AFRICA'S NO.1 FOOD, BEVERAGE & MILLING INDUSTRY MAGAZINE

AfDB, Aliko Dangote Foundation, Big Win Philanthropy commit to end child stunting in Africa

Aug 3, 2021Aug 4, 2021 Editor

AFRICA – Malnutrition continues to rob generations of Africans of the chance to grow to their full physical and cognitive potential, hugely impacting health outcomes and economic development. In 2020, 61.4 million African children were registered as stunted, with Africa being the only region where the number of stunted children has risen and 40% of all stunted children in the world live on the African continent. To address this crisis, the African Development Bank has been committed to scaling up the proportion of its investments that are nutrition-smart in the…

Ethiopia receives US$47m grant from AfDB to support establishment of Agro Industrial Parks

Jul 23, 2021Jul 23, 2021 Editor

ETHIOPIA – The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) and the Government of Ethiopia have signed a grant agreement worth US$47 million, to be channelled towards the Productivity Enhancement to Support Agro Industrial Parks and Youth Employment Projects. According to the development organization, the industrial parks and youth project will see the establishment of irrigation and water management infrastructure around the Integrated Agro-Industrial Parks. This is aimed to offer opportunities for graduate “agri-preneurs” to establish agro-related, commercially viable businesses. Valued at US$102 million, the venture is being co-financed with the Arab…

AfDB promotes food security, COVID-19 recovery in Zambia with US$1.4m grant

Jun 18, 2021Jun 18, 2021 Editor

ZAMBIA – Zambia has received a US$1.4 million grant from African Development Bank’s Global Agriculture and Food Security Program, to fund the Mitigating Impacts of Covid-19 on Household Food Security Project in the country. The Global Agriculture and Food Security Program was established as a response to the 2008/09 world food price crisis, following a commitment by the Group of 8 nations (G8) in September 2009 to mobilize up to US$20 billion for agricultural development and food security. The World Bank supervises about half of the project portfolio of the…

AfDB taps expertise of Dr Beth Dunford to be Vice President, Agriculture, Human and Social Development

Jun 16, 2021Jun 16, 2021 Editor

AFRICA – The African Development Bank Group (AfDB.org) has announced the appointment of Dr. Beth Dunford as Vice President, Agriculture, Human and Social Development, effective 1st July 2021. Dr. Dunford, a national of the United States of America, brings extensive experience to this role having held senior level leadership positions in the US government. She is feted for having managed large and complex programs, working with the private sector, civil society, and multilateral and bilateral institutions, as well as with African governments, to deliver agricultural, social and human development impact…

AfDB, IFAD and partners pledge to end hunger in Africa, work collaboratively with leaders to strengthen food security

Apr 30, 2021Apr 30, 2021 Editor

AFRICA – The impact of climate change, pandemics, hunger and malnutrition, rising fragility and conflict, and locust invasions in East and Southern Africa is taking a toll on the continent. In particular, hunger poses an even greater risk than Covid-19 across the region as the number of people living with hunger increased from 214 million to 246 million between 2015 and 2020. The African Development Bank (AfDB) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), in partnership with the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) and the CGIAR System…

AfDB supports Cameroon in establishment of US$119.7m livestock, fish farming development project

Apr 26, 2021Apr 26, 2021 Editor

CAMEROON – Cameroon has launched the CFAF65 billion (US$119.7m) Livestock and Fish Farming Value Chain Development Project (PDCVEP), aimed to boost the competitiveness of the beef, pork, and fish sectors. The initiative has been funded through a loan injection of CFAF55 billion (US$101.3m) from the African Development Bank (AfDB) and capital contribution of CFAF10 billion (US$18.4m) by the Government of Cameroon. The PDCVEP is scheduled to run for the next five years, targeting to improve producers’ income and create job opportunities in the beneficiary segments, reports Business in Cameroon. To…

Kenyan footwear design house Pine Kazi turns fruits waste into shoes, bags prize from AfDB

Mar 30, 2021Mar 30, 2021 Editor

KENYA – Pine Kazi, a women-led Kenyan shoe design house converting pineapple leaf and recycled rubber into fashionable footwear, has been named as the winner of the Fashionomics Africa initiative. Fashionomics Africa is an initiative of the African Development Bank in partnership with the United Nations Environment Program, the Parsons School of Design and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, aimed to increase Africa’s participation in the global textile and fashion industry value chains – with an emphasis on women and youth. Being its inaugural contest, its aim was to honour African…

AfDB appoints Atsuko TODA as acting Vice President for Agriculture, Human and Social Development

Mar 17, 2021Mar 17, 2021 Editor

AFRICA – The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) has announced the appointment of Ms. Atsuko TODA as Acting Vice President for Agriculture, Human and Social Development, effective 16 March 2021. She takes over the position from Wambui Gichuri who was also appointed on acting capacity from 5th July 2020. The position was left vacant following the resignation of Dr Jennifer Blanke on purely family reasons, intending to rejoin her family in Switzerland after a very fulfilling time at the bank. Atsuko, a Japanese citizen, is a seasoned professional with over…

AfDB, ICRAF come to the aid of Ivorian cocoa farmers battling climate change

Jan 29, 2021Jan 29, 2021 Editor

IVORY COAST – The African Development Bank (AfDB) has partnered with World Agroforestry – ICRAF, to undertake a climate resilient cocoa farming project in two Ivorian smallholder farmers’ communities located in Soubre and Vavoua, currently grappling with declining yields caused by climate change and worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic. ICRAF is a centre of science and development excellence that harnesses the benefits of trees for people and the environment. Under the initiative the two smallholder farmer communities will receive climate-resilient and sustainable agroforestry assistance which will generate nature-based solutions that…

AfDB grants Burundi US$20m to support farmers mitigate climate change

Dec 10, 2020Dec 10, 2020 Editor

BURUNDI – The African Development Bank (AfDB) has granted Burundi US$20.55 million to support farmers affected by climate change phenomenon. The project to support the sustainable development of agriculture and livestock value chains in Burundi (PADCAE-B) is expected to start soon after the initiative receives the slated funding. Part of the financing amounting to US$12.83 million, comes from the African Development Fund (ADF), the concessional window of the AfDB while the rest of the package, US$7.72 million, comes from Pillar 1 of the Transition Support Facility (TSF), the bank’s financing…