Fish farming is a huge industry in Nigeria, but smallholder farmers face several obstacles. Elisa Burrows, Partnership Manager at Fintrac, writes how offering financing for them can open up a world of opportunities. In the Kano and Sagamu regions of Nigeria, suitable water resources and high market demand mean that aquaculture presents a profitable opportunity for smallholder farmers to expand their farming activities. Yet few farmers take advantage of this opportunity because they lack the technical knowledge fish farming requires and because there are few hatcheries that supply fish to small-scale farmers. To help change this, Chi Farms, a Nigeria-based…
Author: Abdallah el-Kurebe
Two African scientists become new honorary doctors at the Faculty of Medicine at Umeå University, Sweden. They are Julia Goedecke at the University of Cape Town and the World Health Organization WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “We are very pleased that they have both accepted to become honorary doctors in Umeå. Besides being distinguished scientists, both Julia Goedecke and Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus already have a certain connection with Umeå, and we are looking forward to a firmer connection,” says Patrik Danielson, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine at Umeå University. Julia Goedecke is an internationally established researcher studying ethnic…
By Henry Bodkin The world’s oldest known spider has died at the age of 43, outliving its nearest rival by 15 years, Australian scientists have reported. Affectionately known as “Number 16”, the female Giaus Villosus or trapdoor spider had been under observation in the wild since its birth in 1974. The arachnid is believed to have survived for so long by sticking to one protected burrow its entire life and expending the minimum of energy. Previously the oldest known spider was a tarantula in Mexico, which died at the age of 28. Published the Pacific Conservation Biology Journal, the research…
Pollution monitoring and control has always been a challenge in India, and one of the key loopholes has been a weak and lax monitoring and compliance enforcement mechanism. In 2017, Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) had published a set of broad guidelines for installing and operating continuous emission monitoring systems (CEMS) in India. This year, CSE has followed it up by releasing its Inspection Manual for CEMS and CEQMS (continuous effluent quality monitoring systems) implementation in India. The Manual, the first publication of its kind in India, was released at a training programme on industrial pollution management organized by…
By Aghan Daniel The rainy season is already here with us and most farmers have begun to plant various seeds nearly across Africa. As the farmers descend upon their farms, one big issue that lingers among researchers is the inability of these farmers to access certified seed that can serve their immediate needs. At the end of the planting season less than 20 per cent of all farmers would have planted certified and clean seeds. The oft-told story of the seed sector in Africa is that it has always been grappling with a lot of challenges such as farmer apathy to adopting new and…
The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) – assisted Value Chain Development Programme (VCDP) has said that it would support in the cultivation of 1,080 hectares of rice and cassava farms during the 2018 farming season in Anambra state. The State Programme Coordinator of the programme, Mr Emmanuel Aguncha disclosed this while declaring open an interactive meeting between farmer organisations and relevant state and federal agencies in Onitsha on Monday. IFAD-VCDP is an international financial institution of the United Nations dedicated to eradicating poverty and hunger in rural areas of developing countries. Aguncha said the programme would support 880 hectares…
Swiss scientists have developed an early warning system for four most common types of cancer, so that a visible mole will appear on the skin should a tumor develop. A press release from Zurich Federal Institute of Technology (ETHZ), in the research, which has been published in U.S. medical journal Science Translational Medicine, an ETHZ team has developed a prototype implant which could be inserted under the skin. The instute said it contains a network of cells which constantly monitor calcium levels in the body. As cancer can cause calcium levels to rise in the body, the implant detects when a…
The Federal Government is committed to secure US$300 million from the World Bank, Islamic Development Bank and African Development Bank to eliminate malaria in the country. A statement issued by the African Leaders Malaria Alliance (ALMA) on the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2018 that just ended in London, said Nigeria would elevate malaria on the national priority list and finance its national malaria elimination strategy. The country also pledged an additional US$18.7 million to leverage US$37 million from the Global Fund to distribute 15 million mosquito nets and to support the local manufacture of essential malaria commodities. It said ALMA…
The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Saturday expressed delight on efforts by Rotary Clubs in Nigeria in implementing Rotary International strategic plans to eradicate Polio and other child killer diseases. The WHO Nigeria Team Leader for Expanded Programme on Immunisation, Dr Fiona Braka said this during a three kilometer walk to kick-off African Vaccination Week Community Mobilization Drive in Abuja. The theme of the event is titled: “Vaccines Works; Be an Immunization Champion’’. Braka said the progress made in the suppression of polio and other avoidable child killer diseases rested heavily on the commitment of rotary members who participate in…
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that 59 million African children were stunted while another 10 million were overweight. It also warned that Africa’s attempts to achieve health for all by 2030 could be threatened unless the continent address the twin challenges of under-nutrition and obesity, adding that under-nutrition occured when people do not get enough to eat, resulting in conditions such as wasting, which is when a child becomes dangerously thin. On the other hand, people who were obese had body fat levels that might impair their health. The WHO Regional Office for Africa called these two issues…