Johannesburg, SOUTH AFRICA (28 March 2022)-Agrigate Global- Global Agriculture community platform-collaborated with TechMindset Africa to launch Ai:Grow, a learning program to promote Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning amongst the next generations of young African agriculture professionals.

Speaking at the “Tropics Tech & Influence Summit” organised by the Tropics Media Group, Saura Panigrahi, co-founder of AgriGate Global reveals his plan to skill 10,000 young Africans in various applications of cutting-edge technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, IoT and Data Science in agriculture, during the next three years.

“The skills we have today are for solving yesterday’s problems, we need to equip our next generations of agriculture professionals with skills that will solve the challenges of the future. AI and ML are already showing the potential to help close the gap”, said Saura Panigrahi. 

Speaking on the collaboration Joan Mbseya, CEO and founder of Techmindset Africa said, “The quest to drive AI within the Agriculture sector has been immense, and TechMindset Africa has aligned its vision to mirror AgriGate Global on skilling 10,000 young Africans. And therefore the collaboration with Agrigate Global comes in at the right time, to actualize the vision and play a major part through a virtual learning platform that will host the AI for Agriculture content. We are excited to work on this endeavour and be part of eliminating hunger in Africa.”

This collaboration will bring dynamic changes in the field of agriculture for Africa.

On Wednesday, November 17, 2021, U.S. Government officials visited Red River Foods—an American company based in Richmond, Virginia—to discuss the company’s recent $47 million investment in West Africa. With $3 million in dedicated Prosper Africa funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Red River Foods is investing an additional $44 million to expand cashew processing facilities in West Africa for export to the United States. Thanks to USAID’s work in this area, West Africa is expected to become one of the largest exporters of cashews to the United States by 2024.

This is a critical, climate-smart investment that responds to shifts in global supply chains arising from the COVID-19 pandemic. Previously, this American business shipped raw cashews from West Africa to Southeast Asia for processing before exporting them to the United States. This deal will support the livelihoods of about 11,000 West African farmers, create an estimated 500 jobs, and generate about $30 million in exports in just three years.

The Red River Foods co-investment is one of the numerous investments that USAID has supported through its West Africa Trade & Investment Hub, which has established a co-investment fund to attract $400 million of new private investment, creating 60,000 jobs, and increase regional and international trade. Through co-investment partnerships, USAID is driving investment in West Africa, moving away from an extractive export model to one that adds greater value and fosters inclusive growth for African and American economies.

Investments like this one advance the U.S. Government’s Prosper Africa Build Together Campaign, a targeted, long-term effort to energize and elevate the United States’ commitment to trade and investment with Africa. Through Prosper Africa, the U.S. Government is strengthening ties with its African partners through win-win investments that create jobs and build infrastructure across both Africa and the United States. By supporting American businesses with socially inclusive business models that benefit women, youth, and low-income communities, Prosper Africa is advancing the Biden-Harris Administration’s vision of a better future—a future of growing trade and investment that advances prosperity for all our nations by mobilizing capital, driving job creation, and fueling shared economic growth.

Prosper Africa is the U.S. Government initiative to substantially increase two-way trade and investment between African nations and the United States. The initiative mobilizes all of the U.S. Government’s trade and investment support services, across 17 participating departments and agencies, to help U.S. and Africa businesses and investors identify partners, advance opportunities, and close deals.

About USAID: The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is the lead U.S.Government agency that works to end extreme global poverty and enable resilient, democratic societies to realize their potential.

About the Trade Hub: The West Africa Trade & Investment Hub (Trade Hub) is a USAID-funded initiative that catalyzes economic growth through co-investing with the private sector to generate new investment, create new jobs, and increase the value of regional and international exports in West Africa.

(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with Insider PR. Agrigate Global takes no editorial responsibility for the same.)

The United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) West Africa Trade & Investment Hub has awarded a $518,000 co-investment grant to La Laiterie du Berger, a company that manufactures dairy products from locally produced milk in Senegal. The grant will allow the company to source milk from 1,150 new herders and further its efforts to reduce the country’s dependence on imported milk.

