope of the consultation
to develop a list of selected AAS stakeholders, key informants, networks and processes (meetings, events) for later consultation activities in different African countries
to develop a joint agenda for the consultation process
To check the results of the discussions (identified issues and developed ideas) with a broader range of actors from within Ghana.
Interview with Silim NAHDY of the African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services (AFAAS).
He explains why it is imperative that advisory services get more support. The Neuchâtel Initiative (a group of donors who support extension services in Africa), AFAAS and FARA are joining efforts. This will to collaborate came before the present food crisis but is now even more urgent. The major challenge is to elaborate a common framework for working together in relation to the country chapters.
Interview with Dr. Desire Porquet - Ivory Coast - ANOPACI & ROPPA, Farmers organisation.
He explains why the concept of leadership is important for farmer organisations. The biggest challenge is to face bureaucracy of research institutes and have a close follow up of the farmer to continue to motivate him at the field level.
Participants:
Dr. M. Silim Nahdy, Chair AFAAS ICC/ Executive Director, NAADS-Uganda, Kampala/Uganda Mr. Max Olupot, Coordination Assistant , African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services (AFAAS), Kampala/Uganda Mr. Stephen Muchiri, CEO, Eastern Africa Farmers Federation (EAFF), Nairobi/Kenya Mr. Benito Odala Eliasi, Capacity Building Advisor, Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions (SACAU), Pretoria/South Africa Mr. Désiré Porquet, 1er Vice-Président, Réseau des Organisations Paysannes et ROPPA, Abidjan/Côte d’Ivoire Mr. Guy Gustave Ewole Medjeme, Chargé de Programme, PROPAC, Yaoundé/Cameroon Prof. Richard Mkandawire, Agricultural Advisor, New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), Johannesburg/South Africa Mr. Daniel Roduner, Consultant – Trainer – Facilitator , AGRIDEA , Switzerland Dr. Agnes Gerold, Consultant, GTZ/Neuchâtel Initiative, Frankfurt/Germany Ms. Sanne Chipeta, Senior International Adviser, Danish Agricultural Advisory Service (DAAS), Aarhus/Denmark Mr. Martin Bwalya, Sustainable Land Management Specialist, New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), Johannesburg/South Africa Mr. Felix Hammond, Municipal Director of Agriculture, Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), Accra/Ghana Mr. John Nortey, Senior Agric. Economist, Ministry of Food and Agriculture – Statistical, Research & Information Directorate (MOFA(SRID)), Tema/Ghana Mr. Theophilus Osei Owusu, Metropolitan Director, Tema, Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), Accra/Ghana Mr. Mawuli Asigbee, Ag Manager, Fairtrade Fruits Project, CARE International (CARE GoG), Accra/Ghana Mr. Gabriel Owusu, Senior Agricultural Officer, Ministry of Food and Agriculture; Directorate of Agricultural Extension Services (MOFA-DAES), Accra/Ghana Ms. Lydia Sasu, Executive Director, National Coordinator, Women leader, Development Action Association, Farmers Organisation Network in Ghana, Accra/Ghana Mrs. Prospera Anku-Okrah, Assistant Agricultural Officer, Ministry of Food and Agriculture – Directorate of Agricultural Extension Services, Accra/Ghana Mr. Charles Ofori Addo, Development manager, Technoserve, Accra/Ghana Dr. Emmanuel Dormon, Assistant Director, Ministry of Food and Agriculture – Directorate of Agricultural Extension Services, Accra/Ghana Nii Quaye-Kumah, Director, Ministry of Food and Agriculture – District Agricultural Development Unit, Dangme West District, Dodowa, Accra/Ghana Mr. Felix Kenyah, Assistant Director, Ministry of Food and Agriculture , Accra/Ghana Dr. Jean-Claude Legoupil, French Technical Assistant, FARA, Accra/Ghana Dr. Aggrey Agumya, SSA CP Programme Officer, FARA, Accra/Ghana Dr. Wale Adekunle, Director NSF5 and SSA CP Coordinator, FARA, Accra/Ghana Dr. Gloria Essilfie, SSA CP Resource Person, FARA, Accra/Ghana Dr. Sidi Sanyang, Director- Regional Policy and Markets, FARA, Accra/Ghana Mr. Dady Demby, RAILS Programme Officer , FARA, Accra/Ghana
FARA is participating at the CORAF/WECARD First West & Central African Agricultural Scientific Week & eighth General Assembly: Producers & Users at the centre of research. June 9-13, Yaounde, Cameroon. The objective of the meeting is to provide a forum where CORAF/WECARD's constituents can meet to review progress since the 7 th biennial General Assembly in April 2006 and, based on lessons learnt since then, determine the West and Central African agenda for agricultural research for development for the next biennium.
Kanayo Nwanze, Vice-President,
International Fund for Agricultural Development.
The Nigerian born IFAD vice president Kanayo Felix Nwanze delivered a keynote address during the general assembly on "Producers and end-users of agricultural research and development". Kanayo Felix Nwanze, is on a five-day visit to Cameroon. The vice president was accompanied by the Director for the West and Central Africa Division, Mohamed Beavogui, and the country programme manager for Cameroon Abdoul Barry.
