Press Releases
06 May 2008Kenya Launches Revolutionary US$50 Million Farm Programme to Provide Small-Scale Farmers and Farm Businesses Financing and Credit [Français]
A major new partnership was launched today to provide smallholder farmers and small agricultural enterprises with the financing they need to break out of poverty and build viable businesses. AGRA, in partnership with Equity Bank Limited, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the Kenya Ministry of Agriculture signed an agreement for a loan facility of US$50 million to accelerate access to affordable financing for 2.5 million farmers and 15,000 agricultural value chain members such as rural input shops, fertilizers and seed wholesalers and importers, grain traders and food processors.
23 April 2008More African Farmers Gaining Access to Disease-Resistant Rice Varieties [Français]
As global food prices soar, worsening hunger and poverty in poor food-importing countries, AGRA and the African Rice Breeders Network are meeting to speed the development and release of new high yielding, disease-resistant rice varieties. The meeting in Kampala on April 21-23 will bring together rice breeders, researchers, and seed companies from more than 10 African countries to discuss ways to facilitate new rice varieties reaching farmers and improving food security.
14 April 2008New Class of ACCI PhD Students Graduate [Français]
The second cohort of agricultural PhD candidates sponsored by AGRA graduated from their advanced studies program at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Each will employ the knowledge gained in their studies to improve African food security across eastern and southern Africa.
03 April 2008Nigerian Agricultural Development Expert Honored Internationally [Français]
Dr. Akin Adesina honored from Norway to the USA for leadership of major global initiative to reduce poverty and achieve an African Green Revolution
12 March 2008WACCI and AGRA Welcome Inaugural Class of Agricultural PhD Students at University of Ghana, Legon [Français]
The first eight doctoral candidates sponsored by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) will be entering their advanced studies at the University of Ghana, Legon, hoping to discover new ways to improve crops across West Africa, officials announced today at a ceremony inaugurating the program.
5 March 2008AGRA Announces Ugandan Partnerships to Bolster Bean, Cowpea and Maize Production for Smallholder Farmers [Français]
The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) today announced several new programs to be carried out with the National Agricultural Research Organization and private seed companies in Uganda.
31 January 2008Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and the National Microfinance Bank of Tanzania Commit US$6.1 Million to Innovative Financing for Agro-Dealer Network in Rural Tanzania [Français]
In partnership with the National Microfinance Bank (NMB) of Tanzania, AGRA has signed an agreement to release US$6.1 million for an innovative financing plan that will boost options for the country's smallholder farmers through bolstering a national network of agro-dealers. "This is a great initiative that will help transform rural Tanzania. The next phase is to work at a national scale and reach millions of farmers," said Mr. Stephen Wassira, Tanzania's Minister for Agriculture.
25 January 2008Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) Commits US$180 Million to Revive Depleted Soils of Small-Scale Farmers [Français] [Addtional Information]
Determined to revive the grossly depleted soils of sub-Saharan Africa, which are a major underlying cause of poverty and hunger, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) today announced a US$180 million five-year program to restore the fertility of Africa's soils.
13 December 2007National Agro-dealer Networks Launched to Reach 1.6 Million Rural Farming Households in Africa with Essential Farm Supplies [Français]
Launching an intensive effort to revive small-scale farming and agricultural markets hobbled by the scarcity and high costs of basic farm supplies such as seed, tools and fertilizer, the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) has awarded US$13 million in grants to establish nationwide networks of rural agro-dealers in Malawi, Tanzania and Kenya.
14 November 2007African Farmer and World Agricultural Leader Announced as President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) [Français]
The Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) today announced the naming of Dr. A. Namanga Ngongi as its first president. Alongside Kofi A. Annan, Dr. Ngongi will lead AGRA's work to end poverty and hunger of Africa's small-scale farmers.
18 October 2007African Cassava Breeders Network Moves to Derail Spreading Epidemic of Devastating Crop Virus [Français]
A meeting of Africa's leading cassava breeders zeroed in on actions needed to stop the rapid spread of cassava brown streak disease (CBSD). The resurgent crop disease has already caused a low-grade famine in northern Mozambique, and led farmers in Zanzibar to largely abandon cultivation of the critical food crop. Breeders from Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi and Mozambique all noted the rising threat of the disease to small-scale farmers in their areas.
5 October 2007Top Maize Breeders in Southern and Eastern Africa Urge Governments to Speed Approvals of New Crop Varieties Needed by Farmers [Français]
A statement released by the Maize Breeders Network says that the slow regulatory approval of new, conventionally bred crop varieties is harming African regional food security and impeding efforts to eradicate rural poverty. The network warns that countries with slow approval processes are putting their farmers at risk by denying them access to more resilient maize varieties that can withstand periods of drought and resist pests and crop diseases plaguing small-scale farmers in eastern and southern Africa.
17 September 2007As Schools Begin, Unique African Partnership Announces Launch of Critical PhD Program for Crop Breeding in Africa [Français]
AGRA announced that it is partnering with the University of Ghana, Legon, to launch the West Africa Centre for Crop Improvement (WACCI), to train the next generation of African crop scientists. AGRA will also strengthen a programme piloted at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, the African Centre for Crop Improvement (ACCI). Together, the two programmes will train approximately 120 PhD plant breeders over the next ten years, helping to create the critical mass of crop breeders needed to end Africa's food crisis.
16 July 2007Kofi Annan, Chair of the Board of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, Holds First Fact-finding Mission with African Smallholder Farmers
At a press briefing held in Nairobi, Kenya, on 16 July 2007, Kofi Annan reported on his visit with smallholder farmers, plant breeders and entrepreneurs in Western Kenya, and on his meeting with Kenya's Pres. Kibaki.
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Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa Appoints Kofi Annan, Former Secretary-General of the United Nations, Chair of the Board [Français]
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