In Senegal, nearly 90 percent of marketed milk is imported, typically in the form of powdered milk. But 30 percent of the Senegalese population are dairy farmers and produce enough fresh milk to meet local consumption needs.

“Our partnership with the Trade Hub will be key toward harnessing local farmers’ existing ability to provide fresh milk beyond their immediate communities while increasing their earnings and strengthening food security, which is threatened when a staple product such as milk is not primarily bought from local producers,” says Bagoré Bathily, CEO of La Laiterie du Berger.

La Laiterie du Berger is the first Senegal-based company to brand and sell fresh, locally sourced milk in the country. It’s also the first company in Senegal to obtain B Corp certification, which recognizes companies that consider the impact of their decisions on workers, customers, suppliers, community, and the environment.

Since its founding in 2007, the company’s sales have grown from $0.4 million during its first year to $16.5 million in 2020. However, despite these earnings, it needed further investment to boost its operations and a strong showing of support to secure private-sector capital, which its partnership with the Trade Hub makes possible.

“The success of this activity will allow La Laiterie du Berger to illustrate tangible results to lenders and facilitate obtaining additional lines of credit for future expansion,” says Bathily.

Prior to partnering with the Trade Hub, La Laiterie du Berger lacked the capacity to source from more than its current network of 850 herders. Through its co-investment funding, it will be able to grow the number of its herders from 850 to 2,000, making it capable of collecting 5,000 metric tons of premium milk over the project’s 2-year term, which ends in November 2023.

The 5,000 metric tons will generate $4.5 million in sales and increase herders’ collective incomes from $600,000 to $2 million during the life of the project.

The co-investment partnership will also support the renewal of the company’s B Corp certification, and establish a monitoring and evaluation system capable of capturing the total impact of the company’s socially conscious business practices on the more than 15,000 shop owners it works with.

In addition, the partnership will fund the training of about 1,000 herders in farm management, such as livestock management and animal health. The funding will also allow 155 new jobs to be created at La Laiterie du Berger, including in management, factory, and driver positions. About 80 percent of the roles will be reserved for youth and 15 percent for women.

According to Karl Littlejohn, Acting Chief of Party for the Trade Hub, there is a clear need for investments in companies such as La Laiterie du Berger to professionalize milk production, make it a viable business for herders, and reduce importation.

“We are confident that this USAID-backed partnership will transition herders from traditional and subsistence farming to revenue-oriented farming—and just as important—that it will encourage private sector investment,” he says.

About the Trade Hub: The West Africa Trade & Investment Hub (Trade Hub) is a USAID-funded initiative that catalyzes economic growth through co-investing with the private sector to generate new investment, create new jobs, and increase the value of regional and international exports in West Africa.

About USAID: The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is the lead U.S.

Government agency that works to end extreme global poverty and enable resilient, democratic societies to realize their potential.

La Laiterie du Berger: La Laiterie du Berger collects fresh, locally sourced milk from cow herders in the Richard Toll area of northern Senegal to develop dairy products. As a part of its mission, La Laiterie du Berger aims to help transition herders from subsistence farming to revenue-oriented farming and to create market opportunities for both herders and suppliers.

(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with Insider PR. Agrigate Global takes no editorial responsibility for the same.)

1. The USAID West Africa Trade & Investment Hub is one of the biggest enablers of the agricultural sector in the region. How do you see the region and West Africa Trade Hub transforming?

2. Please share your perspective on the Trade Hub as a catalyst for bringing in a market-based economy with the involvement of private sectors.

3. The COVID-19 pandemic has done considerable damage to the overall economic activity of the region, particularly SMEs. What are your plans for recovery?

4. Given your extensive work in Africa, how do you see USAID’s role in the future of West Africa in the post COVID-19 era?

5. Finally, about Mensa Nigeria. How is it progressing?

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are his own and do not reflect the views of Agrigate Global.