One of the major highlights of the 12th Session of AMCEN is the launch of "Africa: Atlas of our changing environment". The Atlas is the first major publication to depict rapid environmental change in Africa's countries using satellite imagery, and is a resource for remedial action at all levels.
Charles Sebukeera, UNEP,
during his presentation on Africa:
Atlas of Our Changing Environment
The Atlas, compiled on behalf of the ministers by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), underlines how development choices, population growth, climate change and, in some cases, conflicts are shaping and impacting the natural and nature-based assets of the region.
The nearly 400-page long publication was launched on Tuesday 10/06 by President Thabo Mbeki of the Republic of South Africa who is hosting the AMCEN meeting in Johannesburg. Africa: Atlas of Our Changing Environment features over 300 satellite images taken in every country in Africa in over 100 locations. The 'before' and 'after' photographs, some of which span a 35-year period, offer striking snapshots of local environmental transformation across the continent. In addition to well-publicized changes, such as Mount Kilimanjaro's shrinking glaciers, the drying up of Lake Chad and falling water levels in Lake Victoria, the Atlas presents, for the first time, satellite images of new or lesser known environmental changes and challenges.
The Atlas, compiled in cooperation with researchers and organizations in Africa and elsewhere, offers a sobering assessment of thirty-six years of environmental change, including: 'The swell of grey-coloured cities over a once-green countryside; protected areas shrinking as farms encroach upon their boundaries; the tracks of road networks through forests; pollutants that drift over borders of neighboring countries; the erosion of deltas; refugee settlements scattered across the continent causing further pressure on the environment; and shrinking mountain glaciers'.
The satellite images also highlight positive signs of management that is protecting against and even reversing environmental degradation, say the authors.
The U.N. Environment Programme (UNEP) believes that the growing environmental degradation of Africa is perhaps most starkly reflected in satellite images beamed from the skies. So, the Nairobi-based U.N. agency introduced previously another atlas in August 2006 which had as title: "Africa's Lakes: Atlas of our Changing Environment",
South Africa hosted the 12th session of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN),7-12 June 2008 and will also be taking the helm of AMCEN for the next two years. The official opening ceremony for AMCEN took place on 10 June 2008 to which FARA participating.
View of the Sandton Convention Centre,
venue of AMCEN-12
The first Extraordinary Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Convention for Cooperation in the Protection and Development of the Marine and Coastal Environment of the West and Central African Region will also run parallel to AMCEN from 9-10 June 2008.
The Expert Group met in plenary to hear presentations and discuss a number of items, including: a report by the AMCEN Secretariat; implementation of the Action Plan for the Environment Initiative of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD); reports from the African Union Commission (AUC) and NEPAD; AMCEN’s draft indicative work programme for the biennium 2009-2010; and the forthcoming launch of Africa: Atlas of Our Changing Environment.
Participants during Working Group I (WGI): Climate Change
The Expert Group then convened in three working groups to prepare draft decisions for the ministerial segment on climate change, AMCEN’s Work Programme for the 2009-2010 Biennium, and policy-related matters. It forwarded to the ministerial segment the draft Johannesburg Declaration on the Environment for Development (the Johannesburg declaration), the draft indicative work programme for the biennium 2009-2010, and draft decisions on the following matters:
implementation of the Action Plan of the Environment Initiative of NEPAD; status and use of the general trust fund; chemicals management;
environmental education;
Africa Environment Day;
the Africa Environment Outlook process and the Africa Environment Information Network;
Africa’s preparations for developing a common negotiating position on a comprehensive international climate change regime beyond 2012;
and the comprehensive framework of African climate change programmes, containing an indicative list of Africa’s climate change decisions and an indicative conceptual outline of a comprehensive framework for African climate change programmes.
Export strategies using Intellectual Property (IP) can involve literally millions of producers and show a new and exciting direction for success.
Light Years IP, with support from the UK Department for International Development, has conducted a scoping study on the range and scale of opportunies. This study explores some of the possibilities for large-scale opportunities to increase export income and improve the security of that income for millions all over sub-Saharan Africa.
The 14 product sectors selected for this study have potential for increasing export income from $1.1 billion per annum, to between $2.5 billion and $3.5 billion per annum. The study estimates that IP based strategies can similarly be applied to Sub-Saharan export products, now earning around $9 billion per annum, which would increase export income to between $20 billion and $27 billion per annum.
The global food crisis can be solved, and at the same time African countries can prosper, if the world invests in Africa's agricultural sector. That's the assessment of experts meeting this week in South Africa for the World Economic Forum in the panel "Food Insecurity: A Perfect Storm". More than 800 participants from 50 countries are participating in the forum that runs through Friday. The discussion on food insecurity took place concurrently with the United Nations food summit in Rome. The debate in Cape Town focused on medium- and long-term solutions to the problem.
Dr. Monty Jones directs Ghana's Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa. To him, the recent rise in food prices is more than a humanitarian crisis. He says it's a business opportunity.
