₦airaland Forum

THE Federal Government, Wednesday, said some Nigerians are now using the Water Bill pending at the National Assembly, as a political tool against the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration.

The Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu, who stated this while briefing State House correspondents at the end of the Federal Executive Council FEC meeting presided over by President Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, appealed to Nigerians to “allow the national assembly” to do its work on the bill.

Recall that the Water bill has generated controversy since it was recently re-presented for consideration at the National Assembly.

The bill which raised dust in 2017 and 2020 has been interpreted by many Nigerians as a scheme to grab the waterways and reassign them to Fulani pastoralists.

However, the Minister said the legislature would treat the bill the same way it has done to others in the past.

According to him, “Some people have chosen to interpret it the way they want it. Some people have decided to use it as a political tool against the government. But we are confident that we have wise men in the legislature that will do the needful, the same way they have been treating all other bills in the past.”

He contended that the government has adequately captured and addressed the interests of various groups and Nigerians must now allow the national assembly to deliberate on the issues raised.

He said, “We have met with the Governors’ Forum. They appointed a technical committee made up of Attorneys General to look at the draft bill. They came back with their observation before we even went back to say, we sent these observations along with a redraft.

“When we got their observations, we appointed an environmental expert, Professor Olarewaju Fagbohun, SAN, to review the entire thing alongside the observations of the Governors’ Forum. He did that, put the necessary things in check and that is what we have represented to the National Assembly. So, we have responded to the needs and the concerns of everybody. So, I think now is to allow the National Assembly to do its work.”

Citing some rivers in the southeast, he added that the land grab narrative peddled in various quarters is false.

According to him, “People are talking about land grab where there is none. Some are even saying that they will not be allowed to use the rivers. I ask people, Oguta lake is in Imo State, Nike Lake is in Enugu State. Who has ever gone there to do anything? Has the federal government ever gone to interfere with what is going on?

“What we are concerned with as provided in the constitution, Schedule 64, are water resources that are interstate. That is, transboundary waters? That is what we’re talking about. And if the federal government is not the custodian as provided in existing legislation, Water Resources Act 2004, nothing has changed.

“All that we are doing is putting in additional value to these laws so that we can improve the management and efficiency of a sector.”

The WHO has released two new tools offering evidence-based strategies to support the effective and efficient integration of sexual reproductive health (SRH) services within national primary health care (PHC) strategies to advance progress towards universal health coverage (UHC).

Health systems that achieve UHC and the health-related Sustainable Development Goals rely heavily on a solid foundation of PHC. The majority of SRH services, such as antenatal and post-natal care, contraception and abortion care, can be provided through PHC. However almost everyone of reproductive age—about 4.3 billion people—will not have access to at least one essential reproductive health intervention over the course of their lives. More examples and clear ways to implement service delivery are needed.

Because integrating SRH within PHC for UHC requires both political commitment, as well as defined and coherent strategies, these practical tools aim to help decision-makers, programme managers, implementers, civil society, researchers, and wider health systems communities.

Handbook

The first tool is a handbook Critical considerations for achieving universal access to sexual and reproductive health in the context of universal health coverage through a primary health care approach. The contents cover guidance for the inclusion of comprehensive SRH services in health benefit packages, planning and implementation of integrated packages of SRH services, as well as accountability processes and measures for ensuring universal access to all essential SRH services.

For effective and integrated SRH, the handbook calls for identifying the rights and responsibilities of the target groups; monitoring implementation of national action plans; ensuring sufficient resources; informing and supporting health care providers; and making health systems more adaptive.

This piece of work also highlights examples of innovative ways SRH services have been integrated in national PHC strategies across many countries. Not only do these examples demonstrate a variety of approaches across countries that take into account economic, social and cultural contexts which influence SRH services, but also lessons and tactics that can be applied in nearly every context.

