Tag: Agriculture & Food Security

COMESA enhances seed trade by developing certified labels, fosters trade in animal under AfCFTA

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AFRICA – The Alliance for Commodity Trade in Eastern and Southern Africa (ACTESA) is a specialized agency of COMESA, focused on agricultural development, has developed over four million physical seed labels that are ready for use by seed companies in the region. ACTESA, manages the Seed Development Programme which is implemented within the guidelines of the COMESA Seed Harmonisation Implementation Plan (COMSHIP). In line with COMSHIP, the programme has developed the COMESA Variety Catalogue, a platform that contains seed varieties which comply with requirements of having the seed registered in…

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Avian flu spreads across Nigeria causing US$1.3m worth of poultry loss in Kano State

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NIGERIA – The highly pathogenic Avian Influenza H5N1 has wreaked havoc in Nigeria with cases of rampant out-breaks reported in Kano State, registering a loss of over N500 million (US$1.3m) worth of poultry. According to the Kano State branch of the Poultry Farmers Association of Nigeria, 223,695 chicken have been confirmed affected and depopulated, noting that each of the chicken costs not less than N1,800, and the amount of the loss is over N402 million (US$1.05m). The Chairman of the association, Mr. Umar Kibiya Usman, highlighted that there are thousands…

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Agricultural Finance Corporation supports Kenyan women farmers with US$9.3m financing

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KENYA – The Agricultural Finance Corporation (AFC) has extended a Ksh1 billion (US$9.3m) loan to women farmers as it seeks to empower women-led enterprises. The money, which is part of Ksh3 billion (US$27.95m) that AFC intends to loan women, has been disbursed over nine months, according to the agency’s board chair Franklin Bett. The institution last year started the Women Affirmative Access Window programme to drive financial inclusion in agricultural finance. Mr Bett said the loans have been made collateral free to attract women who would want to access funds…

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Attractive prices lure Brazilian farmers to corn cultivation, production expected to hit 105m tonnes

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BRAZIL — Despite a smaller-than-expected first crop and delayed planting of second, Brazil corn produce is expected to reach a record 105 million tonnes in the 2020-21, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network (GAIN) report from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). USDA in its report noted that corn production is expected to increase thanks to elevated domestic demand and record-setting prices which make the crop more attractive to Brazillian farmers. The Agency attributes boosted domestic corn prices to strong demand from the poultry and livestock sectors, the growing…

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World cereal production in 2021 to increase for the third consecutive year – FAO

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GLOBAL— The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has projected that the world cereal production in 2021 will increase for the third consecutive year thanks to sharp rebounds in key production markets in Europe, India and South Africa. According to the FAO, global wheat production is forecast to reach a new high of 785 million tonnes in 2021, up 1.4% from 2020, driven by a likely sharp rebound across most of Europe and expectations of a record harvest in India. Above-average outputs also are expected for maize, with a record harvest…

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Olam’s 2020 annual report, a reflection of a company committed to sustainable growth

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SINGAPORE – Global food and agri-business company Olam International has released its 2020 Annual Report, highlighting its key achievements for the year with a particular focus on financial achievement and progress in sustainability commitments. The company noted in its report that it successfully navigated the pandemic and emerged stronger, with a robust operational financial performance in 2020. The company’s overall annual revenues went up 8.6%, totaling US$35.8 billion, including US$12.5 billion for its food division, despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. In the report, Olam was also proud of the significant…

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Angolan state bags US$82m from privatization of government owned breweries, agro-livestock farms

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ANGOLA – The government of Angola has raised a total of Akz 52 billion (US$82.7m) from the privatization of 3 state-owned breweries and 5 agro-livestock enterprises, under the Privatization Program (PROPRIV), coordinated by the Institute of Assets Management and State Participation (IGAPE). IGAPE was created to manage the state’s financial assets and holdings, and carry out the privatisation and restructuring programme of the corporate public sector, according to a presidential order. The PROPRIV program is aligned with the National Development Program 2018-2022 and falls within the scope of Public Finance…

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ITFC, OCP Africa partner to build Côte d’Ivoire’s rice value chain, Malawi government plans US$40m rice scheme

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CÔTE D’IVOIRE – The International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) has partnered with OCP Africa to support 20,000 rice farmers in Côte d’Ivoire’s agriculture value chain, to boost local agricultural production, minimize exposure to imports and advance food security in the country. The initiative will be undertaken trough OCP Africa’s Agribooster Program with participation from the Arab Africa Trade Bridges (AATB) Program, a multi-partner program led by ITFC. The agreement was signed by Dr. Mohamed Anouar Jamali, Chief Executive Officer of OCP Africa, a subsidiary of OCP Group, and Eng.…

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Tunisia to continue relying on grain imports to meet growing demand

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TUNISIA – Favourable weather conditions are expected to boost production of grains in Tunisia to 1.2 million metric tonnes (MT) of wheat and 650, 000 MT of barley in the Market Year (MY) 2021/22. This is a rise from MY 2020/21 production estimates of 1.04 MMT for wheat and 465,000 MT for barley. According to a GAIN report prepared by USDA Foreign Agricultural Services, ample rainfall and good soil moisture encouraged farmers to seed larger areas in October to December 2020. The seeded area for wheat increased from 556,000 HA…

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Co-op Bank joins forces with eco.business Fund to finance sustainable agriculture in Kenya with US$10m

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KENYA – Co-operative Bank of Kenya (Co-op Bank), one of Kenya’s leading commercial banks and the primary bank for agricultural cooperative societies in the country, has partnered with eco.business Fund to avail US$10 million financing for on-lending to sustainable agribusinesses. Being the fund’s first ever investment in Kenya, it aims to provide the much-needed financing for businesses to enhance sustainable measures in their agricultural practices, particularly important in light of the challenging operating environment created by the Covid-19 crisis. According to the impact investor, the investment contributes to its mission…

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