Maize is a major staple food in Africa whose production is likely to be affected by COVID-19[/caption] By Dr. Daniel Kyalo Willy Mr. Wycliff Wephukhulu has just retired from a very productive day at his 5-acre farm. He is trying to rush against time to finish land preparation before the long rains start. As he listens to the evening bulletin on his favorite vernacular radio station, news stream in that more positive cases of the deadly Corona Virus Disease (COVID-19) have been confirmed in Kenya. With this, the government has restricted travel into and out of four counties in Kenya besides a dusk to dawn curfew, while the government of Uganda, a neighboring country not far from his village, has taken stricter measures, there will be a total lock down for 21 days. Similar situations have been experienced across the African soil. As he ponders over this news, he cannot stop wondering how this pandemic will affect his plans at the farm and his children residing in Nairobi, Mombasa and Entebbe. For Wycliff and millions like him in Africa, farming is the main source of income. Moreover, slightly over 60% of African economies derive 25-40% of their GDP from Agriculture. Consequently, a pandemic of the magnitude of COVID-19 cannot be brushed off because it touches the nerves of many farmers and economies. The pandemic is likely to affect Wycliff and others like him, be it in Nigeria, Senegal, Djibouti, and the other 50+ countries in Africa where the pandemic has already been confirmed in the following three major ways. Limited Access to Inputs Due to the lock downs and economic slowdown that most countries are experiencing, the production and distribution of critical inputs: Fertilizer, Seeds and Pesticides will be disrupted. Besides the limited access to these critical inputs, their prices are also likely increase as a result of suppressed supply. Untimely access and costly inputs are likely to deny farmers the opportunity to apply these inputs at critical stages of crop development and increase the cost of production, hence affecting yields and incomes. Suppressed Labour Markets Agricultural production in Africa is generally labour-intensive. The COVID-19 pandemic will have a direct impact on the physical and mental health of the labour force hence limiting output per person. The anxieties and limited movement as a result of lock down is likely to limit labour mobility, creating labour shortages and eventually leading to low labour productivity. In areas where group labour is a common practice, social distancing requirements will most likely to limit the number of people who can work at the same time, with implications on labour Limited Access to Local and International Markets COVID-19 has disrupted agricultural supply chains a great deal. For export commodities, the disruption of international transport and logistics has cut off producers from the foreign markets. Exports of fruits, vegetables, coffee, tea, Cocoa and flowers from Africa to the rest of the world to the world markets has reduced drastically. For commodities sold in the local markets,…

Climate and Sustainable Development Network (CSDevNet), has called on Nigerians to make concerted efforts at ensuring that their activities do not endanger the earth. The coalition of civil society organisations made this call in a statement by Dr Ibrahim Choji, the Chairman, Board of Trustees, CSDevNet, in Abuja on Friday, to mark the World Earth Day celebrated on April 22. Choji said that Nigeria must learn lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, which had forced a total lockdown of some human activities that contribute to environmental degradation and climate change. He said that the impact of the coronavirus was both immediate and dreadful, however, the earth’s unfolding environmental crisis was another deep emergency to be concerned about. “It is our belief at CSDevNet that as we lockdown to deal with this mutant virus that is killing people and making our world tragic and horrendous, nature appears to be reclaiming her space. “From Apapa to Port Harcourt, from Lake Chad to River Benue, the fog has cleared; the soot has abated, the air is simply sublime and we can see the blue skies and the birds are just loving it. “Chirping birds have now replaced our loud honking cars. In a very long while, we get this sense and smell of what clean air, clean rivers and exuberant nature means. “What is further clear to us on this Earth Day is that this joy of nature has come at an enormous and unacceptable human cost to millions in the world. “We can say with absolute conviction that this is not the way we want to clean our air or our water, however desperate we were for this to happen.” Choji said that if Nigerians needed to have clear skies, governments at all levels, private sector and civil society must work together to ensure right livelihoods and the right to breathe. He said that CSDevNet, which is a member of the Pan Africa Climate Justice Aliance (PACJA), believed that the time to act decisively in protecting the planet from both the coronavirus and the existential threat of climate disruption “is now’’. “Greenhouse gases, just like viruses, do not respect national boundaries. The current crisis is an unprecedented wake-up call and we need to turn the recovery into a real opportunity to do things right for the future. “To achieve this, we must realise that we need to get vehicles off the road, but not people. It will require fast-tracking everything Nigeria can do in order to move people, not cars, at speed, convenience and safety. “Public transport in Nigeria will now have to take into account concerns about personal hygiene and public health. ” He said that Nigeria must also set ambitious goals, far beyond the “tokenism” in her Nationally Determined Contributions to the Paris Agreement. Choji said this was necessary so that before 2030, Nigeria could upgrade its systems to ensure that 70 to 80 per cent of the daily commute across cities through high-speed and low-emission transportation from trains to bicycles.…

