Browsing: Drought in Africa

USAID funding to address drought in Kenya

Kenya to receive additional $126 million from USAID to address drought

Countries
  • Kenya will receive an additional US$126 million from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to address the ongoing drought
  • USAID said it was providing the funding to address the hunger crisis that has left more than four million people in the grips of a dire hunger crisis
  • The announcement comes following a visit to the country by First Lady Jill Biden where she met with drought-affected communities and heard first-hand about the devastating impacts

Kenya will receive an additional US$126 million from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to address the ongoing drought.

On Tuesday, February 28, 2023, USAID said it was providing the funding to address the hunger crisis that has left more than four million people in the grips of a dire hunger crisis.

According to USAID, the number is expected to rise to over five million by June 2023.

The announcement comes following a visit …

Africa’s readiness for GMOs amid food security concerns

Industry and Trade

With the realities of food security and a burgeoning population, there is an urgent need for a more realistic approach to the discussion on the adoption of GMOs in Africa.

  • Moving forward, Africa faces a significant food security dilemma.
  • Food production in Africa is expanding at a slower pace than population growth.
  • GMOs provide a means for Africa to obtain higher agricultural yields and shorter harvest times, ensuring greater food security.

Food security in Africa

Moving forward, Africa faces a significant food security dilemma. The United Nations (UN) World Food Programme (WFP) believes that 20 per cent of Africa’s 1.2 billion people face starvation. COVID-19 interruptions and the Russia-Ukraine crisis have exacerbated this situation.

Insecurity, violence, poverty, climate change, and population expansion represent significant factors in the continent’s food security concerns. Albeit substantial progress in the battle against malnutrition and food insecurity in Africa, the pace is too sluggish to…

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US warns Africa against wheat from Russia amid worsening drought

Business
  • The US government sent out a warning against 14 countries, mainly from Africa, against buying grains from Russia on grounds that they had been stolen from Ukraine
  • Washington backed claims by Ukraine, which accused Russia of stealing over 500,000 tons of wheat, estimated to cost over $100 million since the start of the war
  • Russia launched a full assault on Ukraine, its southwest neighbour, on February 24, 2022, marking a significant escalation in the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian conflict

As millions of Africans continue to face severe drought that has been exacerbated by the rising food prices, Russia is making a bold move that the US government has been quick to condemn.

The US government sent out a warning against 14 countries, mainly from Africa, against buying grains from Russia on grounds that they had been stolen from Ukraine. Russia launched a full assault on Ukraine, its southwest neighbour, on February 24, …

Despite its potential to feed the world, Africa still unable to feed itself

Business
  • UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says that an extended, multi-season drought is driving acute food insecurity in the region
  • FAO said that 12 to 14 million people are now at risk as crops continue to wither and animals weaken
  • Resource-based conflicts are escalating as competition for water and pasturelands increases, and malnutrition rates are rising in affected areas of Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia

Multiple data, including that of the African Development Bank (AfDB) indicates that Africa holds the key for feeding the nine billion people that will be on Earth by 2050. 

While delivering a passionate speech at Iowa State University in the US in 2017, AfDB’s President Akinwumi Adesina noted that the continent sits on 65 percent of the uncultivated arable land left in the world. 

He said that what Africa does with agriculture will determine the future of food in the world.  Adesina also noted that the

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Over 28 million people facing hunger in West, Central Africa amid conflict, economic hardships

Africa
  • The number of acutely food insecure people in West and Central Africa has risen to a record high of 28 million people
  • This is the largest number of people facing high acute food insecurity in West and Central Africa recorded since 2014

A new report has indicated that the number of acutely food insecure people in West and Central Africa has risen to a record high of 28 million people; days after Save the Children said more than 260,000 children may have died from extreme hunger or related diseases in East Africa.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), West and Central Africa trends point toward a further deterioration if support to stem the spread of hunger is not increased.

Data by the two UN organizations indicate that in the Sahel and West Africa, 26 million people …