Tag: AFRICA

Soymilk, a traditional Chinese drink that’s rich in flavor and nutrition, is becoming an increasingly popular drink among Tanzanians in villages in the Morogoro region west of the East African nation’s commercial capital Dar es Salaam.

Although soybean milk is new on the menu for Tanzanians, they feel it is delicious. Tatu Seif, a 62-year-old farmer in Kitete village, said soybean milk tastes good. “I like it and hopefully my friends will like it. It’s good for our health.”

The growing popularity of this new healthy drink has stemmed from a bilateral cooperative project in Tanzania, led by Chinese agricultural scientist Li Xiaoyuan this year.

Li and his team of experts from the China Agricultural University (CAU) had decided to cooperate with the Morogoro authorities to promote the maize and soybean inter-planting project called “Small Bean and Big Nutrition”. They selected four demonstration villages of Peapea, Kitete, Makuyu and Mtegowasimba as a pilot project in the region.

Under the project, the experts in collaboration with the Morogoro authorities distributed soybean seeds to farmers in the four villages in January this year and provided on-site guidance on planting and management techniques. Until late May, a harvest season for the soybeans began, leaving the farmers with broad smiles.

“Next year I am planning to plant soybeans on two acres,” said the farmer with high expectations.

Li said that maize is an important staple food in Africa while soybean can compensate for increased nutrition, adding that inter-planting soybean with maize can improve local nutritional structure more effectively.

Rozalia Grayson Rwegasira, Assistant Administrative Secretary in Economic and Productive Sector of the Morogoro regional commissioner’s office, commended CAU for introducing soymilk in the region, saying she expected the soy project to benefit as many people as possible, especially children and women.

Rwegasira said the Morogoro authorities looked forward to strengthening ties with the CAU team of experts and rendering strong support to promoting agricultural cooperation.

“Soybean milk is nice, especially for children under five, pregnant and lactating mothers to improve their health, and the project should reach as many people as possible,” she said.

Rwegasira added that the provision of milling machines to make soybean flours will assist farmers to make easily more soybean products and therefore it will also improve the income of farmers through sales of soybean products.

This is not the first time Li Xiaoyun and his team has conducted agricultural aid projects in Tanzania. Since 2011, CAU has cooperated with Morogoro authorities to carry out the “Big Harvest with Small Technologies” project, which focused on increasing maize production and income.

From just one household in one village in 2011 to more than a thousand households in a dozen villages, participants have more than doubled their maize harvest on average, boosted incomes, and improved their families’ welfare and children’s education.

The CAU team, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, has managed to continue promoting the project through online guidance. Participants from both sides of the project, through emails, video conferences, as well as a group chat set up on the Chinese social media platform WeChat, are able to communicate the progress of the project in real-time.

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Ernest Robert Mkongo, former head of Economic and Productive Sector in Morogoro region, said the China-Tanzania agricultural cooperation program is very crucial in lifting people out of poverty.

Mkongo, who has been Tanzania’s coordinator for the project since 2011 and continues to work with CAU after his retirement, said there had never been scholars from any other country who were as diligent as the Chinese experts in visiting farming homes and plots of farmland.

Mkongo is also confident that the local climate, soil and altitude conditions are favorable for soybean growth in Morogoro region, adding that the project will benefit more poor people in the future.

In the future, Li hopes to use soybean milk to improve local nutrition and provide a nutritional alternative to more expensive animal protein, while soybean cakes and maize can be processed into feed and farmed to create a production chain.

Horn of Africa leaders vow to foster peace, address climate crisis at a special meeting in Nairobi

 The Horn of Africa leaders reaffirmed their commitment to foster peace, stability, and integration while dedicating more efforts toward tackling climate emergencies.

Speaking at the 39th Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Extraordinary Assembly of the Heads of State and Government held in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, the leaders pledged to promote peace, cohesion, and respond to the climate crisis in order to realize inclusive prosperity.

Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Chairman of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereign Council and Chairperson of the IGAD Assembly of Heads of State and Government said a collective resolve was needed to tackle the security, economic and ecological crises facing the Horn of Africa region.

Al-Burhan singled out the escalating drought, armed conflicts, terrorism, human trafficking, and illegal migration as existential threats to the region’s stability and economic growth. The Horn of Africa region is also grappling with the proliferation of small arms that have fueled crime and instability even as climate-induced disasters worsen the vulnerability of civilians, noted Al-Burhan.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta called for dialogue to find a lasting solution to conflicts that have reversed economic progress in the Horn of Africa region. “The time is now to build a peaceful future for the next generation,” said Kenyatta, adding that Horn of Africa leaders had rallied behind a vision of fostering peace as a prerequisite to achieving sustainable development.