"We all believe that agriculture is the backbone for economic growth in Africa," said Jones. "And I think that Africa should turn around this as an opportunity to increase its food production. And, I believe that we are getting ready for that." He emphasized "empowering smallholders to make sure they can access information and outside inputs and have their voices heard. If that happens, I foresee a considerable increase in production"
Dr. Jones was speaking at a debate on how Africa should respond to the growing problem of food insecurity. Panelists agreed that African farmers have been neglected. As a result, they grow less per acre than anywhere else in the world.
Experts predict the current food crisis will force leaders to provide farmers with better education, affordable fertilizer, high-yield varieties of seeds, and improved irrigation. Press Release I Session Summary I Photos I Watch the session
References: Voice of America05/06 ChinaView 05/06 World Economic Forum calls for support for smallholders to address food crisis Tehran Times 08/06 World Bank says food crisis can be opportunity for Africa
This is the fourteenth edition of the Agricultural Outlook and the fourth time it has been prepared jointly by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
This edition covers the outlook for commodity markets during the 2008 to 2017 period, and brings together the commodity, policy and country expertise of both Organisations. The report analyses world market trends for the main agricultural products, as well as biofuels. It provides an assessment of agricultural market prospects for production, consumption, trade, stocks and prices of the included commodities.
In total, the projections encompass 39 countries and 19 regions. The projections are based on specific assumptions regarding global macroeconomic conditions; population growth; national agricultural, biofuel and trade policies; production technologies; and normal weather conditions. The Agricultural Outlook provides a picture of how agricultural markets could evolve in the coming decade given the underlying assumptions.
The MSc in Climate Change and International Development, the first degree programme of its kind (University of East Anglia Norwich UK), will address aspects of the policy process, and include units on dimensions of climate change (CC) and development:
International policy frameworks on climate change; Adaptation and Mitigation choices and pathways; Adaptation and National Responses; Linking CC mitigation and development (CDM and beyond); The carbon trade: markets and development; CC and poverty reduction, trade-offs and synergies; Local responses to extreme events and disasters; adaptation and mitigation impacts in Africa; Sectoral responses (e.g. Managing coastal / water resources).
1200 delegates from some 60 countries took part in the World Bioenergy27-29 May 2008 at Elmia in Jönköping, Sweden. Exhibiting companies numbered 200, of which half came from outside Sweden. The trade fair was visited by 5564 people.
Sub-Saharan African has the greatest bioenergy potential of any world region but at present this potential is vastly under-utilised. At World Bioenergy in Jönköping, Sweden the Stockholm Environment Institute organised a forum on biofuels for development in Africa.
An expert panel with several African and international analysts and partnership/project developers addressed the key issues through short presentations followed by a panel discussion and an open discussion with the audience.
Addressing the African Biofuel Debate: Bothwell Batidzirai, Chinhoyi University, Zambia
Bringing a Swedish Product to an African Market: The Role of Partnership and International Cooperation for Developing a Locally Owned Ethanol Stove Business in Ethiopia ; Milkyas Debebe, Gaia Association, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
A biofuels prenuptial: Questions for Southern policy makers before marriage ; Margaret Matinga, University of Twente, Netherlands
Development and Implementation of Biomass Energy Pilot Activities in Uganda ; Sunil Dhingra, Fellow at The Energy Resources Institute (TERI), Delhi, India
Bioenergy investment in Africa: Michael Nilsson, Chairman, Biomassive, Sweden
Common challenges to sustainable rural biogas programmes in China and Africa ; Lailai Li, SEI
Biomass energy currently forms 70 to 90 per cent of the total final energy supply in sub-Saharan Africa. But there is one major problem, as Sunil Dhingra of the Energy Resources Institute (TERI) in Delhi, India explained:
Sunil Dhingra,
Fellow at the Energy Resources Institute
(TERI) Delhi, India “This biomass is now being used in a very inefficient and traditional way. There is great development potential in Africa for biomass but the real challenge in working in these countries is the lack of access to modern biomass technology.”
GlobalHort just released its second newsletter. GlobalHort acts as a global facility for coordinated horticultural research that provides solutions towards increasing health, productivity and safety in sustainable environments, to uplift the quality of life of the poorest populations in the world. It contributes to improve interest, support and resources to the horticultural sector, public and private, from donors, research and development agencies, and decision makers.
CTA in partnership with the European Commission-DG Development and EuropeAid, the EU Presidency, the ACP Secretariat, Euforic and Concord (European platform of development NGOs) organizes bimonthly Development Briefings in Brussels to raise awareness on key rural development issues with the ambassadors of the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific States (ACP) and EU policy-makers.
The next Brussels Development Briefing will be held on 2nd July and will discuss the issue of "New Players, New Drivers in Development", looking more specifically at the agricultural and rural development sector in the context of ACP countries, the role of private foundations (Bill Gates, Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, Rockefeller Foundation etc) and the role of emerging donors (China, India, Brazil, Japan) in ACP countries.
The discussions will fit into the coming Third High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness to be held in Accra on 2-4 September 2008.
