IND •
UTA gets US$7m approval for commercial products project Cbullwumu Okp.,aocba ~LaCOI
E International Institut e of Trop i cal Agriculture (lITA) has received apr'roval or aboul US81m from the Bill lkMelinda Gates foundation rt)r the Implementation of the sccond phase of the Commercial Products {COM PRO III I'rojcet.
TI
says
IITA General .
Director Ntefllnya
Sanglnga Tagged aa 'Institutionalisation of quality assurance mechanism and dissemination of lOp quality commercial produc15 to increase crop yields and Improve food security of smallholder fanners In sub-5aharan Africa: the COM PRO- II project alms 10
InslitutlonaUse quality assurance mechanisms and facilitate U,e rapid dissemination of top quailly comme rcial products 10 Increase yields and Improve the food securlly of smallholder farmers In Ule region -nlC plan is to ral5c awareneu among over two million smallholder farmel'll on dfcctlvc and profitable comme r c ial
products by 20 16 through public - private partnership, - Sanglnga elll:plalns, -The key elll:pected ou tcome of the projcct IS the Institutionalization of screening and approva.1 of commerclaJ products, - says Prem Warrior, SenJor Program orncc.r wllh lhe Bill Melinda Gales foundation In Ihe lasl decade,
a
00 Lv I , • • ••
sub-5aharan Africa hu witnessed economic growth amid populatkln
Increases and r ising demand
for
food
.
,.."
-I"rom lfift. IIr Akfnolo Sail£. Manager, GOt", and IIr Tom Choug, Director qfBroadcast PoIICJI and Raeorch, National Broa.dca.st· Ing Comtnwlon (!'fBQ. during the launc h of GOrlt at CUrie Centre. Port Ha.reourt. ,-e«nt.y.
Inputs
Investmenls In soli fertility have become
Imporlance to protect farmers. retaliers. wholesalers. and
Indlspenl'llable
to
Increase agricultural productivity. and 8o::esS to agricultural Inputs Is
F
ORkdJ Id ma~y Sla 0 ers. e
N"(rlan economy In the Irat 'luarter remained bleuk and unlmpresslvll despite errorts of th(' Fcderal Governptent t·) get a
:~;:n~:~o~'~r"':".)':; -IO~~ •......
of th.. "onomy to ye.Utl poS~"le Impact on th overall Ct'Ol1omy Hobbled b political Instability. c " ·uptlon. I 'n a d e \I a t e
• country a debt pronle, which has risen to 84lbllUon. out of whtch domCStlc debt stood at $35 blllkJn The chamber also scored the coulltry'a economiC performance low In the flr!lt quarter of20 12. saying that-the gelleral business
,ondltlon "motn. challenging due to the harsh economic climate. _ According to the Dlrector-Cc.neral. Muda Yusuf. the current debt
nUo will be mut'h hlghCT than the set threshold· LCCI also pointed outlhatlheNI,5trlllion earmarked fol capital project and the N560 blllion for debt services In lhe 2012 budgel, raises Issu~s of prlorilisalion of
fiR
Importers,
of Ulmost
and
to
minimize health and environmental hazan:1s
N a bid to help Nigeria and other African countries move from a developing counlry 10 a developed nallon. Ihe United Nallons Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDOI has reiterated Its commitment to helping Nigerta &I,d oU1cr Least Developed CounU1es In Arnca {LCD) to reduce poverty through au stainable Industrial development. According to the Dlreetor·Ge neral . Kandeh Yumkella. the organtsallon had a proven track record In helping Arrlca's LDC. reduce poverty through sustainable Industrial
d h Accor Ing to t e chamber, one of the ways the govemement can get the economy ",nnlng Is to get the power sector ~mped. ll1e challenge or gelling the power aector la CTttlcal to lIle survival of Nlgerta as a natlOn.-
