YAOUNDE, Cameroon (PAMACC News) - The Africa Forest Forum is set to launch eight training compendiums on various aspects of climate change in forestry to expand knowledge on the subject as it marks ten years of existence on May 22, 2019, in Nairobi, Kenya.Since its establishment, the forum (AFF) has provided a bridge between science-based knowledge and good policies to support sustainable forest management, effectively working within a science-policy-management framework. “We started this journey on December 06, 2007 when AFF was registered as a not-for-profit NGO in Nairobi Kenya, and with a grant from the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency in 2008, which helped us, among other things, to set up a platform that could support African forestry stakeholders to discuss and mobilize resources for improved management and use of their forest and tree resources,” said Prof Godwin Kowero, Executive Secretary-CEO at AFF. Since then, awareness has grown on the role of forests and trees in national economic development, livelihoods and environmental stability, with AFF steadily gaining membership and capacity to work on these and other related issues.As one of the lead organization in the continent to promote sustainable forest management, the organization says it has delivered internationally renowned research in sustainable forestry and helped various member countries make their forest more productive, better for wildlife, and prepared for the challenges of a changing climate.The institution says it has worked along with its partners, on several key fronts over the past ten years. Some of its successes include “promoting shifts in perceptions, priorities, values, capacities and skills to bear on subsequent impact on forestry and related decisions and practices. The interventions leading to this have included convening on specific issues, advocacy, partnerships and collaborative activities, knowledge brokerage, facilitating capacity and skills development, research and development activities.”The goal accordingly has been to initiate a process through which local communities are seen and treated as critical stakeholders (participants and beneficiaries), while strategies for harnessing the potential of forest and tree resources to support livelihoods today, some of which employ these interventions, are given as much attention as the sustainable management and wise use of these resources for the benefit of future generations.Statistics from AFF shows that Africa’s forest currently cover of 624 million hectares (23% of land area) representing natural capital that supports rural livelihoods, national economies, and has considerable potential in the global economy. The African forest ecosystems are also characterized by high biodiversity with rich endemic species.It also shows that the annual value of trade in non-timber forest products is largely unknown since these products are traded informally; however, some estimates put it at over USD 500 million. Africa’s forests contribute 21% of total global carbon stock held in forests.African forests support most rural livelihoods in the continent by providing income generating and employment opportunities. “In many cases these forests support up to more than a third of the household incomes,” AFF says. The forests in Africa are also important in regulating supplies of water since many river head waters…

NAKURU, Kenya (PAMACC News) - The Dutch government through the Netherland Development Organisation (SNV) has released 39 million Euros ($43 million) to support agripreneurs from East Africa who are keen on investing in climate smart agriculture value chains of pulses, oil seeds, potatoes and cereals. The beneficiaries, according to Joseph Muhwanga, the Project Manager for the Climate Smart Agriculture-East Africa (CSA-EA) Programme at the SNV, will include smallholder farmers, farm input providers, small and medium business enterprises, agriculture service providers and cooperatives in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, who are keen on investing in the targeted value chains. “10 million Euros ($11.2 million) has already been set aside and will be given directly to different business cases that meet the laid down criteria in the next five years,” said Muhwanga. The main aim of the five year programme is to increase food production using climate smart agricultural solutions in the wake of changing climatic conditions. According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organsation (FAO), the rising temperatures and increased frequency of extremely dry and wet years are expected to slow progress toward increased productivity of crop and livestock systems and improved food security, particularly. In that regard, one study led by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) points out that in order to place the impacts of climate change into context, there is need to look first at changes that affect demand for food and other agricultural commodities, and then at changes affecting supply.According to Muhwanga, the SNV led programme seeks to support the entire value chain of pulses, oil seeds, potatoes and cereals using a climate smart approach. “We’ll be seeking to directly support entrepreneurs who choose to venture in business ideas and strategies that are too risky for any financial institution to support, but meet the project expectations,” said Muhwanga. Such business cases or ideas must demonstrate involvement of smallholder farmers, must be climate smart or environmentally sustainable, should be all inclusive in terms of women and youth, and must make economic sense to the business champion and other value chain actors. But most importantly, the ideas should be scalable or replicable. “The maximum amount available for any given business idea is 200,000 Euros ($224,000) or 50 percent of the total business case cost,” Muhwanga said.In Kenya, the project will focus on 12 counties that include Makueni, Kitui, TharakaNithi, Meru, Embu, Kirinyanga, Nyeri, Laikipia, Nyandarua , Nakuru, Bomet andNarok, while in Tanzania, the beneficiaries will be agripreneurs fromMbeya, Katavi, Njombe, Ruvuma,Songwe Arusha, Kilimanjaro, Dodoma, Singida, Tabora and Manyara. So far, SNV has already started engaging farmers, and other agripreneurs to assess and interrogate current strategies that are in use, identify new and innovative strategies that could be implemented and or up-scaled in order to increase productivity and income and enhance resilience for various value chain actors working along the pulses, oil seeds, potatoes and cereals. “We have already visited two counties in Kenya, where we assessed te existing strategies by farmers, devolved governments, entrepreneurs, agricultural service providers among…