Most of the technological innovations in ICTs are Western-designed and fail to address the needs of the most disadvantaged. The interest of industrialised countries in the use of ICTs in DCs has largely been more concerned with the profitability of their own business enterprises than with any broader goals concerning the development of the host countries. DCs face the challenge of either becoming an integral part of the knowledge-based global economy or the very real danger of finding themselves on the wrong side of the digital divide. Successful management in the new millennium requires developing new methods and approaches to meet the challenges and opportunities of this information revolution while at the same time fostering sustainable development.
Extracts from the table of content:
In search of African Tigers: Repositioning African universities for challenges of research and development, wealth creation and sustainable development Michael J. Emeji, Rivers State University of Science and Technology, Nigeria Read abstract
Cybernating academe: centralisation of science assessment as hegemony - an African alternative Williams E. Nwagwu, University of Ibadan, Nigeria. Read abstract
A longitudinal study of farmers and trainers capturing climate information for sustainable development D.A. George, University of Queensland, Australia, J.F. Clewett, Agroclim Australia, A.K.S. Huda, University of Western Sydney, Australia, C.J. Birch and A.H. Wright, University of Queensland, Australia, W.R. Allen, AgForce Queensland, Australia, and Q. Pa Read abstract
Women, sustainable community development and human resource development: The Sub-Saharan African context Peter Cunningham and Kristine Sydhagen, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa Read abstract
A breed of rice has been introduced in two North Rift districts to boost food security. The trials of New Rice for Africa (Nerica) were done in 2004 and seems to be doing well, according to two organisations.
The variety, a mixture of Asian and native west African was introduced to Keiyo and Marakwet districts by Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica) and Community Agricultural Development Project for Semi-Arid Lands (Cadsal).
According to the Cadsal project manager for Keiyo and Marakwet districts Mr David Mutisya, the trials were in the last phase. The rice matures in a period of about four months and does well in highlands, medium and lowland areas. It was first tried in Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (Kari) farm in Kibos, Kisumu, in 2003. It has also been grown in Matuga, Mwea, Bungoma, Busia, Juja, Kabete, Kwale and Kerio Valley areas.
The African edition of the World Economic Forum (04/06-06/06) is being held in a idyllic South African tourism resort against the backdrop of mounting problems threatening the continent's recent trend of economic growth. This year's edition has attracted about 850 participants among them political leaders, captains of industry, top journalists and civil society. They are expected to tackle issues as varied as the business environment, political leadership, international relations and food security in at least 50 sessions.
Food security, geopolitical instability, economic shocks and climate change are among top risks facing Africa, according to a new report released (20 pages) at the World Economic Forum on Africa.
Co-author Irene Casanova is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Risk Program. She says the report cites four risk areas: Food and Fresh water Security, Geopolitical Instability, Economic Shocks and Climate Change.
“In 43 Africa countries there are food deficiencies. Inflation does not help. Population keeps on growing. And even if agricultural productivity has improved, it needs to increase even further. These combined with social conflict and so on -- actually it makes the situation at risk,” she says.
One solution, she says, would be to expand Africa’s Green Revolution to go beyond technology and reform government enterprises to improve agricultural productivity and bring economic stability.
As the "Conference on World Food Security: Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy" unfolds in Rome, many international organizations mandated to offer solutions to the crisis of rising food prices have stepped forward. The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), together with World Bank and other institutions put together steps to alleviate the problem that includes the need to:
expand emergency aid and social protection for the poor
calm the markets with sound trade, reserve, and regulatory policies
change the biofuel policies that spur high food prices, and
invest much more in agriculture, especially to benefit the small farms of the developing world
Google Earth users around the world can now see how climate change could affect the planet and its people over the next century. Using world leading climate science, Climate Change in Our World shows global temperatures over the next hundred years, along with stories of how people in some of the world's poorest countries are already being affected by changing weather patterns. Examples of possible future climate change impacts have been produced, based on projections by the UK's Met Office.
The project includes present day human impact case studies provided by DFID. These include stories from research projects of the Climate Change Adaptation in Africa (CCAA) research and capacity development program, and specifically, studies produced through the "Adaptation Stories" initiative of the CCAA. These examples of the diverse work being done by DFID-funded researchers in the CCAA span the African continent: recording lessons learned by farmers in Niger adapting to drought; providing improved climate information and options to help South African fruit farmers prepare for a water-scarce future; and combining climate observation with medical research in Kenya to improve models of malarial prediction.
In the main Google Earth window, clicking on the "play" button to the left of the timeline bar will activate an animation showing temperature changes over the next hundred years.
During the animation, push-pin icons will appear over selected points on the Earth. Click on these icons to open pop-up boxes containing more information about the impacts of climate change in the developing world. Move the hand cursor or use the navigation controls to fly anywhere on the planet to investigate further.
New sustainable agriculture technologies with renewed funding commitment is the call of the world's largest organization dedicated to international agricultural research in order to alleviate current and future food crises. Emile Frison, Director General of Bioversity International, explained on behalf of the 15 centers supported by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), that strategies for a revolution in sustainable agriculture were in place for fruition in the 1990s but were stalled due to the waning of financial support.
