AGCO (www.AGCOCorp.com) and AT Capital S.A have signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate and work together towards the implementation of the Parque Agro-industrial de Moamba (PAM) Agri-Industry Park in Maputo, Mozambique. The announcement was made at the sidelines the 12th U.S. – Africa Business Summit “Advancing a Resilient and Sustainable U.S.-Africa Partnership” in Maputo. The aim of the PAM agricultural project is to build reliable and resilient food production capacity in Mozambique, for domestic demand and export. Estimated at an investment of about US$52 million during its first phase, the project will span a site of over nine hundred…
Author: Abdallah el-Kurebe
Argentina’s Minister of AgroIndustry Luis Miguel Etechevehere and Christian Monty, Head of Global Cotton from BASF have announced the release of a new GMO trait for cotton that provides herbicide and insect resistance. The new release is the fifth trait approved for cotton in Argentina after Bt (1998), Roundup Ready (2001), RRBt (2009), glyphosate and glufosinate (2009), and glyphosate and HPPD inhibitors (2019). It is based on the stack of previous traits with the commercial name GlyTol TwinLink Plus and will be commercialized by BASF. Gustavo Portis, CEO of BASF in Argentina said that farmers need technology to enhance their…
Genetically modified fungus rapidly kills malaria-spreading mosquitoes: study Trials in Burkina Faso reduced mosquito colonies by 99 per cent Researchers now want to test the insecticide on real communities By Ruth Douglas A fungus genetically engineered to produce spider toxin can crush populations of malaria-spreading mosquitoes, according to a study hailed as a breakthrough by international scientists battling to combat the disease. In trials undertaken in Burkina Faso, mosquito numbers were reduced by 99 per cent within 45 days, according to researchers from the University of Maryland (UMD) and the West African nation’s IRSS research institute. Malaria is a life-threatening…
Africa’s strong population growth poses an enormous challenge for the continent. Consistently high fertility rates are making it increasingly difficult to provide the up-and-coming generations with the bare essentials. Currently, 37 million children of primary school age in Africa cannot go to school and every year another five million children reach the age at which they should start school. Even if they do manage to complete their education, the next hurdle already awaits them: every year the 15–35 age group is growing by ten to twelve million people, while only about three million official jobs are being newly created on…
By Steven Cetier Despite its ongoing agricultural problems, most of Africa has been reluctant to embrace the idea of allowing its farmers to grow genetically altered seeds. This hesitancy has delayed the potential benefits that biotechnology can offer through crops engineered to resist common pests, disease and drought. Through 2018, only South Africa (soybeans, corn and cotton) and Sudan (cotton) were growing GMO crops. It’s not an issue that’s going away anytime soon, considering that continent’s population is expected to swell from its current 1.3 billion to 2.5 billion in 2050, when it will account for about one quarter of…
At a special event highlighting the partnership between the African Development Bank (www.AfDB.org) and Korea held on the sidelines of the Bank’s Annual Meetings, the role of drone technology to boost food productivity in Africa, was on full display. A pilot project, underway in Tunisia, is designed to reduce food imports. Drone technology is being used to collect and analyse data, and monitor irrigated areas, combat pests. The Bank launched the project, in cooperation with the Busan Metropolitan City in Korea with support from the Korea-Africa Cooperation fund (KOAFEC). The session in Malabo included Korea’s ambassador to Equatorial Guinea H.E…
APO Group (www.APO-opa.com), the leading media relations consultancy and press release distribution service in Africa and the Middle East, presents the inaugural APO Group African Women in Media Award set to recognise, celebrate and empower African women journalists who support female entrepreneurship in Africa.The Award will be bestowed to the winner at the 5th Africa Women Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum’s (AWIEF) (www.AWIEForum.org) Conference, Exhibition and Awards hosted at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC), 29-30 October 2019, with the theme ‘Enhancing impact: digitalisation, investment and intra-African trade’.AWIEF’s prestigious annual event is a platform that sees global thought leaders, industry experts, policymakers,…
African and non-regional donors on Tuesday pledged $17 million to replenish the Africa Solidarity Trust Fund, an initiative which aims to provide food security and eliminate rural poverty on the continent.The pledges were made at a high-level donor round table convened by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and Equatorial Guinea President Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, on the sidelines of the African Development Bank’s (www.AfDB.org) 2019 Annual Meetings currently underway in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.Opening the conference at the Sipopo conference center Equatorial Guinea President Obiang Nguema Mbasogo said the Fund illustrated “a turning point in the fight against food…
The Republic of Niger and the African Development Bank (www.AfDB.org) on Tuesday signed a $128.8 million financing agreement to support the “Kandadji” project for the regeneration of ecosystems and the development of the Niger Valley (PA-KRESMIN).Nigerien Minister of Planning Aïchatou Kane Boulama, who signed on behalf of Niger’s Government, expressed her gratitude to the Bank and praised the leadership shown by it in the process leading to the “Kandadji” signing.”We would like to acknowledge the Bank’s strong commitment to this very important project for the people of Niger. The signing of this agreement is a step towards its realisation, but…
AGCO (www.AGCOcorp.com), Your Agriculture Company (NYSE:AGCO), a worldwide manufacturer and distributor of agricultural equipment, has opened a new office in the north-east of Casablanca, Morocco. The new premises are to serve as the company’s regional sales office for West and North Africa. This follows the launch of the Africa Head Office in South Africa’s robust economic hub, Johannesburg in 2017.Morocco’s suitability as a home for AGCO is both its geographical location on the North-West of the continent as well as its key socio-economic role in the region since its return to the African Union in 2016 and support towards advancing…