LAGOS, Nigeria (PAMACC News) - As at 2014, rice consumption in sub-Saharan Africa was estimated to be approximately 26 million metric tons (MT). Out of this figure, 13 million MT which represents about one-third of what is traded on the world market, came into Africa via imports. Rice consumption in Africa is projected to reach 34.9 million tons by 2025. Out of this figure, 12.6 million MT will be imported at a cost of about US$5.5 billion annually. The demand for rice in Africa is growing as a result of population growth, increased per capita consumption, and a shifting preference toward ‘premium’ rice linked to increased urbanization. The African Development Bank (AfDB) reckons that the rice sector has the potential to become an engine for economic growth across the continent. To achieve self-sufficiency in rice by 2025, Africa requires the production of nearly 13 million additional tons of premium rice per year. This will then improve the livelihood of at least 3 million producers and lead to economic gains of about US$5.5 billion per year among African countries. However, to attain this feat, Africa requires holistic mechanisms which include widespread distribution and commercial adoption of high-yielding, climate-resilient rice varieties, accompanying technologies, and innovations. It is in this light that the AfDB is supporting the Post-harvest, Processing and Value Addition Equipment Fabrication and Standardization Workshop which began today in Porto Novo, Benin Republic. The one-week workshop brings together equipment fabricators from Benin, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mali, Nigeria, and Senegal to Improve the quality of locally fabricated rice processing equipment to respond to consumer preferences. Organized by the Rice Compact of Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) in collaboration with AfricaRice and Technique de Construction Mecano Soudé (TCMS), the workshop is expected to harmonise the type and specifications of locally fabricated rice processing equipment earmarked under TAAT. Funded by the African Development Bank (AfDB), TAAT’s main objective is to improve the business of agriculture across Africa by raising agricultural productivity, mitigating risks and promoting diversification and processing in 18 agricultural value chains within eight Priority Intervention Areas (PIA). The programme increases agricultural productivity through the deployment of proven and high-performance agricultural technologies at scale along selected value chains which include rice. Dr. Sidi Sanyang, TAAT Rice Compact Coordinator says the workshop will, in the course of one week, galvanise small and medium scale equipment manufacturers to build and install rice husk-fueled GEM systems and other equipment in TAAT target countries and elsewhere. “Already, TCMS in Benin has signed a contract of FCFA19.5 million to manufacture and install rice husk-fueled GEM systems in six communities in the Glazoue rice hub in Benin,” Dr. Sanyang added. While speaking on behalf of the rice equipment fabricators at the workshop, Charles Frimpong, Managing Director of Hanigha Ltd says the increased collaboration between local fabricators in Africa, facilitated by the workshop, will not only enhance knowledge sharing but lead to uuniformity in type and quality of equipment out-scaled under TAAT. “It will also increase the availability…

LUANDA, Kenya (PAMACC News) - At 11 O’clock in Essong’olo village in the heart of Vihiga County, 400 kilometres west of Kenya’s capital Nairobi, Philemon Echoka sits under a mango tree to listen to his favorite weekly radio programme – ‘farming in the face of climate change.’ He increases the volume of his yellow coloured solar powered FM radio as Moses Ombogo, the broadcaster at Anyole Radio introduces his guest-Japheth Manga Amutete – in a local Luhya dialect called Olunyole. And on this particular morning, the subject of discussion is ‘aquaculture as a method of adapting to climate change.’ Anyole Radio, run by the Nganyi RANET Community Radio Station in Western Kenya is one of five community radio stations established by the Kenya Meteorological Department (KMD) in different parts of the country prone to different climate stresses to help locals understand the prevailing climate and weather patterns so as to develop resilience. The Nganyi community members are renowned rainmakers in Vihiga County. Their traditional methods of weather forecasts have since attracted the attention of international researchers, who have concluded that blending traditional weather predictions with modern science may provide a more accurate forecast. It is based on this kind of knowledge that Anyole Radio was launched on March 23, 2015 to disseminate weather and climate information across the entire Vihiga County and to parts of the neighbouring counties that include Kakamega, Busia and Kisumu counties. But before the discussion begins on this day on Ombogo’sprogramme, the announcer takes time to read out the weather forecast for the week, revealing that despite of it being late, the long rainfall season will delay even further, and that farmers must start using climate smart techniques to adapt to the changing climatic conditions. “That is one of the reasons why we have Amutete in the studio today, to discuss how smallholder farmers can start up fish farming projects for extra income generation,” announces Ombogo using the Olunyole dialect. “This programme has always been a blessing to me,” said Echoka, who ownsa two-acre piece of land in Vihiga and another of the same size in Nangili in Kakamega County, still in thewestern part of the country. Generally, the community radio station was targeted to reach out to 250,000 members of the Abanyole community, but with its infiltration to neighbouring counties, it ends up serving tens of thousands more who can understand the local dialect. The dialect can be understood by nearly all Luhya speaking individuals. Within the entire Luhya community Kakamega has 1,660,651 people, second to Nairobi with 3,138,369, Bungoma (1,374,477), Busia (743,946) and Vihiga (554,622) as per the country’s last round of census. So far in his Kakamega farm, Echoka is taking advantage of the dry spell to make money as other farmers keep staring at the azure blue skies, praying for the heavens to open for the elusive rains to come down. “From my savings, I bought a 6,000-litreportable water tank trailer, and for sure, having such equipment is the easiest way of…