Africa: FAO, AU Commission Launch New Initiative to Boost Trade, Improve Food Security

With the African Union (AU) Commission, Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), launched a new Africa-wide framework to boost trade and improve food security. According to FAO, the initiative will help “unlock the potential” of the agricultural sector to contribute to sustainable and inclusive growth across the continent, and promote the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement […]

FAO Names European Space Agency Astronaut, Thomas Pesquet, its Goodwill Ambassador

European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut, Thomas Pesquet, has been named Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (FAO) Goodwill Ambassador this International Day of Human Space Flight. In 2011, the UN declared April 12 as the International Day of Human Space Flight “to celebrate each year at the international level the beginning of the space era for mankind, reaffirming the important […]

FAO Seeks $1.1 Billion to Avert  Humanitarian Catastrophe as Food Insecurity Crisis Worsens

Director of Food and Agriculture Organisation’s (FAO) Emergencies and Resilience Division, Dominique Burgeon, says the Organisation urgently needs to scale-up actions to avert a major emergency in food crisis. FAO is seeking $1.1 billion to save the lives and livelihoods of some of the world’s most food-insecure people. This is even as the COVID-19 pandemic, […]

Loss of Biodiversity Undermines Global Efforts to Tackle Poverty, Hunger, FAO Says

In a video address to the United Nations Summit on Biodiversity on Wednesday, Director-General of Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), QU Dongyu, says the loss of biodiversity undermines global efforts to tackle poverty and hunger. According to him, ‘’no biodiversity, no food diversity’’, pointing out that biodiversity underpins most of the world’s economic activities, particularly in the agri-food […]

Forest: 178 Million Hectares Lost In N’Delta, Other Regions

For 30 years now, the Niger Delta, Nigeria’s vastly polluted oil and gas region, and the rest of the world has lost 178 million hectares of forest. The global forest area has continued to decrease since 1990. The rate of net forest loss decreased substantially over the period 1990-2020 due to a reduction in deforestation in […]

COVID-19 Pandemic: 16.2m People in 3 Countries Dealing With Crisis Levels of Acute Hunger- FAO 

More than 16.2 million people are currently dealing with crisis levels of acute hunger in some of the world’s food crisis hotspots due to the rampaging COVID-19 pandemic. Before the pandemic, 135 million people worldwide were already coping with acute hunger caused by conflict, climate shocks, and economic downturns, according to the 2020 edition of the […]

FAO: Crying Out For $350m To Prevent COVID-19’s Steep Rise In Acute Hunger

Millions of starving people around the world are increasingly struggling to have access to food as incomes fall and food prices rise due to the merciless COVID-19 pandemic. This is happening even when the pandemic’s full-scale and long-term impact on food security is yet to be revealed. Yet, evidence shows that in countries already hit […]

To Stop Food Waste, Scientist Harps on Reducing Post-harvest Losses

A post-doctoral scientist, Feyisara Eyiwumi Oni, has highlighted the need to invest in reducing post-harvest losses and waste. Food waste has become a scourge with the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations estimating that 45% (about 1.3 billion tons) of harvested fruits, vegetables, roots, and tubers are lost annually.  These post-harvest losses […]

FAO Chief Paints Grim Picture of Hunger Situation in West Africa, Says 17m People Need Food Assistance

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Resilience Coordinator for West Africa, Coumba Sow, has painted a grim picture of the hunger situation in the region. In an interview with the UN agency about the COVID-19 pandemic and what it could mean for millions of people already grappling with hunger and conflict in West Africa, he […]

As COVID-19 Surges In Nigeria with 782 Cases, 25 Deaths, FAO Calls For Coherent Actions To Tackle Food Crises

Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) Director-General, Qu Dongyu, says coherent actions are currently needed to address the root causes that perpetuate existing food crises. He specifically said such actions are needed among humanitarian, development and peace actors,  The call is coming as conflicts, extreme weather, desert locusts, economic shocks and the rampaging COVID-19, are pushing […]