Kenyatta added that as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, Kenya will lobby multilateral institutions to back peace and reconciliation efforts in the regional hotspots. He said the drought, the worst in 40 years, has intensified food insecurity, dried up water sources and forced displacement of people, raising tensions that could trigger new conflicts. He called for urgent actions to manage the drought before it becomes a threat multiplier.

The regional leaders are expected to adopt two major reports focusing on the peace and security situation in the region as well as natural disasters that have worsened the fragility of nation-states.

Workneh Gebeyehu, executive secretary of IGAD said that besides addressing the drivers of instability in the region, the elected leaders will also explore long-term measures to help communities withstand climate shocks. Gebeyehu added that the Nairobi summit will also assess the adverse impacts of COVID-19 on states and societies and how to rebuild economies and livelihoods.

ALSO READ:IOM needs $93.4mn in funds for Horn of Africa

Bankole Adeoye, the African Union Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, called on regional countries to work together in bolstering regional peace and security as well as in addressing emerging issues such as violent extremism and climate change.

“The African Union Commission stands ready to scale up support for IGAD initiatives in all these areas. We work together to consolidate political transitions, to address the scourge of terrorism and violent extremism, and to ensure collective security remains our overriding goal,” Adeoye said.

The IGAD leaders who attended the summit also included Djibouti President Ismail Omar Guelleh, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, South Sudan 2nd Vice President Taban Deng Gai, Somali Deputy Prime Minister Mahdi Mohammed Gulaid while Uganda was represented by Defence Minister Vincent Ssempijja.

Drought Situation

A global charity announced 28.5 million U.S. dollars to help families in 19 countries, mostly in Africa, facing the worst global hunger crisis in decades.

“The combined impact of conflicts, climate change, COVID, and the cost of inflating food prices has left up to 750,000 people facing famine conditions in Africa,” Gabriella Waaijman, Save the Children’s Humanitarian Director, said in a statement issued in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya.

Save the Children said that 19 countries where extreme hunger threatens to claim thousands of children’s lives are Afghanistan, Myanmar, DRC, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Colombia, Venezuela, Haiti, Yemen, Syria, and Lebanon.

The charity warned that a further 49 million people could soon follow unless they receive immediate support, noting that failure to act now will prove catastrophic and could cost thousands of lives.

According to the charity, the number of people going hungry daily has doubled to 276 million from 135 million in the past two years, and now up to 750,000 people are facing famine conditions in five countries as drought collides with conflict and COVID-19.

The charity said the Horn of Africa has been crippled by drought after four consecutive failed rainy seasons with 18.4 million people facing acute food insecurity, raising fears about a repeat of 2011 when a lack of intervention led to famine in Somalia that killed 260,00 people, of whom half were children aged under 5.

Waaijman said malnutrition caused by extreme hunger remains one of the biggest killers of young children globally yet it is entirely preventable. She called on donors to join in and provide additional, flexible funding to support the scale-up of urgent lifesaving services to the most at-risk communities.

The UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM) disclosed that it needs $93.4 million in funding to meet the humanitarian needs of three million people in four Horn of Africa countries…reports Asian Lite News

In a situation overview report, the IOM said the funds are required to meet the basic needs of people in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia, reports Xinhua news agency.

They included food and non-food needs; emergency shelter; water; sanitation; hygiene; protection; rapid response fund; and support livelihoods in the four countries, said the report.

Ethiopia and Somalia have by far the largest number of people with urgent humanitarian needs with 1.1 and 1.25 million respectively.

Djibouti and Kenya have between 15,000 and 54,786 needy people, according to the IOM report.

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It further disclosed the two countries cover the vast bulk of the total $93.4 million funds needed with $24.2 million and $66.3 million needed for Ethiopia and Somalia, respectively.

The IOM needs $1.4 million and $1.5 million to meet the humanitarian needs of vulnerable people in Djibouti and Kenya, respectively.

“With four consecutive failed rains, the Horn of Africa is facing one of its most severe droughts in decades, with soaring food prices also causing a serious food security crisis,” the report added.

Highlights from this year’s Wimbledon.