The challenges of the early 60s to increase food production was well supported which lead to all-time successes in international agriculture. This resulted to increased harvests and steadily declining food prices that might have lulled donors into complacency about agriculture, Frison commented. With this scenario, the Alliance of CGIAR Centers put together an action plan which was presented during the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) High-Level Conference. The document highlights short, medium, and long-term measures to resolve the current food crisis and reduce the risk of future crises. "We urgently need to accelerate the flow of new varieties tolerant to heat, drought, and other stresses that will become worse with climate change,” Frison said. “We must also spread more widely the new tools and methods from research on natural resource management."
The alliance will also continue to work in concert with other international institutions such as the FAO, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the World Food Programme and World Bank, as well as with many regional, national and local partners.
19 May, 2008 Emile Frison, Director General of Bioversity International, was recently interviewed by the French language service of Radio Canada. He explained some of the factors behind the recent rise in food prices and spoke of some approaches to tackle the problems, including more money for agricultural research for development and the need to use biodiversity to tackle malnutrition. Listen
Scientific innovations can help bring about Africa’s Green Revolution. The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), headquartered in Patancheru near Hyderabad in southern India, is working with other institutions in the global initiative to bring about a green revolution in the drylands of sub-Saharan Africa.
Speaking at an international conference titled Israel and the Green Revolution in Africa held on 1 June in Jerusalem, and addressing politicians, policy makers, scientists and other distinguished participants, Dr William D Dar, Director General of ICRISAT, said, “I am certain that MASHAV and ICRISAT can provide critical leadership in this Revolution, particularly in the dry areas, which are our bread and butter.” The drylands cover about 40% of Africa’s arable landmass, and about 25% of Africa’s populations live and work in these areas. According to the United Nations Human Development Index these areas cover most of the poorest nations on earth, and the farmers here earn less than one US dollar a day.
“African governments need to be more supportive of their rural poor, “ Dr Dar added, “They need to adopt policies that encourage, rather than penalize agriculture. Developed countries need to break with their past habits of huge subsidies to domestic farmers that create unfair competition with the poor in the developing world.”
ROME (4 June 2008) A memorandum of understanding was signed by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the World Food Programme (WFP) to boost food production in Africa’s “breadbasket regions”. The new partnership will work closely with other stakeholders to rapidly improve food production, food security and rural incomes. Careful environmental monitoring, and conserving biodiversity, water and land will be given high priority.
"Unlocking the potential of agriculture in Africa is a huge challenge, but it can be done,” said FAO Director Jacques Diouf. “This initiative is an important contribution to reduce the number of more than 200 million hungry people in sub-Saharan Africa.” Kofi Annan, Chairman of the Board of AGRA, said that they are hoping to spur a green revolution in Africa that respects biodiversity and the continent’s distinct regions and great variety of crops.
An agreement to boost agricultural research in Tunisia was recently signed between Marion Guillou, the President of the French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA), and Mr Abdelaziz Mougou, President of the Institution of Agricultural Research and Higher Education (IRESA) - Tunis.
The agreement was signed on 16 May 2008 in Tunis at the Ministry of Agriculture in the presence of Mr Mohamed Habib Haddad, Minister of Agriculture and Hydraulic Resources and Mr Abderrazak Daâloul, Secretary of State for Fisheries. The CIRAD will soon be associated with this agreement.
This agreement aims at reinforcing scientific exchanges, researcher mobility and joint projects between the two establishments. It establishes a programme of calls for proposals for joint research projects.The agreement aims at reinforcing scientific exchanges, researcher mobility and joint projects including biotechnology. The program will soon call for proposals for joint research projects between the two establishments.
Less than a dozen companies have filed 532 patents for plant genes designed to tolerate extreme weather and environmental conditions. While the biotech crops are designed to better survive conditions brought on by climate change, a report looking at the patents warns of how a gene patent monopoly could harm farmers.
ETC Group notes that in some cases the companies are working with organizations, research groups and philanthropists. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is providing a $47 million grant for Monsanto and BASF to develop drought-tolerant corn for use in the southern African countries of Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and South Africa.
The ETC Group urges for governments meeting at the U.N. Convention on Biological Diversity in Bonn (May 19-30) and at the joint United Nations-FAO High-Level Conference on World Food Security and the Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy (3-5 June 2008) to recommend that governments suspend the granting of all patents on climate change-related genes and traits.
Some experts say that both sides have oversimplified the pros and cons of biotech crop patents. "I don't mind Monsanto developing these tools. I mind that we don't have an economic ecology that lets other companies compete with them," said Richard Jefferson, founder and chief executive of Cambia, a nonprofit institute based in Australia that helps companies worldwide sort through patent holdings so they can build on one another's work instead of stymieing one another. Under the current system for patenting genes, he said, "the little guys shake out and the big guys end up in a place a lot like a cartel." Jefferson characterized the ETC report as extreme in its anti-corporate views but praised it for drawing attention to what he said is a real problem of corporate consolidation in the seed industry. Happily, he said, patent offices are "getting a lot better" about not allowing overly broad gene patents.
01/06 CheckBiotech Patent policy and sustainable cellulosic biofuels development National patents and international rules on patents will be instrumental in the development of biofuels markets—defining how fast that development takes place and who controls and benefits from the next wave of biofuels.
