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ECOWAS task lawmakers on increased budgetary allocation for Agriculture source:IITA The Department of Agriculture and Water Resource of the Economic Community of West Africa State (ECOWAS) has called on Parliamentarians across member states to increase budgetary allocations for agriculture. Speaking at the 2nd ECOWAS people’s Agriculture Budget summit jointly organised by the ECOWAS Parliament and Action Aid, Dr Ernest Aubee, Head of ECOWAS Department of Agriculture and Water Resources urged Parliamentarians across the region to champion increased budgeting on Agriculture in their various countries. Ernest said “In 2003, at the Second Ordinary Assembly of the African Union, African Heads of State and Government endorsed the “Maputo Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security and the 10 percent national budget allocation to agriculture development which contained prominently the commitment to the allocation of at least 10 percent of national budgetary resources to...

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS DENIES PROVISION FOR CONSTITUENCY PROJECTS IN ITS 2019 BUDGET Punarimam Fehintola, Abuja The ministry of foreign affairs has denied some media reports credited to the Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) stating that the sum of 2.9 Billion Naira has been earmarked for Zonal Intervention/Constituency Projects in the Ministry’s 2019 Budget.  The Ministry in a statement signed by its spokesman Ferdinand Nwonye says “to inform the public that no such amount was earmarked in the Ministry’s 2019 Budget. However, an investigation conducted as a consequence of the media report revealed that unknown to the Ministry, Zonal Intervention Projects allocated to Members of the National Assembly (NASS) as Constituency Projects to the tune of 2.9 Billion Naira was earmarked by NASS for execution by the Institute of Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR), which happens to be an Agency of the Mi...

NUC uncovers 100 fake professors in varsities The National Universities Commission has said it has uncovered about 100 fake professors across Nigerian universities. The NUC Executive Secretary, Prof Abubakar Rasheed, stated this in the November edition of the commission’s bulletin, obtained by our correspondent. Rasheed noted that the commission published the details of the fake professors on its website and also sent the names to the various universities for verification. According to the bulletin, Rasheed stated this at the 2019 retreat for Vice-Chancellors by the NUC Strategy Advisory Committee. The NUC boss said, “The updated version of those documents will be published by December 2019 and professors in their respective universities uploaded their CV on the website which was used in the compilation of the directory. About 100 fake professors also uploaded their details but we detected them. “This measure helped in identifying fake professors in the system. The fi...

Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Nigeria hosts highest populations of IDPs in West Africa The findings of the joint ECOWAS Parliament, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have shown that Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Nigeria host the largest populations of internally displaced persons across West Africa region. The document presented at the workshop jointly organized by parliament and ICRC and UNHCR on the situation of internally displaced persons in the North-East of Nigeria, highlighted that internally displaced persons in the Region lack adequate healthcare and other necessities for those hosted in the camps. It stated that understanding internal displacement in West Africa, as in other regions, is an important step in both preventing further displacement and in finding solutions for those who are already displaced. Stating the efforts of UNHCR in regarding IDPs, Roger Hollo, Deputy Representative in N...

Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Nigeria hosts highest populations of IDPs in West Africa  The findings of the joint ECOWAS Parliament, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have shown that Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Nigeria host the largest populations of internally displaced persons across West Africa region. The document presented at the workshop jointly organized by parliament and ICRC and UNHCR on the situation of internally displaced persons in the North-East of Nigeria, highlighted that internally displaced persons in the Region lacks adequate healthcare and other necessities for those hosted in the camps. It stated that understanding internal displacement in West Africa, as in other region, is an important step in both preventing further displacement and in finding solutions for those who are already displaced. Stating the efforts of UNHCR in regarding to IDPs, Roger Hollo, Deputy Represent...

People blame me for my father’s actions, Buhari’s daughter laments President Muhammadu Buhari’s daughter, Zahra Indimi, has lamented that many Nigerians attack her on social media for decisions solely taken by her father. She said she prays for those who bully her online because she has learnt to move on with life. Zahra made the statement at the first edition of “An Afternoon with Zahra”, an event organised in Abuja by her foundation, ZMB Homes, tagged #ConversationWithZahra, The Interview reports. Speaking on her experience with cyber bullies and how she developed confidence to handle them, Zahra marvelled why people attack her over issues of governance though she is not in office with her father. Relating her story she said, “2015 was when I knew what bullying was. It started with my photos going viral. I was actually having a yoga class and I was sweating but people were busy sending my pictures up and down. People used it for their gain during the camp...

ECOWAS Proposes Solar-Powered Solutions to Region's Agric Challenges   The ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (ECREE) is rolling out farming techniques that will lead to higher per-hectare yields, significant increase in agricultural productivity and competitiveness through solar energy. This project is geared towards creating a globally competitive agricultural sector that is able to transform agricultural activities from being predominately rain-fed to one employing the use of modern energy technologies that will drive increased productivity across West Africa. Mahama Kappiah, executive director of the ECREE, while in a presentation at the workshop jointly organized by Parliament and ECREE, on promoting Agricultural Competitiveness through solar energy stated that Agriculture is a primary employer in the region providing jobs for over 60 percent of the population, hence must be well enhanced.  Stating the challenges faced by ...