For example, we learn of key actions for strengthening service availability and readiness for safe abortion services in Ireland, the role of evidence in catalyzing policy action in addressing the mistreatment of women during facility-based deliveries in Guinea and the application of health technology assessment for the inclusion of the HPV vaccine in the health benefit package in Thailand.

“Sexual and reproductive health is critical to health and wellbeing across the life course, and therefore has to be embedded and integrated with primary health care, with universal access to all,” said Professor Pascale Allotey, Director of Sexual Reproductive Health and Research at WHO, and the United Nations Special Research Programme in Human Reproduction Programme (HRP). “There is simply no universal health coverage without sexual and reproductive health.”

Learning by Sharing Portal

The Learning by Sharing Portal (LSP) is a second tool to support the integration of SRH in wider UHC related reforms. The portal, launched on 19 July 2022, is an online repository of qualitative case studies documenting the experiences of stakeholders in implementing an integrated SRH-UHC. The goal is to pool together normative tools and guidance for member states and other stakeholders, including donors and countries, which will bring programmes closer to full alignment.

“The SRH-UHC portal is a powerful tool, allowing countries to learn best practices from each other through peer-to-peer learning,” said Teresa Soop, Senior Research Advisor for SIDA and Chair of the Governing Board of HRP.

The portal features national-level implementation stories from across the world on "how" governments can address the sexual and reproductive health needs of women, adolescents and hard-to-reach populations. The LSP launch reflects a years-long, collaborative process in which WHO partnered with United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in developing content through an open call for stories and peer-reviewed literature that demonstrated a clear link between SRH and UHC.

Stories are about changing policies and legislation in Kazakhstan, aligning donor priorities in Malawi, community health workers increasing service coverage in India, training religious leaders in Somalia and partnerships for progress between governments, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and the private sector in countries such as Mexico, Nepal and Pakistan.

Both the Handbook and LSP emphasize that progress towards universal access to SRH services depends on the meaningful participation of the people affected by these policies in every aspect of planning, implementation, monitoring and accountability.

Listening and responding to the voices of those most left behind is essential and mechanisms to enable participation and voice must be integral to all national efforts. Acting together, everyone concerned with achieving universal access to SRH services through strengthened PHC systems can benefit from the evidence and lessons documented in these tools.

The African Union has called on farmers in Africa to boost agricultural production amid a worsening drought in the Horn of Africa, rising food insecurity and supply chain disruptions.

https://www.dw.com/en/african-union-urges-farmers-to-boost-food-production/a-62507797

Can such games really achieve and maintain physical and emotional well-being?

Engr. Enyinnaya Chima Nwafor has made good his promise to donate relief and other materials to the victims of flood disaster that ravaged Agbaja, Okwoko and Ukwa Nkporo Communities in Ohafia Local Government Area of Abia State.

Nana, the Young Progressives Party (YPP) Gubernatorial Candidate in Abia State had in response to a distress call by the communities whose houses, farmlands and household properties were destroyed by heavy flood, assured the affected communities that the RAPID RESPONSE team from Each One Aid One Foundation would come to their aid, with materials that would in the interim give succour to the victims.

In her speech, Chinwendu Anaeto, Head of Administration, Each One Aid One Foundation, relayed message of goodwill from the Founder of the Foundation, Engr. Nwafor who was in virtual contact with the team as they were conducted round the flood ravaged areas. Nana, who is currently attending a Capacity Building Programme at London School of Business, reiterated his commitment to the welfare of the displaced persons. The Chief Executive Officer of Tunnel End Group assured the communities that he would visit them upon return, to specifically parley with them on possible ways of partnering with them to avert future occurence and also agree with them on where he would build houses for some of the displaced persons.

Prince Awudu, the Programmes Coordinator of Each One Aid One Foundation, sympathised with the victims. He said the food items and clothings were modest efforts by the Foundation to share in their grief as well as alleviate sufferings of the affected persons. He expressed shock at the magnitude of devastation. Prince assured the affected communities that the Foundation they represent will do more for the affected communities having seen firsthand the colossal damage caused by the flood.