03/06 GGIAR story of the Month June 2008: Fighting for Fair Use of Plant Genetic Resources A nearly 8-year effort to redress a notorious act of biopiracy finally achieved its objective on April 29, 2008, when the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) announced it was definitely rejecting all patent claims for a yellow-seeded variety of common bean named "Enola".
BBC 30/05Could GM crops help feed Africa? In the final part of his series on whether genetically modified food can help solve the world food crisis, BBC News rural affairs correspondent Jeremy Cooke reports from Uganda.
Announcement:
The next FARA Bulletin issue (April-May) will have a thematic focus agriculture and Intellectual Property Rights
The Ugandan "Busoga Farmer Network" (Bufanet), the Swiss e-learning developer Avallain and the National Institute for Adult Continuing Education (NIACE) have teamed up to jointly develop "MarketInfonet", an internet-based and mobile phone driven market communication and e-learning system for small scale farmers and fishermen covering three areas: agricultural education, market information and basic skills training.
The provision of information and learning material for market and agricultural skills contributes to closing the knowledge gap – and unlocks human potential: "Access to information is prerequisite for small scale farmers and fishermen to adapt new agricultural techniques, improve their business and achieve good prices", Mr. Kiirya emphasizes. "The ability to read, write and calculate is prerequisite to make full use of information."Hence, MarketInfonet will address basic skills.
The user friendly edited information in English and local languages will be amended with interactive exercises for literacy and numeracy: Comparing prices, calculating the amount of fertilizer, writing an order, reading a manual –MarketInfonet will present basic skills learning as a key to improved business. Business becomes the driver for education.
The current food crisis has revived the myth that the world doesn't produce enough food for its six billion people, according to Michel Pimbert, author of a new study that highlights local production as a potential solution.It is a "manufactured crisis" that is the outcome of a market-driven, global food system, says Pimbert, director of the agriculture and biodiversity programme at the London-based International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED).
Towards Food Sovereignty is an online book with linked video and audio files. The first three chapters, available on the IIED website, begin to describe the ecological basis of food and agriculture, the social and environmental costs of modern food systems, and the policy reversals needed to democratize food systems. The video and audio clips show farmers, indigenous peoples and consumers all working to promote food sovereignty, it highlights the importance of locally controlled food systems to sustain both people and nature.
A workshop on Lethal Yellowing Disease, one of the main pandemic diseases affecting coconut worldwide was held in Accra 3rd of June.
The workshop was organised with the support of the French Ambassador in Ghana, Centre for International Cooperation in Agric Research and development, and in partnership with the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research,and the Forum for Agriculture Research in Ghana.
Coconut lethal yellowing disease has been devastating plantations in Ghana at regular intervals since 1932. CIRAD and the Ghanaian Oil Palm Research Institute are currently testing the disease resistance of various coconut hybrids obtained by crossing "Tall" and "Dwarf" varieties. Coconut is a major source of income for farmers along the Ghanaian coast. However, it has been hit by the devastating effects of a small wall-less bacterium, a phytoplasma, which causes coconut lethal yellowing disease.
Note: Lethal yellowing is a phytoplasma disease of coconut and other palms. Susceptible palms die within 3 to 6 months of the first symptoms. It is epidemic on the Gulf and Caribbean coasts of Mexico and in Belize and Honduras where hundreds of thousands of palms are dying. When the disease was active in Jamaica and Florida, in the 1960s and 70s an International Council on Lethal Yellowing (ICLY) was set up. It was supported by the FAO, the Coconut Industry Board, Jamaica, the UK Overseas Development Administration, the University of Florida and the International Palm Society, amongst others.
ICLY is now revived, with the benefits of electronic mail, as CICLY. In English this is the Centre for Information on Coconut Lethal Yellowing or Centro de Información del Amarillamiento Letal de Coco in Spanish (to acknowledge the inescapable fact that most research will take place in Latin America). CICLY is intended to act as a discussion centre and clearing house for information about lethal yellowing and similar diseases of coconut and other palm species.
Related: Fiji Dwarf Coconut is One Tough Nut The "Fiji Dwarf" coconut variety may be able to save the US coconut industry which is being destroyed by the lethal yellowing (LY) phytoplasma.
The FAO newsroom offers, free of charge, online audio files on FAO's related events and programmes.
