News briefs_May30_2007

Ugandan flower grower resumes business : Victoria Flowers farm that was wiped out in a storm in 2006 year has resumed operations. The farm was restored using a $1m loan from the Uganda Development Bank and another $1m in personal funding by the owners, Gordon Wavamunno and Rene Bartoli.
"We lost all our 16 greenhouses in the storm that hit us in March 2006. We only resumed exporting in November. We have now erected 16 greenhouses, of which 13 have been replanted with roses," said Bartloli. He said the farm would soon increase export volumes to 1.5 million stems per month from the current 800,000 stems per month.
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Mozambique agric. ministry fire speculation : Mozambican President Armando Guebuza has warned against an "emotional" approach to discovering the causes of the fire that devoured a significant part of the building of the Agriculture Ministry on May 25. "We must leave space for the commission of inquiry that has been set up to try and find the reasons of the fire to draw its conclusions", he said.
The early morning fire reduced to ashes 58 offices in the central block of the building, including those of the minister and deputy minister. Speculation is rife in Maputo that arson was the most likely cause. Some dismiss the theory that the fire was caused by a short circuit, and instead believe it was "deliberate action by groups who are discontented with some actions taken by the senior authorities of that ministry".
In particular, the "Mediafax" weekly newsletter suggests that the tighter control over the use of foreign funds imposed by the new minister, Erasmo Muhate, is not to the liking of all his subordinates. The paper cites sources who believe that the fire was an attempt to destroy evidence, and thus hide financial misdeeds from the Ministry's auditors.
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Ghana tomato woes : A tomato farmers group in the Upper East region of Ghana has appealed to the government to come out with pragmatic measures to ensure that they get market for their produce. A statement released by the Coalition of Tomatoes Farmers, in collaboration with the Trade and Livelihood Coalition, an NGO, said, "This year has been the worst in the memory of tomato farmers. There have been no factory trucks and there were very few tomato crates. Worst still promises to pay fair prices became a failure, leading to most of the farmers committing suicide."

The farmers called on government to provide them and the general public with information about the revamping of the Pwalugu Tomato Factory. The statement appealed to government and investors at the Northern Star Company to come to the aid of tomato farmers in the region by providing them with trucks, more crates and by purchasing their products at fair prices.
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Urban farming_Zimbabwe : The city council of Zimbabwe's capital city, Harare, will soon set aside land specifically for urban agriculture, finally legalising the small plots of maize and vegetables that have become a permanent feature of the city’s landscape for decades. Though widespread, it has not been strictly legal, with city statues saying nothing about the practice. This has occasionally led to municipal authorities destroying crops grown on public land without official permission.
In explaining the shift in policy, the council made it clear that such agricultural activities would be confined to areas deemed unfit for residential or commercial development. The city’s principal urban planner said that Harare would include farming zones in all existing and new local development plans. "Relevant conditions would be included to make sure that urban agriculture is orderly and does not encourage pollution, siltation and unhealthy practices," she said.
She said because of the escalating prices of land, only wastelands would be earmarked for sustainable urban farming. Urban agriculture was now viewed by thousands of households as a safety net against rising poverty. Urban farmers were urged to use organic fertilizers as these were more environmentally friendly.
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China to build agric. centre in Liberia : The governments of Liberia and China on May 22, 2007 signed an agreement for the establishment of an Agricultural Demonstration Center in Liberia.
The Center, to be established in Maryland County, is one of ten such centers the Chinese government agreed to establish during the last summit of the Forum for China Africa Cooperation held in Beijing in November 2006. As a result of the agreement, the first group of ten Chinese agricultural experts were due in Liberia on May 25 to begin preparatory work on the project. When in full operation the centre will undertake research and engage in commercial farming to involve Liberians in partnership with Chinese entrepreneurs.
Besides the center, Chinese experts are also exploring the possibility of establishing sugar cane farms in Gbatawee area.
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Kenya fish processing plant : Plan are under way to establish a fish processing plant in Nyakach, Nyando District, Kenya.The move follows a feasibility study to establish the project's viability. The venture is the brainchild of private investors led by Jimmy Miser Oigo, a prominent businessman.
Receiving a delegation of Chinese industrialists and investors at his office in Nairobi, Miser confirmed that the industrialists had undertaken a successful feasibility study along beaches from Nyakwere to the end of Wire beach. He said the investment will be carried out in phases and will include the installation of five cooling plants where fish-stakeholders will store their catch before it is transported to the main plant.
The first phase of the project, to be built at Katito Market on the main Sondu-Kisumu road, is estimated at Sh100million ($1.5 million). The project which will take five years to complete, will offer economic lifeline to fishermen and suppliers of fish products, besides guaranteeing employment opportunities.
Also lined up to be set in the area is a fertilizer plant which will get raw materials from the fish end-products, as well as a bio-gas operation to supplement electrical power being produced at Odino Falls.
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Organic conf._East Africa : Tanzanian Prime Minister, Edward Lowassa, has called for more education on organic products, which he said were environmental and health friendly. He was speaking at the launch of the East African Organic Product Standard and the East African Organic Mark at the regional conference on organic agriculture in Arusha.
"We are told that organic products have a good market in the developed world. The challenge is to show our people that agriculture has various options," he said. He said East Africa produces and exports about 17,100 tonnes of various organic products attracting an average of 25 to 30 per cent premium price compared to conventional products.
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Farmer groups receive WB money_Kenya : 20 farmers' associations have received a total of Sh14 million ($210,000) from the World Bank. The money will be used in democratising the associations through elections to ensure farmers own and run the organisations, and also to
improve service delivery. The funds, given through the government, are in a three-part disbursement programme to be concluded at the end of the year.
The grant given to the Kenya Agricultural Productivity Programme (KAPP), will be distributed and monitored by the Kenya National Federation of Agricultural Producers (Kenfap), the umbrella farmers' representative body. The co-ordinator of KAPP, Dr. SG Muigai, said the resources were meant to create functional and better-organised organisations. He appealed for transparency and honesty in the management of the funds.
"Instead of seeking orders only to realise we cannot fulfill them as required, we should ensure we belong to regional associations so that we can pool resources with others when necessary," urged Kenfap chairman Nduati Kariuki.
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Over-fishing_Uganda : Uganda's Nile Perch exports have drastically declined, with fisheries minister Bright Rwamirama attributing it to over-fishing caused by the use of illegal fishing gear and methods, and massive catching of young fish.
"Nile Perch (Empuuta) exports to international markets, which were at 36,000 tonnes worth $143 million in 2005, dropped to 33,000 tonnes worth $137 million in 2006," Rwamirama said. He said fish is now one of Uganda's major non-traditional exports and its demand on international, regional and internal markets was ever increasing. "Unlike other agricultural and animal products where the country is struggling to look for investors in the processing area, the fisheries sector has about 17 fish processing factories," he said.
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