NAIROBI, Kenya (PAMACC News) - The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) has invested its second tranche of $2.5 Million to boost the share capital of the Agri-Business Capital Fund (ABC Fund). The ABC Fund is an innovative initiative by AGRA, the European Commission through its EU-ACP agreement, the Luxemburg Government and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)to support sustainable and inclusive agricultural value chains for smallholder farmers and small-to-medium sized rural agribusinesses (SMEs) in developing countries. “ABC Fund is a global facility but 80% of the investments will be made in Sub Sahara Africa,” said Hedwig Siewertsen, the Head Inclusive Finance at AGRA. The fund is composed of different types of shares with different risk and return profiles. According to Siewertsen, the funds come in form of loans and equity, specifically tailored to the needs of smallholder farmers and agri-SMEs. “To reach them most effectively, these products are made available either directly to farmers’ organizations and SMEs, or indirectly via financial institutions,” she said.The main focus of the money is on investments that can drive economic and social development and generate economic opportunities for smallholder farmers, in particular women and young people, with an aim of improving livelihoods of more than 4 million individuals over a predetermined period of 10 years.According to plan, the tranche from AGRA will be used to provide loans to agricultural SMEs that service smallholder farmers and have a business track record of minimum 3 years with a turnover exceeding USD200,000 with a financial need of more than USD 250,000substantiated by a business plan.It will also lend to financial intermediaries that have an agricultural portfolio targeting smallholder farmers. Such organizations can apply for the funds through the fund managers who are Bamboo Capital Partners based in Nairobi, and Injaro Investment Limited which is based in Accra and Abidjan.So far, the current 10 approved investments are located in Ivory Coast, Mali, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Kenya and Uganda, and will benefit over 15,000 smallholder farmers in these countries.Targeted entities for the funds include producers of primary agricultural products, input suppliers such as manufacturers or distributors of seeds, companies that produce, maintain or operate storage facilities, and service companies, traders, veterinarians, mechanization.Other beneficiaries include aggregators and/or processors of primary agricultural products, logistics companies that transport and handle primarily agricultural goods, and finally, processors of secondary agricultural goods/ food products.“Investing in smallholder farmers and agri-SMEs enables them to increase their productivity, improve their livelihoods, strengthen their resilience to climate change, and better benefit from participation in value chains,” said Siewertsen noting that targeted investment will help generate employment and economic opportunities for millions of rural women and the youth.This comes at a time national, regional and global food markets are growing to feed a swelling world population and meet increasing demand for more diverse and sophisticated food products, thereby presenting huge opportunities for smallholder farmers and agri-SMEs.This is the second tranche AGRA has invested in the ABC fund. The first tranche of investment of a similar…

On this International Mother Earth Day, all eyes are on the COVID-19 pandemic – the biggest test the world has faced since the Second World War. We must work together to save lives, ease suffering and lessen the shattering economic and social consequences. The impact of the coronavirus is both immediate and dreadful. But there is another deep emergency -- the planet’s unfolding environmental crisis. Biodiversity is in steep decline. Climate disruption is approaching a point of no return. We must act decisively to protect our planet from both the coronavirus and the existential threat of climate disruption. The current crisis is an unprecedented wake-up call. We need to turn the recovery into a real opportunity to do things right for the future. I am therefore proposing six climate-related actions to shape the recovery and the work ahead. First: as we spend huge amounts of money to recover from the coronavirus, we must deliver new jobs and businesses through a clean, green transition. Second: where taxpayers’ money is used to rescue businesses, it needs to be tied to achieving green jobs and sustainable growth. Third: fiscal firepower must drive a shift from the grey to green economy, and make societies and people more resilient Fourth: public funds should be used to invest in the future, not the past, and flow to sustainable sectors and projects that help the environment and the climate. Fossil fuel subsidies must end, and polluters must start paying for their pollution Fifth: climate risks and opportunities must be incorporated into the financial system as well as all aspects of public policy making and infrastructure. Sixth: we need to work together as an international community. These six principles constitute an important guide to recovering better together. Greenhouse gases, just like viruses, do not respect national boundaries. On this Earth Day, please join me in demanding a healthy and resilient future for people and planet alike.