NAIROBI, Kenya (PAMACC News) – The African Green Rovolution Forum (AGRF) 2021 Summit kicked off on September, 7, 2021 in Nairobi, Kenya convening close to 7,000 participants virtually, including African presidents, agriculture Ministers, agricultural stakeholders and experts to discuss ways the continent can transform food systems and accelerate progress to eradicating hunger and poverty.
Hosted by the Government of Kenya, through the Ministry of Agriculture, the summit starts today and will run till Friday, 10th September under the theme of ‘Pathways to recovery and resilient food systems. In line with the upcoming global UN Food Systems Summit (UNFSS), the AGRF Summit intends to unite and elevate a single coordinated voice to the UNFSS, that will call for accelerated progress and post pandemic recovery towards inclusive agricultural transformation.
Kenyan president, H.E. Uhuru Kenyatta, will lead a presidential summit comprising 10 African heads of State to review the gains made in Africa’s agricultural landscape. The Summit will also advocate for the implementation of policy and political decisions necessary to drive food systems transformation on the continent.
This year’s Summit will include a commitments showcase, where AGRF partners and key stakeholders will highlight initiatives and commitments to transform food systems and accelerate Africa’s delivery of the 2030 targets.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) Board Chair H.E. Hailemariam Dessalegn said that the Summit marks a defining moment for transforming the continent’s food systems.
“Africa’s agriculture transformation will only happen if we collectively decide to advance past commitments. We know the binding constraints that have hindered progress in achieving national and continental agriculture priorities. This Summit brings us together to collaborate and hone our leadership and technical skills useful in unlocking sector implementation challenges. By actioning commitments and discussing challenges on our way, we can partner to empower African communities.”
A key session during the Summit includes a Farmers’ Forum. The forum, will put a spotlight on the continent’s farmers and discuss pathways to ensure they are thriving and contributing to building resilient food systems for the continent. Summit sessions will also look at how youth and women can be included and engaged to transform the continent’s food systems capitalizing on their large numbers and education capacity, helping to provide guidance for policy, and evidence-based approaches that foster productive participation.
Kenya’s Minister for Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives, Hon. Peter Munya, said youth and women need to be the cornerstone of any solution for transforming Africa’s food systems.
“Engaging the youth and women in achieving food systems transformation is key to realising inclusive progress in the agriculture sector. Today, African youth and women represent an indispensable resource and as Government, we are tasked to ensure their energies and talents work to achieve our nation’s food and nutrition agenda. The Youth Town Hall during this summit will be integral for leaders and agricultural stakeholders to listen and chart ways the youth can be employed to advance food systems transformation, and I hope this roadmap will be embraced by other African countries.”
The Acting Managing Director AGRF, Ms. Jennifer Baarn said: “The AGRF 2021 Summit is critical for Africa’s agricultural and food systems development. However, if we do not advance the commitments we make today and throughout this week, we will not get to zero hunger. As Africa reels and rebuilds from the impact of COVID-19, rebuilding efforts must include smallholder farmers, the youth and women as they represent a sizeable percentage of Africa’s population. Our discussions should be inclusive and our plans hereafter should be achievable.”
For the first time in history, Kenya counts all its animals on both land and water to help with its conservation and tourism plans
MARSEILLE, France, (PAMACC News) – The Kenya Minister of Tourism and Wildlife, Hon. Najib Balala, today officially released the report for the country's first-ever national wildlife census.
Themed ‘Count to conserve’, the census conducted between May- July 2021 counted over 30 species of mammals, birds and marine species in various ecosystems, covering nearly 59 percent of Kenya's land mass.
According to the report, Kenya has a total of 36,280 elephants, a 12-percent jump from the figures recorded in 2014, when poaching activity was at its highest.
Speaking during a press briefing at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille, Hon. Balala said: “This national census is the first wildlife survey of its kind and scope in Kenya. It is fully financed by the Kenyan government. Obtaining this level of information allows for better policy, planning and assessment of areas that require focus in our interventions to maintain or improve our national conservation efforts"
Kenya in East Africa is home to vulnerable and endangered species that include lions, elephants, giraffes and rhinos. It is also a transit route for migratory whales, dolphins and endangered turtles. In March 2021, The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) warned that poaching and habitat destruction, particularly due to land conversion for agriculture, was devastating elephant numbers across Africa.
The survey counted 1,739 rhinos, 897 critically endangered black rhinos and 840 southern white rhinos, and said the tourist magnet Maasai Mara National Reserve was home to nearly 40,000 wildebeest.
“The results of the census report could greatly improve Kenya’s conservation efforts for future generations. Kenya, like several of its African peers, is trying to strike a balance between protecting its wildlife while managing the dangers they pose when they raid human settlements in search of food and water.” said Kenya Wildlife Service Director General Brigadier (Rtd) John Waweru
Congratulating Kenya for this great milestone, IUCN Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa, Luther Anukur said: “IUCN is honored to have Kenya and other Africa State Members participate at the World Conservation Congress in Marseille. This forum allows for government, civil society, indigenous peoples, business, and academia to share experiences and explore opportunities for collaboration. Kenya’s example is one that will inform policy and action towards wildlife conservation. It is an example that many countries in Africa can learn from.”
Kenya is committed to developing innovative mechanisms for sustainable conservation, identifying conservation hotspots and developing strategies to rally public support and partnerships to grow wildlife numbers. KWS invites partners to work with it in developing strategies to increase the numbers of the endangered and threatened species.
