NAIROBI, Kenya (PAMACC News) - Kenya’s Karura Forest Reserve sits on a prime land in the city of Nairobi, covering an area of over one thousand hectares.The Forest features three natural caves and a 12m waterfall on river Karura, which attracts approximately 20,000 visitors monthly.Through ecotourism, the forest generates enough revenue to cover its expenditure and makes good profit which is ploughed back into the management of the forest, according to forest manager, John Orwa.The local community is also empowered under the Forest Act 2005 to demand best practices in the management of the forest – no tree is removed from the forest without community engagement.Jacqueline Mbawine of conservation NGO, A Rocha Ghana, is inspired by the Karura story, as she shared the experience of community action in restoring degraded savanna, forest and mangrove areas in Ghana at the 2018 Global Landscapes Forum.“I think it’s very possible to have forests within our cities,” she said. “In recent times there have been talks about urban forestry and effort being taken by many countries and organizations. In Ghana, the Forestry Commission is making efforts at establishing some urban forestry within the Weija enclave and I think this can be brought further down to Accra, the capital and other cities in the country”.Jacqueline is however unhappy that community efforts to restore and protect landscapes are not recognized and appreciated.“A current challenge we have is our Atewa rain forest reserve which has a wealth of Bauxite but also key in providing water supply to about 5million Ghanaians. However this forest is under great threat and it’s currently being exploited which is going to affect the people who get their livelihood and most especially their water supply from this landscape,” she observed.Restoring 2m hectares in GhanaTransitional and forest zones of Ghana are being threatened by mining, charcoal production and unsustainable agricultural activities.The country’s Northern Savannah Ecological zone is highly vulnerable to environmental degradation and climate change due its geographic location and the dependence of its population on natural resources, rain-fed agriculture and transhumance systems. This area, rich in biodiversity, was identified as one of the priority zones which need immediate attention under the Ghana Strategic Investment Framework (GSIF) for Sustainable Land Management (SLM).In 2015, Ghana joined the AFR100 with a restoration commitment to plant 2million hectares of trees. The AFR100 is in accordance with Ghana's national priorities and commitments to the three Rio Conventions; namely the UN Convention to Combat Drought and Desertification (UNCCD), the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD).Losing the forests implies that about 60 percent of the Ghanaian population who depend on the forest for their source of livelihood would be challenged.The 2012 Forest and Wildlife Policy has some significant provisions to increase the country’s forest cover whilst addressing issues of tree tenure, which is a major cause for deforestation. “We have managed to put into policy some steps to reform tree tenure, in which case government hands over off-reserve areas to communities…

KIGALI, Rwanda (PAMACC News) - Key stakeholders in Africa’s agricultural sector today identified partnerships for sustainable agricultural technology delivery as a critical factor in Africa’s quest to feed Africa. This came out strongly at a breakfast session that heralded the presidential summit of the 2018 African Agricultural Revolution Forum (AGRF) which ended today in Kigali, Rwanda’s capital city. Organised by the ClearingHouse of the Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT), an initiative of the African Development Bank’s Feed Africa Strategy that aims to achieve major agricultural transformation in Africa, the session had in attendance, African Agriculture Ministers, Scientists, representatives of multilateral development banks, donor partners and the private sector. Mpoko Bokanga, Head of the TAAT ClearingHouse, in his opening statements traced the programme’s history to the October 2015 Dakar High Level Conference on Africa Agricultural Transformation Agenda which led to the adoption of 4 goals and 18 action points to transform African agriculture. With a focused approach on integrated development of agricultural value chains, Dr. Bokanga highlighted the main objective of TAAT which is to “take proven agricultural technologies to scale in a commercially sustainable fashion through the establishment of a mechanism to facilitate partnerships.” “These partnerships will not only provide access to expertise required to design, implement and monitor the progress of crop, animal and aquaculture, they will also contribute to ending extreme poverty by eliminating hunger and malnutrition; and making Africa a net exporter of agricultural commodities,” Dr. Bokanga said. Innovative approach in partnerships TAAT, according to Dr. Bokanga, isn’t an addition to Africa’s long list of agricultural initiatives but an innovative programme that serves as a clearing house for sustainable agricultural technology delivery. Through its components, the programme will promote an enabling environment for technology adoption; establish a regional technology delivery infrastructure to accelerate delivery; and raise Africa’s agricultural productivity by deploying proven agricultural technologies at the agro-ecological and country levels in strengthened agricultural value chains. The Togolese Minister for Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries, Ouro-Koura Agadazi was full of praises for the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) for this well thought-out programme, which according to him, “carries the prospects of transforming Africa’s agricultural landscape.” “Togo has benefitted from several of IITA path-breaking agricultural solutions and it is our hope that TAAT will not be any different,” Agadazi added. Hon Joseph Mwanamvekha, Malawian Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development, commended the partnership between IITA as the executing agency and the over 10 research institutes and centres driving the implement of the TAAT programme. Also underscoring the imperatives of partnerships for sustainable agricultural technology at the breakfast session were representatives of International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and the IITA. Technologies for Africa Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) is a knowledge and innovation-based response to the recognized need to scaling up proven technologies across Africa. Already being implemented in 31 low income Regional Member Countries of the AfDB, TAAT supports AfDB’s Feed…