Here are some files (African selection) on the High level on World Food Security:
Question to Ban Ki-moon from l' Agence Panafricaine d'Information (PANA) Duration: 3min.22sec. / Format: mp3
Address by Mr Jacques Diouf, Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization French version / Duration: 26min. / Format: mp3 English version / Duration: 22min. / Format: mp3
His Excellency Isaias Afwerki, President of Eritrea English / Duration: 5min.55sec. / Format: mp3
Address by the president of Zimbabwe, Robert Gabriel Mugabe Duration: 12min.5sec. / Format: mp3
Discours du Président du Sénégal, Abdoulaye Wade French / Duration: 9min.25sec. / Format: mp3
Son Excellence Monsieur Ismaël Omar Guelleh, Président de la République de Djibouti, French / Duration: 8min.33sec. / Format: mp3
A South African look at Food Security issues of 3-5 June 08 Summit, Rome
Duncan Samikwa(SADC) shares some of the major interventions in South Africa in dealing with the challenges of climate changes on food insecurity. Duration: 5min.10sec. / Format: mp3
Independent non -governmental organization Regional Hunger and Vulnerability Programme (RHVP) in South Africa say the country has done well by excluding maize in their biofuels strategy. Duration: 4min.23sec. / Format: mp3
Neil Townsend, Oxfam touches on the advantages of biofuels in an attempt to alleviate climate change. Duration: 5min.1sec. / Format: mp3
South Africa’s Economic Policy Research Institute, Dr Seshi Kanki says the challenges of food crisis could be minimized with introduction of solid social protection systems for the vulnerable community. Duration: 4min.3sec. / Format: mp3
South Africa’s Wits University Research Group on Vulnerability Adaptation Mitigation Planning believes there should be an extensive research before we could all blame climate change on impact of food security. Professor Colleen Vogel says the emphasis should also focus on current climate variability and its impact on people. Duration: 4min.35sec. / Format: mp3
The project is the result of the identified need to give African meetings and activities a higher exposure to the international community. Building on the success of the Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) in covering international environment and sustainable development meetings, this project expects to replicate this success at the regional level in order to make the outcome of Africa’s NEPAD follow-up meetings available to the world in real-time.
This first phase of the project will consist of reporting from meetings of ministers in Africa on sustainable development and environment as well as those on water, energy, transport, human settlements and technology. Through the distribution of targeted policy briefs on upcoming international meetings, IISD RS will also be building a network of environment and sustainable development policy experts working in African capitals. The meetings to be covered by IISD Reporting Services will be selected from meetings of the following organisations but not limited to the following:
African Union and its subsidiary bodies Southern African Development Community and its subsidiary bodies United Nations Environment Programme New Partnership for Africa’s Development
International Agreements and Conventions that may be hosted by African Governments
Relevant South-South Cooperation Meetings
Bi-annual meetings of the African Ministerial Conference on Environment
African preparatory meetings for the Commission on Sustainable Development
Planned meetings of the NEPAD Environment Initiative Meetings of the UN Economic Commission for Africa’s Committee on Sustainable Development.
In addition, IISD RS will publish periodic policy briefs for governments in the region in relation to multilateral environmental agreements and sustainable development in the context of the follow-up to the WSSD and the NEPAD Environment Action Plan.
Yokohama, – A seminar under the theme “Progress in the Implementation of Comprehensive Africa Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) and Emerging Opportunities” was held May 27, 2008 by The New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) on the sideline of the fourth session of the Tokyo International Conference for Africa’s Development (TICAD IV).
CAADP it was highlighted is an Africa-led initiative and framework to rationalise and revitalize African agriculture for economic growth and lasting poverty reduction results. The CAADP seeks to increase agriculture productivity in Africa to 6% annually, in order to achieve the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The two-hour seminar was attended by a large number of participants, particularly Africa’s key stakeholders in the area of agriculture such as, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), Forum for Agriculture Research in Africa (FARA) Green, and Alliance for the Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA).
The Acting CEO of NEPAD, Ambassador Olukorede Willoughby opened the meeting by introducing NEPAD and its CAADP program and underscoring the importance of partnerships in effectively implementing all the NEPAD priority areas and programs, especially the CAADP program.
The recent thirty-fourth session of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Conference, held during November 2007, called for a series of expert meetings and stakeholder consultations on climate change and bioenergy, to be followed by a High-Level Conference on World Food Security and the Challenges of Climate Change and Bioenergy.
FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf today appealed to world leaders for
US$30 billion a year to re-launch agriculture and avert future threats of conflicts over food.
The preparatory meetings were held January-April 2008 and the High-Level Conference takes place 3-5 June 2008. The High-Level Conference is informed by work undertaken and findings which emerged from the expert meetings and stakeholder consultations, as well as new analysis undertaken by the Organization, as part of its regular activities.
This High-Level Conference has become even more timely in light of soaring food prices and the additional challenges this situation poses to achieving global food security. Many Heads of State and Governments attend, as well as the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, transforming the June High-Level Conference into a true Summit on world food security.
As delegates gathered in Rome on Tuesday, they seemed to be well aware of the heavy responsibility placed on their shoulders: formulating concrete strategies and practical solutions to tackle the world’s growing food crisis. The attendance of some 30 Heads of State and Government to what was qualified as a “de facto” summit by FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf reinforced their sense of urgency. Some delegates remarked that the various leaders’ statements served a political purpose in asserting the importance of the issue, and succeeded in touching upon the very heart of the situation: uncertainty and discussion – some say speculation – about the causes of the current crisis and their relative importance.
João Bernardo Vieira, President of Guinea Bissau, stressed the need to increase investment in agriculture, especially in Africa.
Absalom Themba Dlamini,Prime Minister of Swaziland, drew attention to the linkages between climate change and the food crisis.
Gabriel Ntisezerana,Vice President of Burundi, underscored that bioenergy should not threaten food security.