development -In Gutnea , we arc working closely with the government to dew-lop a nourishing productive scetor, Inerease the country's participation 111 International trade, and at the same time safeguard the environment: he said, Yumkella added that over 20 per cent of young people wef'C unemployed and ove.r 60 per cent 0 ACl1ca's urban populauon live In miserable conditions. -An Increasing number of young mcn and women arc moving to clUes. Without access to JObs and means to fulOli lhelr ambitions, they wtli have. no future and will eve.ntually pose a threat to .socIal stability. Wllh almost three quarters of the population under the age of 30. ClIte d1votre, Guinea. Liberia and SlerTll Leone have one of the youngest populations In the world. Thef'C Is need to develop a roadmap that would help eradJcate poverty In theac coullmes, Ntgerta Induslve. -
NACCIMA calls for policies to attract F DI T HE
NI ger Ian AssoclaUon of Chambers of Commerce . Induslry. Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMAI has said pronte did not Include without necesaary In( rulfuctu .n• poor the debt ~rv1c::c of about mac toe c nom I c Infra.stru~ and approgc: f II 20 per cent of tolal prtale policy framework to altract foreign Dlrcct a ..... y rrom overf h I b I Inveslment IfDlI, the dependen c e! 1m tlte usc 0 t ego a country's Vlakm 20:2020 I 1 I benchmark of debl to might re~aln an cap t~ - lute slve 01 Gross DomesUc Product sectorl "'bid provldcs illusion 9~" at rorc.lgI CJ(change ratio may not be According to the eamlt1f.s and b3Ut 80" applicable to lite President of NACClMA. of budgetary ,rtvenues. Nigerian ecollomy . TI11s Dr Herbert Ajayt. lhef'C h. I f:d ltveJ Is because a major Is need for government s ",pact nt' gn. Y component of GOP, on the; CCOIlOI!IY lh- which Is agriculture. Is at all levc.ls to ensure Accurdlng to .. nol. -,-•• u- g_n __ Ilnd the enhancement and L Ch I !) f ........ ........... ' "8 development of the ag05 a n er 0 C9 mme n:e ami ndustry activity. If we dl.,ounl pnvale !JC'('tor b y putting {LeCI),; rrea~ c.oncems the agrtcullure In "lace approprtate and had come up ')Ver the compollcnl of the GOP efTccUve enabllng policy _ _ __ __ _ _ _ "n'-""">C'-"B~Ueo'_'."n"."I.. ..,....c""">C'_~m""'••••,U"'""a and
~:;slf;~~ 1 ee.~ o~;:n!; n:v;~~~I:::~~:'~I:~e
resource allocation. ·Payrnenl to contractors Is often relegated to the background when the Inue of the nation's debt la being d15cu5scd. SetUement of contractor arrears IS as Important as securtUsed debl.-
15
UNIDO pledges support for Mrican countries
Stakeholders score Nigerian economy low in Ql 6torlu by A om,lde 01Ff)olbl. y l.a.,os
Bul mo re than having acccas to Inputs. qualUy assurance of agricultural
Consequently .
I
~
reqUired to achieve: th15
goal.
programmes lh a I w III 'PIICNI• A) ay I Imp Iore d make bUSinesses lhrty,:. Ule Yeckral Government Ajayl said the to ensu re apeedy govemment needed to conclusion or the rOCUll o n policy mcasun!'! el(en:: lse . saying the Iltat would lackle the government should numerous constraints ensure the Implemen faced by businesses. tallon of the Road Map He said no economy ror Electricity Power In the world cou ld ScclorRcformlnorderto c.xpcr1ence a sustainable lnjcct prtvate caplt.a1 and level of real growth and management el(pertise development, If lhe Inlo the power sector. IIccessary f:t:o nomlc He noted that such a rdorms and Incenllve..s development would to apur growth and ensure provision of position lIS economy to eleetrlclty 10 Nlgert8J1s attract and encourage and lnduslrles 2<1 hours local and foreign a day In no distant Ume, Investors WC-f'C not pulln Ajayl strealled the place. urgcrt.t need to facilitate 0 h i ' sc h erne rUrl er comment ng a commun. on the privaUsaUon of whereby stand-by Ihe Power Holding generators woud be Company of Nigeria Installed with change-
over facUltlc.s for power distribution within rcsldwUal and Industrtal e1uate rs and estates. with residents as majOr stakeholders -The governmenl should promote and subsidies renewable sources of energy for ~ generation to mect household eleclflclty needs, especially In the rural areas.The NACCIMA presldenl expressed satisfaction with the tncreasc.d awareneu on the part of govemment on the need for public and private seclors to partner for enhanced economic recovery and developmenl