Simona Halep of Romania hits a return during the women’s singles fourth round match against Paula Badosa of Spain at Wimbledon Tennis Championship in London. Other images Rafael Nadal, Brandon Nakashima (Xinhua/Han Yan). Zhang Shuai of China/Elise Mertens (R) of Belgium celebrate after the women’s doubles third round match between Zhang Shuai of China/Elise Mertens of Belgium and Nadiia Kichenok of Ukraine/Raluca Olaru of Romania at Wimbledon Tennis Championship in London (Xinhua/Li Ying)

Art school feeds children’s dreams in Namibian informal settlement

 At a structure made out of corrugated iron in Havana informal settlement on the outskirts of Windhoek, capital of Namibia, children were drawing images of idyllic scenes of peace, social issues, objects and ideal environments, reflecting their aspirations.

“This is a poster of a lady. I used an old magazine, discarded box, which I pasted on paper, and then coloured it. I like drawing beautiful ladies; imagining a world where society protects women,” 13-years old Lavinia Tobias interpreted her drawing.

Tobias is one of the 40 youngsters hosted at the Frans Nambinga Art Training School in Havana, one of Windhoek’s most populated informal settlements.

The school, started in 2018, is teaching art techniques to children and youth amid perennial challenges in informal settlements.

“We offer performing and visual arts classes to people in the community. Not only to nurture talent but to avoid children being pushed into sly activities on the streets,” said Frans Nambinga, artist and school founder.

A trip to China, where Nambinga partook in a six-month-long program under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation held in Hangzhou in Zhejiang province in China in 2013, further ignited the idea.

“In China, I learned a lot about the creative art industry, especially after visiting museums, galleries, factories, and observing how they run art programs for children,” he said.

Nambinga also lends industry experience and qualifications from the College of Arts and John Muafangejo Art Centre to impart skills.

The school also fuses art education with culture in the form of history, dance and food to transmit traditions across generations, according to Letisia Hamukoto, a trainer at the school.

The school has since given a chance to feed the dreams of young people, with many keen to make art their mainstay.

Tobias, who started the program at the age of six, said it had become her escape from the bustle of streets in the informal settlement.

“I feel safer here rather than being on the street. Art allows me to dream and share my artistic passion with friends and neighbours. I hope to go far with it, even China or America, to showcase my craft and learn from others,” Tobias said.

The youngsters also learned social skills. “Being here teaches me how to mix and work in a team with others,” said 12-year-old Leticia Ndamekele, who has been with the program since 2019.

What is more, extramural activities at the art school have a ripple effect of improved academic performance in mainstream schools, especially in art subjects.

“We received feedback that school-going children develop a different way of thinking and exhibit more confidence in presentation,” Nambinga said.

Moreover, it also creates employment and study opportunities for the youth.

“The youth maximize skills learned to make a living through music or visual arts. We also provide those who wish to pursue further studies with a certificate and portfolio that would qualify them for admission into art colleges,” he added.

In the interim, the centre has registered an increasing demand for arts education in the area, creating both benefits and unintended challenges. COVID-19 outbreak, inadequate space, resources and funds to expand are a hurdle. This is more so because artistic work, mainly the school, is the primary source of income.

“This is my lifeline. However, programs do not always generate substantial income as most locals and parents cannot afford to pay the standard 100 Namibian dollars (6.72 U.S. Dollars). I do not chase them away; I teach them regardless,” Nambinga said.

Complementary support also comes from collaborating with institutions on joint projects.

According to Nambinga, some institutions partner with the school to execute an idea through an exhibition or performing arts to raise awareness about a social issue.

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“Host institutions fund such projects, which brings in an income. But we need more support,” he added.

Despite the challenges, Nambinga hopes to grow the school and accommodate more children.

“It is not easy being an artist in Namibia due to limited support and commercial prospects. But I am optimistic about the future. We hope to expand through continued strategic collaborations to nurture youngsters, so they succeed,” he said.

The art school has trained about 100 young people since its inception.

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Sunday elected Umaro Mokhtar Sissoco Embalo, the president of Guinea Bissau, as its new chairman…reports Asian Lite News

Embalo was elected during the 61st Ordinary Session of the Authority of ECOWAS Heads of State and Government in Accra, the Ghanaian capital. He will replace Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, the Ghanaian president, who had been the chairman since September 2020.

“In a unanimous election, the authority of heads of state of ECOWAS elected Umaro Mokhtar Sissoco Embalo, president of Guinea Bissau, as the new chairman,” announced Akufo-Addo.

In his acceptance speech, Embalo promised to lead the subregional bloc to restore peace and stability to the subregion.

“Despite the challenges that we are faced with as a result of violent extremism and the current global crisis, I believe, the solidarity within ECOWAS will enable us to overcome these challenges,” said Embalo.

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