AFD, ECOWAS sign €8 million to support food storage systems in West Africa
14 December 2021 |
2:45 am
President, ECOWAS Commission, Mr. Jean-Claude Kassi Brou and the Director of the French Development Agency (AFD) in Nigeria, Mr. Xavier Muron have signed a grant agreement for a complementary funding
President, ECOWAS Commission, Mr. Jean-Claude Kassi Brou and the Director of the French Development Agency (AFD) in Nigeria, Mr. Xavier Muron have signed a grant agreement for complementary funding of the Interim Phase of the support to the Food Security Storage System in West Africa.
The agreement, which was signed in the presence of the French Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, Mrs. Emmanuelle Blatmann, follows a pilot phase funded by the European Union for €56 million (of which €31.9 million was delegated to AFD) to support the ECOWAS Regional Food Security Storage Strategy.
Adopted in 2012, this strategy combines local stocks, national stocks and a Regional Food Security Reserve (RFSR) to ensure regional solidarity in the event of a major food crisis in the region.
The 8 million euro and 3-year AFD support to ECOWAS aims to increase the region’s readiness to manage food, nutrition and pastoral crises with a variety of causes. Increasing crises management capacity involves consolidating, in the short term, the achievements of the implementation of the first phase of the RFSR and building a multilateral partnership around the regional food security storage system in the mid and long terms.
Brou said; “ECOWAS welcomes AFD’s new financial support to the regional solidarity instrument, the relevance and effectiveness of which were demonstrated during the first phase. The new funding will notably enable the Regional Food Security Reserve to increase its readiness to fully play its role as the first line of defence in the event of a shock affecting people ability to feed themselves. The new phase will also be an opportunity to build a multi-stakeholder funding partnership to ensure the sustainability of our food security storage system.”
The ECOWAS Commission, through its Department of Agriculture, Environment and Water Resources, is responsible for the implementation of the new project. The project activities will be implemented in all fifteen (15) ECOWAS Member States, as well as in two (2) CILSS Member States (Chad and Mauritania) that were involved in the implementation of the pilot phase.
“AFD’s partnership with the ECOWAS Commission since 2011 in supporting the implementation of the Regional Agricultural Policy, ECOWAP, is a living model. We have no doubt that this new support will contribute to the sustainability of the food security storage system in West Africa and mobilize other development partners to further strengthen resilience to the various shocks affecting food security in the region,” the Director of AFD, Nigeria, explained.
While commending the depth of the AFD – ECOWAS partnership, the French Ambassador to Nigeria and ECOWAS, said that France wishes to fully pursue its role of a strategic partner in the region by supporting projects that contribute to strengthening peace and security, as well as the fight against the effects of climate change.
The new phase will call for adaptations of the regulatory framework of the RFSR, the design of innovative financial mechanisms, and increased mobilisation of the International Community in supporting the region’s food security storage strategy. It will also require adaptation of response instruments to rapid-onset crises and new risk factors like health crises such as Ebola or more global ones such as the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Related
1 day ago
France began withdrawing soldiers from Chad on Friday, the country's defence ministry said, after N'Djamena last month abruptly ended military cooperation with the former colonial power. A contingent of 120 soldiers left for France from a military airport in the capital, the ministry said in a statement on Facebook, 10 days after French fighter aircraft…
1 day ago
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday signed a disputed education law on languages in schools, after reaching an agreement with his initially opposed coalition partner. The dispute over the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) earlier this year was the first major test of the government of national unity, forged after May elections in which…
1 day ago
The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Ondo State Command, has prosecuted no fewer than 29 drivers for violating traffic rules and regulations on highways in the state. FRSC arraigned the offenders through a mobile court presided by Chief Magistrate Adetutu Mayowa-Idowu on Friday in Akure. The offenders were charged with several offences including dangerous driving,…
1 day ago
In the twilight of his political career, Joe Biden is disappearing into the background even before Donald Trump returns to the White House, despite growing turmoil at home and abroad. The 82-year-old US president's silence on a looming government shutdown over Christmas is just the latest example of how critics say the aging leader is…
1 day ago
France's President Emmanuel Macron faced accusations of racism Friday over an alleged comment on problems in hospitals, which his office strongly denied he made, adding to controversy over an angry remark during a visit to an Indian Ocean territory ravaged by a cyclone. With Le Monde daily printing a sequence of articles about the behind-the-scenes…
1 day ago
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky pleaded with boxing star Oleksandr Usyk to be gentle with British rival Tyson Fury in their world heavyweight clash in case a battering delivers a knockout blow to a crucial arms deal. Usyk defeated Fury in May to become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and the two men meet…
1 day ago
Everton manager says he has the backing of the club's new owners and is not under any extra pressure as he enters the final six months of his contract. The US-based Friedkin Group completed their takeover of the Premier League club on Thursday, ending a turbulent period at Goodison Park under the control of British-Iranian…
1 day ago
Family, friends, and well-wishers converged in Abuja, the nation's capital, to celebrate the remarkable achievement of Nigeria's Martina Abang Chukwuma-Ezike, who became the first black woman to be elected as the Lord Rector of the University of Aberdeen in its 500-year history. The Cross River-born CEO of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation, Scotland, United Kingdom,…
1 day ago
As part of efforts to cushion the effects of the economic reforms facing Nigerians, especially the residents of Ijebu Ode/Odogbolu/Ijebu North-East Local Government Areas of Ogun State, a member representing the Ijebu Central Federal Constituency, Femi Ogunbanwo, popularly called "Omo-Iwa," has empowered over 1,500 women and youths by procuring equipment for their businesses. Items distributed…
1 day ago
Italy's data protection authority on Friday said it had fined OpenAI 15 million euros over the use of personal data by ChatGPT, but the US tech firm said it would appeal. The Italian Data Protection Authority (GPDP) watchdog began an investigation in March 2023 when it temporarily blocked ChatGPT in Italy over privacy concerns, becoming…
×
Get the latest news delivered straight to your inbox every day of the week. Stay informed with the Guardian’s leading coverage of Nigerian and world news, business, technology and sports.
0 Comments
We will review and take appropriate action.