Maria Madalena De Brito Neves, Minister of Environment and Agriculture of Cape Verde
The World Bank Group is boosting overall support for global agriculture to $6 billion from $4 billion over the coming year. This includes IBRD lending, grants and highly concessional credits from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), which supports the world’s poorest countries, and finance for agri-businesses and trade finance. For example, in Africa agriculture lending will increase from US$ 450 to over US$ 800 million.
In addition to our financial support the Bank is also providing policy, technical and research advice to countries. Over the last 6 months, over 40 governments have sought policy advice from the Bank on how to deal with the rising food prices. Working in partnership with WFP, FAO, IFAD,NEPAD, UNICEF and others, the World Bank has concluded needs assessments in over 25 countries and has over a dozen more underway. The social as well as agricultural needs assessments will serve to guide policy responses as well as financial assistance to these countries. The Bank is making $100 million available in Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Madagascar, Mali, and Niger through additional financing and restructuring of existing operations.
Rapid needs assessments have been completed for Burkina Faso, Burundi, Liberia, Mali, Sierra Leone, and Togo. Assessments are ongoing in Eritrea, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Malawi, Mauritania, and Niger.
In Guinea, the Bank is preparing an emergency budget-support operation to help the government manage the sharp rise in food and oil prices.
The Bank is working on irrigation and water management in Ethiopia, fertilizer use in Malawi, market access for smallholders in Senegal, and crop diversification in Mali and Uganda.
The African Union (AU) and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (Nepad), in collaboration the World Bank, the Food and agriculture organisation (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) have hosted a Food Security Workshop with the theme Accelerating Investments in Response to High Food Prices and Food Insecurity in Johannesburg from 20 to 23 May.
It was attended by about 200 participants drawn from 18 countries in Africa, development partners, NGOs, farmers associations, research institutions, regional economic commissions, regional organizations, and Lead Institutions for CAADP Pillars including FARA.
"This workshop is aimed at assisting African countries to identify, and formulate initiatives for boosting food security and agricultural investment in Africa. It is the result of our collective efforts to deal with the rise in food prices".
The main goal of this workshop was to assist governments in selected countries in Africa to identify and formulate an appropriate country framework of specific food security interventions following an approach to boost food production, availability and access to food for the most vulnerable and cope with higher and more volatile food prices.
Specific objective included:
Country teams revising their initial project designs for investment
Developing action plans for finalizing the project preparation
The participants being exposed to CAADP and in particular CAADP Pillar 3 and its relevance to investment options for food and nutrition security programmes
Sharing experiences and learning lessons for effective planning
ICRISAT-Nairobi hosted a 2-day workshop May 22 & 23 in on ‘Defining a strategic agricultural research agenda on post-crisis/post-shock recovery in highly stressed systems’
The objective of the workshop was to identify opportunities for collective action with respect to research that leads to more effective recovery after crises and shocks, especially in countries suffering higher levels of political, social, ecological or economic stress. There were over 30 participants, representing seven CG centers, NARS from five countries, FAO, Red Cross / Red Crescent, NGOs involved in emergency response, and donors.
The workshop was structured around a discussion paper commissioned by the Regional Plan and written by Kate Longley of the Overseas Development Institute on ‘CGIAR Research for Improving the Impact of Relief, Recovery and Rehabilitation’. The paper reviews the ways in which CG centers have been working in disaster and conflict situation, highlighting the substantive research, strategic and organizational issues that emerge.
Upcoming: ‘Drivers of Change’ (Flagship 1) workshop - Nairobi (at ILRI) on June 12 & 13 about how to link up long term research sites in the region to a more synergistic whole, in terms of studying how to deal with said drivers of change.
Digital Green is an agricultural training and advising system in India that seeks to benefit rural farmers by disseminating targeted information through digital videos. A geographically-dispersed, culturally-diverse rural population of farmers remains disconnected from expert information that could improve the sustainability of their livelihoods. Various extension systems have been tried before, however, Digital Green aims to build a system that can scale agricultural advising support to even the smallest subsistence farmer. Digital Green bootstraps on the local expert knowledge of existing NGOs and farmers by capturing and distributing the widest selection of content in the most targeted, practically-oriented format – videos.
The video based approachhas several important advantages to traditional forms of agricultural content, which is typically not in the local language, intended for a literate audience, uses expert terminology, lacks grassroots level practicalities, and remains inaccessible in a sea of scattered media.
Farmers, by the nature of their occupation, rely on their auditory and visual senses and video, though not perfect, comes closest to capturing the scene in detail. Video creation tends to be faster and less expensive than other types of media, as advanced preparation in “lesson”-planning can minimize post-production editing.
Video can compress the time needed to reveal the change.
Video provides a means of bringing relevant demonstrations into the homes of farmers.
Video also reduces the human resources required to follow-up with individual farmers and demonstrate time-consuming methods in the field.
The DG database is currently being populated with video of various types. This includes:
Testimonials of farmers sharing their experiences with better agricultural methods
Groups showcasing an alternative income generating activity
Lifelines
Biomass energy currently forms 70 to 90 per cent of the total final energy supply in sub-Saharan Africa. But there is one major problem, as Sunil Dhingra of the Energy Resources Institute (TERI) in Delhi, India explained:
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