Farmers in drought-ridden parts of Niger are facing a dangerous combination of stresses – chronic drought, land degradation, pests and poor seeds – which threaten to throw them even deeper into hunger and poverty.
Author: WHES
Swaziland’s dry spell upends sunny outlook on food
A prolonged dry spell with scorching temperatures has undone an optimistic outlook for Swaziland’s harvest of maize, the staple. Instead, experts are now predicting another round of scarcity and hand-outs in the perennially food-insecure country.
Crop diversity decline threatens food security
Fewer crop species are feeding the world than 50 years ago – raising concerns about the resilience of the global food system, a study has shown
Niger’s “remarkable” progress in reducing child deaths
Niger has made remarkable progress in cutting under-five mortality over the past decade, and it looks set to meet the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) on reducing child mortality rates by two-thirds by 2015. But high maternal mortality, skyrocketing population growth and low government capacity are still impeding progress, say partners and health practitioners.
South Sudan: ‘One of the most dangerous places to give birth’ (video)
Hundreds of thousands of people have fled their homes due to continuing violence in South Sudan.
Many are in need of urgent health care, with pregnant women at great risk.
South Sudan is one of the most dangerous nations on earth to give birth, according to a report from the charity Save the Children.
Syria crisis: Thousands waiting for food in Yarmouk (video)
The BBC’s Lyse Doucet has travelled to Yarmouk, the Palestinian refugee camp in southern Damascus, Syria, where people are desperate for food.
Obesity rate for young children plummets 43 percent in a decade
Federal health authorities on Tuesday reported a 43 percent drop in the obesity rate among 2- to 5-year-old children over the past decade, the first broad decline in an epidemic that often leads to lifelong struggles with weight and higher risks for cancer, heart disease and stroke.
Call for shakeup in Africa nutrition research
Rwanda has achieved remarkable success in reducing child hunger, and nutrition experts believe there may be lessons here for other countries in Africa.
Call for shakeup in Africa nutrition research
Rwanda has achieved remarkable success in reducing child hunger, and nutrition experts believe there may be lessons here for other countries in Africa.
Governor of Nigeria’s central bank is fired after warning of billions in missing oil revenue
DAKAR, Senegal — President Goodluck Jonathan of Nigeria removed the governor of the country’s central bank from his post on Thursday, after the bank governor repeatedly charged that billions of dollars in oil revenue owed to the treasury was missing.