What’s your views on expert’s predictions that ‘Agriculture in Africa’ is the key sector that will drive the future?

You have an extensive track record of strategizing and managing businesses. Tell us about your time in building OCP Africa in Nigeria.

The COVID-19 pandemic has a significant impact on the agriculture sector. What do you think are the immediate steps that need to be taken as we move towards the path to recovery?

It’s always challenging to get farm input credit available to farmers, particularly to small holders. How does OCP Africa approach this point?

Access to fertilizers is one of the key indicators of food production. How do you think your vision of “Africa feeding the world” can help achieve food security in today’s scenario?

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are his own and do not reflect the views of Agrigate Global.

Under its Rural Poor Stimulus Facility (RPSF), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) would provide funding to help over 6,200 vulnerable small-scale farmers in rural Tanzania affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

IFAD will provide about US$ 882,841 to minimise the COVID-19-triggered impact on livelihoods, and food security.

The grant will help farmers access inputs, provide market linkages and access necessary market information to improve their productivity and boost their resilience.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has brought to light the vulnerability of our food systems. To ensure we build a sustainable and resilient food system, we need to recognize the role small-scale farmers play and empower them to access inputs, information and markets for their produce,” said Francesco Rispoli, IFAD Country Director for Tanzania.

Owing to the recent locust outbreak and the ongoing pandemic, growth in the East African country’s farming sector was predicted to decline from 5% in 2019 to 2% in 2020.

Notably, crop cultivation remains the primary economic activity for most small-scale farmers in Tanzania. In order to boost their productivity, the grant will distribute:

• More than 23,600 kilograms of bio-fortified maize seeds
• About 14,400 kilograms of sunflower seeds
• Over 970,000 seedlings of fruits and vegetables

As border closures, due to COVID-19 protocols, have limited access to agri-markets for many farmers, the grant will support the National Food Reserve Agency purchase maize grain from the farmers, under its current plan to boost its reserve.

The USAID-funded West Africa Trade & Investment Hub (Trade Hub) has awarded a $1.4 million co-investment grant to OCP Africa Fertilizers Nigeria Limited (OCP Africa), a leader in the production of phosphate-based fertilizers, to install modern blending equipment within its fertilizer blending plant facility under construction in Kaduna State. The top-in-class blending equipment will help bridge the gap where there is a paucity of specialized fertilizers to grow crops on a large scale and support food security in the country.
The planned facility and equipment will produce various fertilizer blends customized to the needs of rice, maize, soybean, cassava, tomato, and other staple crops grown in Nigeria. The specialty blends of fertilizers have the capacity to increase farmers’ yields by 50 to 85 percent per hectare depending on the crop.
With the capacity to produce 120 metric tons per hour of these blends and store up to 10,000 metric tons, OCP Africa expects at least 75,000 of targeted smallholder farmers within the catchment area of the plant to benefit from the blending plant’s operations and associated agronomy support services. To ensure that farmers in underserved markets have seamless access to these fertilizers and other quality inputs, OCP Africa will establish 36 of its one-stop-shop Farm & Fortune Hubs across 13 Nigerian states.
As part of its co-investment, OCP Africa will provide the targeted 75,000 farmers with a wide range of agricultural services, including training on good agricultural practices and soil testing.
“Over the years, farmers in Nigeria have recorded poor farm yields due to the quality of fertilizers and other inputs at their disposal,” explained Caleb Usoh, Country Manager for OCP Africa Fertilizers Nigeria Limited. “The production and distribution of blended fertilizers combined with the training will help farmers produce better quality crops as well as increase their yields, which will lead to higher earnings and better returns for their farming business.”
Through this co-investment partnership, 826 jobs are expected to be created, including jobs for workers at the new facility, trainers, and those tapped to run the one-stop shops. Also, in support of the Trade Hub’s goal to ensure that traditionally marginalized groups have equal access to job opportunities in the agricultural sector, at least 50 percent of these jobs will go to women and youth. The end goal of the project is to foster a thriving agricultural-business ecosystem in Nigeria.
“This project is quite a unique one, and we are excited to partner with OCP Africa to complement the Nigerian government’s policy to leverage locally available resources to expand food production capabilities,” said Michael Clements, Chief of Party of the Trade Hub. “Such policies contribute
significantly toward achieving the food security goals in Nigeria, in line with the USAID Feed the Future
initiative.“

(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you directly from the source and story has not been edited by AgriGate Global staff. Agrigate Global takes no editorial responsibility for the same.)