Click the link to download the report here cl: https://bit.ly/WildlifeCensusReport
For the first time in history, Kenya counts all its animals on both land and water to help with its conservation and tourism plans
MARSEILLE, France, (PAMACC News) – The Kenya Minister of Tourism and Wildlife, Hon. Najib Balala, today officially released the report for the country's first-ever national wildlife census.
Themed ‘Count to conserve’, the census conducted between May- July 2021 counted over 30 species of mammals, birds and marine species in various ecosystems, covering nearly 59 percent of Kenya's land mass.
According to the report, Kenya has a total of 36,280 elephants, a 12-percent jump from the figures recorded in 2014, when poaching activity was at its highest.
Speaking during a press briefing at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Marseille, Hon. Balala said: “This national census is the first wildlife survey of its kind and scope in Kenya. It is fully financed by the Kenyan government. Obtaining this level of information allows for better policy, planning and assessment of areas that require focus in our interventions to maintain or improve our national conservation efforts"
Kenya in East Africa is home to vulnerable and endangered species that include lions, elephants, giraffes and rhinos. It is also a transit route for migratory whales, dolphins and endangered turtles. In March 2021, The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) warned that poaching and habitat destruction, particularly due to land conversion for agriculture, was devastating elephant numbers across Africa.
The survey counted 1,739 rhinos, 897 critically endangered black rhinos and 840 southern white rhinos, and said the tourist magnet Maasai Mara National Reserve was home to nearly 40,000 wildebeest.
“The results of the census report could greatly improve Kenya’s conservation efforts for future generations. Kenya, like several of its African peers, is trying to strike a balance between protecting its wildlife while managing the dangers they pose when they raid human settlements in search of food and water.” said Kenya Wildlife Service Director General Brigadier (Rtd) John Waweru
Congratulating Kenya for this great milestone, IUCN Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa, Luther Anukur said: “IUCN is honored to have Kenya and other Africa State Members participate at the World Conservation Congress in Marseille. This forum allows for government, civil society, indigenous peoples, business, and academia to share experiences and explore opportunities for collaboration. Kenya’s example is one that will inform policy and action towards wildlife conservation. It is an example that many countries in Africa can learn from.”
Kenya is committed to developing innovative mechanisms for sustainable conservation, identifying conservation hotspots and developing strategies to rally public support and partnerships to grow wildlife numbers. KWS invites partners to work with it in developing strategies to increase the numbers of the endangered and threatened species.
Click the link to download the report here cl: https://bit.ly/WildlifeCensusReport
MAKUENI, Kenya (PAMACC News) - Justus Kimeu, a resident of Kithiani village in the heart of Makueni County has demonstrated to his villagers that by using innovative agronomy practices, the little rainfall in the semi arid county can be sufficient to produce sufficient yields of maize and other crops.
Kimeu is one of the farmers who have embraced the Regenerative Agriculture (RA) technique, which is being piloted in the county by AGRA, the Cereal Growers Association (CGA) among other partners.
RA is a dynamic and holistic way of farming that involves all the principals of permaculture and organic farming techniques, such as minimum tillage, use of cover crops, crop rotation, terracing to reduce soil erosion, heavy mulching to keep the soils moist, use of basins to preserve water and use of compost manure to give the topsoil a texture of virgin fertile arable land.
According to Dr Agnes Kalibata – AGRA President, putting nature at the heart of agriculture and land management can unlock huge benefits for people, health and the environment.
“Productive and regenerative agricultural systems that combine local, indigenous and traditional knowledge and techniques such as crop rotation and tree planting with advanced farming technologies like drip irrigation and seed selection can increase yields, reduce input requirements, boost transparency, and improve the incomes and livelihoods of smallholder farmers,” said the AGRA President.
“The RA system is actually returning the topsoil back to its original form,” said Michael Mutua, an Associate Program Officer in charge of Regenerative Agriculture at AGRA.
With a dismal rainfall of 250mm to 400mm per annum, Kimeu’s one and a half acre piece of land stands out in the entire village. The deep green maize crop with two to three cobs per stem is a rare spectacle in this rainfall scarce. Under normal circumstances, such a crop can only be found in Western Kenya and the Rift Valley regions which receive more than 1250mm per annum.
“When I decided to implement this technique, my farm was bare without much vegetation. So I started by making terraces and after it rained, different weeds sprouted. Together with my family members we uprooted all the weeds and left them on the farm to dry and decompose before making small basins in which we were going to plant the crop,” explained the farmer.
The basins were then filled with organic manure and some topsoil. And when it rained for the second time, hybrid and drought tolerant maize variety seeds were planted inside the moist basins, and any weed that sprouted was manually uprooted and left to rot on the farm.
“We try as much as possible to avoid tillage or any form of disturbing the soil for it to regenerate naturally to its original form,” he said noting that he also avoided use of convectional fertilizers on the farm.
According to AGRA’s Mutua, basins filled with manure can conserve soil moisture for a very long time. As well, compost manure releases soil nutrients slowly, thus keeps the soil fertile for a few seasons unlike the convectional fertilizers which must be used in every planting season.
RA farming system is currently being piloted among smallholder farmers in Makueni and Embu Counties before it is rolled out to other parts of the country and even beyond Kenya.