KIGALI, Rwanda (PAMACC News) - For its creative work in generating solutions on and off the farm, innovative solutions that have improved the lives of millions in the face of climate change, and rampaging crop pests and disease, the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) has emerged winner of the 2018 African Food Prize. IITA is the first institution to receive the distinguished Africa Food Prize as announced today at the African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) in Kigali, Rwanda. The independent Africa Food Prize Committee, chaired by H.E. Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Nigeria, selected IITA for its deep commitment over many decades to producing a steady stream of innovations that have boosted the nutrition and incomes of millions of people across Africa. In recent years, that work also has included a critical focus on connecting crop science to creating employment for Africa’s youth, and ensuring African farmers can adapt to the stress of climate change and the growing threat for an array of crop pests and plant diseases. “IITA stood out to us for its steadfast and inspiring commitment to a research agenda that aligns with both our African traditions as well as the evolving needs of African farmers and consumers for the latest advances food production,” said Obasanjo. “From the cassava we’re still eating today, to the valuable and nutritious soybeans we now grow in our fields, to maize varieties that can withstand drought and deadly toxins—our diets and our agriculture businesses would be much poorer today without IITA’s leadership, and its willingness to forge powerful bonds with African farmers and African communities.” Speaking as he received the Prize on behalf of his institution, Dr. Nteranya Sanginga, IITA’s Director General, stated his belief that a great deal of IITA’s success rests on its ability to develop relationships and collaborations that allow the fruits of its research to be scaled up and made available to millions of farmers. “I’m extremely honoured to be receiving this prize on behalf of IITA and proud to be part of a group of researchers dedicated to building lasting and relevant solutions for the continent,” said Sanginga. “But it would be remiss of me if I didn’t acknowledge the important role of our various partners, from other research centers to governments to the private sector, without whom our research might never have seen the light of day.” Responding to today’s realities In addition to its research work, the Africa Food Prize selection committee also cited the institute’s role in moving from being a developer to becoming the producer and distributer of Aflasafe—a product that can remove 80 to 99 percent of a deadly, cancer-causing fungus called aflatoxin that contaminates maize and groundnuts. In order to prove there was a market for the product, IITA established a “Business Incubation Platform (BIP)” and manufactured and sold Aflasafe itself. The product was a hit with farmers, who found the savings generated by Aflasafe were many times more than the product cost. IITA eventually handed off production to…

KIGALI, Rwanda (PAMACC News) - Farmers across Africa are reeling under huge losses linked to the devastation by an invasive specie called Fall armyworm, also known as Spodoptera frugiperda. With origins in Eastern, and Central North America and in South America, the caterpillar has since 2016, found its way into 44 African countries, causing significant damage to maize crops with great potential for further spread and economic damage In sub-Saharan Africa, fall armyworm has instigated heavy losses to staple cereals, especially maize and sorghum, affecting food security and trade, thus upsetting the continent’s plan to feed itself. The extent of the destructive influence the invasive pest wrecks on maize alone is estimated to be between USD$ 2.5 - 6.2 billion per year, destabilising the livelihoods of around 300 million people. These and many more reasons spurred experts attending the 2018 African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF2018) which began today in Kigali, Rwanda, to deliberate and explore ways of preventing or mitigating the next outbreak in Africa. Fall armyworm as a global issue Setting the scene at a session on building the resilience of Africa’s agriculture against invasive species, Dr. Dennis Rangi, Director General of the Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International (CABI) identified continuing globalisation through increasing trade, travel, and transport of goods across borders as one of the factors facilitating the spread of invasive species, with increasing negative impacts. The problem, according to him, “is global in scope and requires international cooperation to supplement the actions of governments; the private sector and organisations at national and local levels.” The recent arrival of fall armyworm in India is a case in point. The caterpillar’s leap from Africa to India confirms the global nature of invasive species and the need for partnerships to tackle the pest. Chief Scientist at the USAID Bureau for Food Security, Dr. Rob Bertram sees it in a different light. To him, fall armyworm is a reminder that we live in a small world that is increasingly becoming smaller and we are more connected than ever. The answer therefore, “is more global connectedness through south-south and north-south learning; strengthening research networks; national level leadership; and a coherent regional approach to invasive species,” Dr. Bertram said. Is Africa ready for the next outbreak? Dr Rangi believes “a straightforward, three-pronged, internationally recognised approach to addressing the problem of invasive species, namely prevention, early detection & rapid response, and lastly control will help a great deal.” However, transforming this approach into a reality in policy and practice remains a huge challenge in Africa as African famers usually find themselves trying to address the latest invasion, when the previous invasion is yet to be cleared. They also lack adequate information and knowledge about preventing and detecting an invasion early enough. To overcome these challenges, the CABI DG urged African countries to create a policy and regulatory environment that promote sustainable approaches in tackling invasive species; put in place a national invasive species strategy and action plan; and a sustainable investment plan. Dr.…