IPS – The hundreds of savings and loan cooperatives operating in South Kivu should be providing an opportunity to develop agriculture and fight food insecurity in the province, but few farmers have been able to take advantage.

Félicien Zozo Rukeratabaro, a human rights advocate for Social and Rural Action, an NGO based in the province’s main town of Bukavu, says “not one small-scale farmer is able to access financial support or credit from any of these cooperatives, which are primarily concerned with speculative transactions and activities only of immediate benefit to themselves.”

Read more – http://www.ipsnews.net/africa/nota.asp?idnews=49784

The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group joins the international communicate to celebrate World Food Day. The AfDB fully supports World Food Day celebrations as a prime opportunity to increase public awareness of food problems on the African continent. This year’s theme “achieving food security in times of crisis” is a vivid reminder of the recent global food crisis. The day offers a unique opportunity to urgently raise awareness of the issues behind poverty and hunger, reflect on the rising tide of world hunger and take a fresh approach to agricultural and food security policy-making. Africa’s agriculture has a huge potential, given its good agro-climatic endowments and labour costs. Agriculture is also a lifeline for Africa, being the primary source of food for the majority, the primary economic sector and the engine of growth. Yet, Africa’s agriculture continues to face serious challenges, including the global financial and economic crisis and the food crisis, all in the face of higher energy prices and inadequate infrastructure. These realities are daunting and are threatening growth performance and the prospect of achieving the Millennium Development Goals.

The development of agriculture should receive the attention it deserves and agricultural recovery plans should be an integral part of financial recovery plans. The critical role of regional financial institutions, including the AfDB is, therefore, imperative. Against the prevailing global economic fragility and in line with its Medium Term Strategy, the Bank is repositioning itself for a renewed engagement in agriculture that focuses on selectivity and building long-term partnerships based on institutional comparative advantage. However, African-led policies and strategies are critical for agriculture to prosper and for the continent to be able to feed itself sustainably. In addition, African resources are needed to develop African agriculture in the long-term.  

Read more – http://www.afdb.org/en/news-events/article/afdb-joins-international-community-in-world-food-day-celebration-5197/

Numerous research institutes and international organisations agree that climate change will in the short and medium term worsen Africa’s agriculture and food production capabilities, unless greenhouse gases emissions (GHE) are substantially reduced and adequate trade and investment policies put in place.

Fresh studies on the effects of climate change on agriculture predict that, without proper mitigation and adaptation policies, sub-Saharan African countries will suffer the most in the form of increased malnutrition, unemployment and reduced export earnings.

In its “Climate Change Impact on Agriculture and Costs of Adaptation” report, published Sep 29, the Washington-based International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) warned that “the negative effects of climate change on crop production are especially pronounced in Sub-Saharan Africa, as the agriculture sector accounts for a large share of GDP (gross domestic product), export earnings and employment in most African countries.”

The report indicates that by 2050 in sub-Saharan Africa, average rice, wheat and maize yields will decline by up to 14 percent, 22 percent and five percent, respectively, as a result of climate change. This decline will lead to more malnutrition, especially of children.

Without adequate climate change mitigation and adaptation, and in the absence of proper investment and trade policies, “food availability in the (sub-Saharan African) region will average 500 calories less per person in 2050, a 21 percent decline”.

Due to climate change, the number of malnourished children in sub-Saharan Africa could jump from 33 million in the year 2000 to 52 million in 2050.

Gerald Nelson, leading author of the report, told IPS that, globally, some seven billion dollars per year must be additionally invested in climate change adaptation programmes such as “research, rural infrastructure and irrigation in the developing world to offset the negative effects of climate change on human well-being.

“Sub-Saharan Africa requires the greatest overall investment – some 40 percent of the additional amount estimated – and a greater share of investments in roads,” Nelson added.

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An African leader has dismissed the UN’s food agency as a “waste of money” and called for it to be scrapped.

President Abdoulaye Wade of Senegal spoke out days after the UN announced an emergency plan to bring soaring world food prices under control. Mr Wade said the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) was itself largely to blame for the price rises. His comments came as bakers in Nigeria began a week-long national strike in protest at the cost of flour and sugar. Full article: BBC News