By Denene Erasmus. August 2, 2017. Farmer’s Weekly. The sub-Saharan African agri-food system is undergoing significant changes. Consumption is growing due to rapid population growth, and consumers are increasingly demanding higher-value food products such as animal proteins and dairy. This was according to Lulama Ndibongo-Traub, of the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP), who spoke at the launch of …
State to introduce land lease models to attract youth to agriculture
By Agatha Ngotho. June 21, 2017. The Star In Kenya, the state plans to introduce a land lease model to make it easy for the youth to lease land. Agriculture Minister Willy Bett said the government will spend Sh340 million to enhance access and sustainable use of land for the youth in agribusiness. This, he added, will help increase youth access …
Study shows Public Works Programme enabling communities achieve food security
By Pauline Kaude. 06 June 2017. Originally posted on Malawi News Agency. The Public Works Programme being implemented in all 28 districts of the country has resulted in a lot of people achieving food security at household level, a study conducted by the Centre for Agriculture Research and Development (CARD) of the Lilongwe University for Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR) in …
A kilo of sugar to retail at Sh100, 56,000 tonnes have been imported, says Bett
By Agatha Ngotho. The Star — June 5, 2017. The national government has assured citizens that sugar prices will decrease to between Sh100 and Sh110 per kilo. Agriculture CS Willy Bett on Friday said the decrease in cost is due to the importation of 56,000 metric tonnes of sugar. Currently, the average price for a kilo is Sh200, a 53.8 per cent …
IAPRI urges Govt to commit full roll-out of electronic voucher
By Kelly Njombo. May 30, 2017 — Zambia Daily Mail. THE Indaba Agricultural Policy and Research Institute (IAPRI) has called on Government to make funds available on time for the full roll-out of the electronic-voucher system in the 2017/18 farming season to ensure farmers redeem agro inputs timely. IAPRI says Government needs to address key challenges faced during the pilot …
What Tanzania Should Do to Unlock Livestock Potential
By Elias Msuya. May 7, 2017 — The Citizen. Dar es Salaam — Despite Tanzania being among African countries that have large numbers of livestock, it is yet to tap the potential. Tanzania is the third country in Africa in having a large number of cattle after Ethiopia and Sudan. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Tanzania had 25.8 …
Small-scale farmers could earn Sh15bn if memo is adopted
By Gerald Andae. Business Daily – Africa. 14 March 2017. Smallholder farmers could earn up to Sh15 billion annually if a Ministry of Agriculture memo to the Cabinet requiring 30 per cent of public institutions’ produce procurement be directly reserved for farmers is adopted. The ministry says the Cabinet memo is intended to link small-scale farmers to the market through …
Zambia Tries New Way to Beat Drought: Solar Grain Mills
Voice of America, January 17, 2017 LUSAKA — For Inonge Imutowana, buying food for her family of six is becoming increasingly costly. On the outskirts of the capital, a 25-kilo bag of staple mealie meal that cost 65 kwacha a year ago now is selling for 140 kwacha ($14). Across Zambia, drought that swept across the region last year, leading to …
Uganda’s attempt to economic recovery in 2017
The economic distress that became more apparent through 2016 can be traced to as far back as 2011 when inflationary pressures ravaged the country after a controversial election. By Frederic Musisi, the Daily Monitor. Published January 6, 2017 In Summary Rough terrain. There were all these telltale signs for the past five years that the Ugandan economy was sickly. But technocrats …
Malawi to receive MK6bn drought insurance payout from African Risk Capacity
By Green Muheya, Nyasa Times. Published November 17, 2016 Malawi government will get a US$ 8.1 million (about K6 billion) payout to support its response to the drought which resulted from the poor 2015/16 agricultural season African Risk Capacity Insurance Company Limited (ARC Ltd). The payout will be released to Malawi as soon as the government’s plan on how the payout …