In order to accelerate economic growth in Kenya, the country’s Cabinet Secretary National Treasury and Planning Ukur Yatani said the government has launched a comprehensive Economic Stimulus Programme targeting activities in agriculture, food security, health and other sectors.

Speaking while unveiling the 2021-22 budget in Parliament, Yatani said the programme targets to safeguard vulnerable citizens and businesses adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said the government has earmarked nearly Ksh 23.1 billion in the FY 2021-22 budget for continuation of this programme.

Out of this, Ksh 1.97 billion has been allocated for improving agriculture and food security.

Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary National Treasury and Planning said the government has focused on the livestock sector by reviving the Kenya Meat Commission.

He added the government is also planning to set up a meat processing plant in Lamu to provide ready market for livestock and boost income of farmers.

We all depend on the survival of bees.

Bees and other pollinators, such as butterflies, bats and hummingbirds, are increasingly under threat from human activities.

When we talk about pollinators, here is what we insinuate;

Pollination is, however, a fundamental process for the survival of our ecosystems. Nearly 90% of the world’s wild flowering plant species depend, entirely, or at least in part, on animal pollination, along with more than 75% of the world’s food crops and 35% of global agricultural land. Not only do pollinators contribute directly to food security, but they are key to conserving biodiversity.

Why World Bee Day?

To raise awareness of the importance of pollinators, the threats they face and their contribution to sustainable development, the UN designated 20 May as World Bee Day.

The goal is to strengthen measures aimed at protecting bees and other pollinators, which would significantly contribute to solving problems related to the global food supply and eliminate hunger in developing countries.

We all depend on pollinators and it is, therefore, crucial to monitor their decline and halt the loss of biodiversity.

Bee engaged : Build Back Better for Bees

Worldwide, our World Bee Day will be celebrated – in the midst of a still ongoing pandemic – with a virtual event organized by Mr Bees Africa Limited  on 20 May 2021 under the theme “Bee engaged – Build Back Better for Bees”.

Intensive farming practices, land-use change, mono-cropping, pesticides and higher temperatures associated with climate change all pose problems for bee populations and, by extension, the quality of food we grow.

Spraying with bad chemicals is not healthy for the bees;

How can we do more?

Individually by:

• Planting a diverse set of native plants, which flower at different times of the year;
• Buying raw honey from local farmers;
• Buying products from sustainable agricultural practices;
• Avoiding pesticides, fungicides or herbicides in our gardens;
• protecting wild bee colonies when possible;
• Sponsoring a hive;
• Making a bee water fountain by leaving a water bowl outside;
• Helping sustaining forest ecosystems;
• Raising awareness around us by sharing this information within our communities and networks; The decline of bees affects us all!

As beekeepers, or farmers by:

• Reducing, or changing the usage of pesticides;
• Diversifying crops as much as possible, and/or planting attractive crops around the field;
• Creating hedgerows.

As governments and decision-makers by:

• Strengthening the participation of local communities in decision-making, in particular that of indigenous people, who know and respect ecosystems and biodiversity;
• Enforcing strategic measures, including monetary incentives to help change;
• Increasing collaboration between national and international organizations, organizations and academic and research networks to monitor and evaluate pollination services.

Happy World Bee Day 2021!

Kunihira Stephen, is the Founder of Mr Bees Africa Limited. 

