Scientists have called for quick, multi-institutional collaboration and coordinated action against the fall armyworm that has ravaged maize to avoid economic hardship for smallholders in the region and across Africa generally.
Author: WHES Team
New Rebel Group Threatens to Intensify South Sudan’s War
A former general in South Sudan’s army said he commands a new rebel movement of at least 30,000 fighters that will seek to overthrow President Salva Kiir, threatening to deepen the three-year civil war in Africa’s newest nation…That could mean more bloodshed for a conflict that’s already claimed tens of thousands of lives and led to the world’s first official declaration of famine since 2011.
Somalia pledging conference opens as famine looms
Aid groups report that a third famine warning is “on its way” to Somalia — a crucial turning point for response, they say — as governments from across East Africa and key partner countries meet for the Somalia Pledging Conference in London, United Kingdom, on 11 May.
Food waste is the world’s dumbest environmental problem
“Just under 7 percent of greenhouse gas emissions come from food waste worldwide…This buzz is leading to new, innovative food waste solutions that can help address both hunger and global warming at the same time.”
Trump to nominate Mark Green as USAID administrator
Donald Trump announced his intent to nominate Mark Green, a former U.S. ambassador to Tanzania and president of the International Republican Institute, to be the next administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development Wednesday.
China’s Appetite Pushes Fisheries to the Brink
Overfishing is depleting oceans across the globe, with 90 percent of the world’s fisheries fully exploited or facing collapse, according to the FAO…unsustainable fishing practices threaten the well-being of millions of people in the developing world who depend on the sea for income and food.
TV show to promote farming as ‘cool’ for youth
Four young farmers, two each from Kenya and Tanzania, are part of the first agriculture reality TV show, Don’t Lose the Plot, where participants will battle it out for a $10,000 prize. The show is an endeavour to change the perception of farming among Kenyan and Tanzanian youth in an effort to make agriculture a “cool” and viable career choice.
Venezuela Is Starving
Once Latin America’s richest country, Venezuela can no longer feed its people, hobbled by the nationalization of farms as well as price and currency controls.
Op Ed-More than Malnutrition: Famine as Social Crisis
Alex de Waal, Executive Director of the World Peace Foundation at Tuft University’s Fletcher School, discusses the history of declaring famines in this opinion editorial.
Children of Somali diaspora in Canada come together to fend off famine
A new generation of young Somali-Canadians is looking to raise both money and awareness of the looming disaster in their parents’ homeland — and hope the international community will act before it’s too late.