May 18, 2021 Abuja, NIGERIA—Through a $1.7 million co-investment from the USAID-funded West Africa Trade & Development Hub, Adefunke Desh Nigeria (ADN), an agribusiness specializing in the cultivation and processing of grains, will embark on its expansionary drive to significantly scale its operations. This project will be instrumental in improving ADN’s competitiveness, in turn boosting the incomes of its partner smallholder farmers, increasing supplies of quality grains, and aligning well with the U.S. Government’s Feed the Future initiative.

As a company suppling grain to Cadbury PLC, Nestlé PLC, Guinness Nigeria, and other specialized feed and food producers, ADN has a solid reputation for the high-quality standards it upholds. However, significant investment in the form of upgrades to its grain cleaning facility in northern Nigeria’s Kaduna State, new equipment and machines, and more staff are needed to improve ADN’s operations, consistently clean grains to meet international standards, and fulfil orders from its growing client base. With the $1.7 million co-investment grant, awarded under the Trade Hub’s COVID-19 rapid response initiative, ADN can address these challenges and leverage its earlier planned investments.

“This co-investment partnership will give ADN the additional capital needed to meet the growing demand for high-quality grains resulting from the increased health consciousness of consumers, a growing Nigeria population, and significant reductions in grain production due to COVID-19 and insecurity throughout the country,” says Adeoluwa Adeshola, ADN’s Managing Director.

As a key part of the project, ADN will also directly support 3,000 new smallholder farmers in northwest Nigeria producing maize, soybean, and sorghum—foods widely consumed in Nigeria. The smallholders will be provided with training in improved agronomic and farm management practices. ADN will also purchase 17,000 metric tons of additional grains supplied by local aggregators and farmers within the project.

Assistance to the smallholders ties directly into assistance to ADN. As multinational partners pay premium prices for ADN’s quality grains made possible through an improved facility and enhanced operations, the company can purchase smallholders’ grains at more competitive prices.

Altogether, the co-investment grant will have a significant impact on ADN’s operations, suppliers, customers, and partners. Equally important, in line with other Trade Hub-backed initiatives, the project is expected to increase market-led job creation.

According to Adeshola, if ADN scales operations to 90 percent of its installed capacity with the coinvestment,
it can create at least 250 jobs (90 percent of which will be held by women and youth).

Additionally, at least five laborers earn daily income per hectare of land farmed to produce the grain
supplied to ADN. Therefore, cultivating 3,000 hectares of land will result in approximately 15,000 casual
labor jobs in addition to the 3,000 smallholder farmer jobs guaranteed as part of the project.

ADN’s success is expected to lead to increased private sector investment into Nigeria’s agricultural
sector.
“Ultimately, the project aims to institute a replicable model for other companies and private sector
investors that will improve food security, increase farmer incomes, and produce top quality/toxin-free
home-grown grains for consumers,” says Michael Clements, Chief of Party for the Trade Hub.
Adefunke Desh PR photo 1: Adefunke Desh will leverage part of the Trade Hub’s co-investment to
upgrade its grain cleaning equipment in Kaduna State.

Through the co-investment partnership, both Adefunke Desh and the Trade Hub will build on their work of supporting women working in the agricultural sector, including female rice farmers and distributors.

–End—
About the Trade Hub: The Trade Hub is a USAID-funded initiative to co-invest with the private sector to
generate new private investment, create new jobs, and increase the value of regional and international
exports in West Africa.
Adefunke Desh Nigeria: Adefunke Desh Nigeria is a leader in the Nigerian agribusiness space specializing
in the cultivation and processing of grains such as maize, sorghum, millet, and soybeans for local and
international consumers.
About USAID: The United States Agency for International Development is the lead U.S.
Government agency that works to end extreme global poverty and enable resilient, democratic societies
to realize their potential.
About Feed the Future: The Feed the Future initiative is the U.S. Government’s global hunger and food
security initiative. It works to give families and communities in some of the world’s poorest countries
the freedom and opportunity to lift themselves out of food insecurity and malnutrition.
For media inquiries, please contact:

Olga Balangala, InsiderPR
olga@beaninsider.com

(Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you from InsiderPR . Agrigate Global takes no editorial responsibility for the same.)