Traditional rulers, leaders of thought, youths, women and children from the affected communities could not hide their excitement over what they described as “uncommon benevolence” by Each One Aid One Foundation. In their separate speeches, the visibly elated persons assured the Foundation and its Founder, Nana that it is usually the tradition of Nkporo people to appreciate noble gestures, particularly when such gestures come, unsolicited.

HRH Eze Ambassador Arunsi N. Uka JP, the Traditional Ruler of Agboha Autonomous Community Okwoko Nkporo, HRH Eze Ojukwu Imo Kalu, Traditional Ruler of Achi Aliobi Autonomous Community Agbaja Nkporo and Prince Egwuonwu Onuoha Community leader Okwoko Nkporo were some of the leaders who prayed God to strengthen Nana and Each One Aid One Foundation for “caring more than the next person”. Others present are Ezeogo MBA Nkuma, Ezeogo Ukwa Nkporo; Ezeogo Uche Arunsi Ndukwe Ezeogo Okwoko Nkporo; Ezeogo Ojukwu Kalu Imo, Ezeogo Agbaja Nkporo and Representatives of the women and youth groups.

Every time this happens, I wonder what my tax money is being used for.

sdfggege:
Archer-Daniels-Midland, Bunge, Cargill, and Dreyfus

the “ABCD” giants control the bulk of the world’s commercial grain trade

They have pricing power over grain.

Food inflation in East African countries where tens of millions of people are caught in an alarming hunger crisis has increased sharply, reaching a staggering 44 per cent in Ethiopia -- nearly five times the global average.

It is estimated that one person is dying every 48 seconds in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia alone, where the worst drought in decades is being exacerbated by the war in Ukraine and is pushing food prices to skyrocketing levels.

Against this backdrop, food billionaires have increased their collective wealth by $382 billion (£321bn) since 2020. Less than two weeks' worth of their wealth gains would be more than enough to fund the entirety of the $6.2 billion (£5.2bn) UN appeal for East Africa, which is currently woefully funded at a mere 16 per cent.

Hanna Saarinen, Oxfam's Food Policy Lead, said: "A monstrous amount of wealth is being captured at the top of our global food supply chains, meanwhile rising food prices contribute to a growing catastrophe which is leaving millions of people unable to feed themselves and their families. World leaders are sleepwalking into a humanitarian disaster.

"We need to reimagine a new global food system to really end hunger; one that works for everyone. Governments can and must mobilize enough resources to prevent human suffering. One good option would be to tax the mega-rich who have seen their wealth soar to record levels during the past two years.

"This fundamentally broken global food system -- one that is exploitative, extractive, poorly regulated and largely in the hands of big agribusinesses -- is becoming unsustainable for people and the planet and is pushing millions in East Africa and worldwide to starvation."

People in East Africa spend as much as 60 per cent of their income on food, and the region over-relies on imported staple food. For example, food and beverages account for 54 per cent of CPI in Ethiopia, compared to just 11.6 per cent in the United Kingdom. While many people in affluent countries are struggling with the increased consumer prices, their counterparts in East African countries are facing hunger and destitution.

In Somalia, maize prices were six times higher (78 per cent) than global prices (12.9 per cent) in May 2022 than they were 12 months before. In some regions, the minimum food basket expenditure has soared to over 160 per cent compared to last year. The cost of one kilo of sorghum -- a staple food -- was more than 240 per cent higher than the five-year average.

In Ethiopia, food inflation soared by 43.9 per cent since last year. Cereals prices increased by 70 per cent in the year to May, more than double the global increase

In Kenya, the price of maize flour, the main staple, has doubled in seven months and rose by 50 per cent in just a month (between June and July 2022). Rising food and energy prices will increase poverty by 2.5 percent, pushing about 1.4 million Kenyans into extreme poverty.

In South Sudan cereals prices in May were triple their levels a year earlier, while the price of bread has doubled since last year. The average price of cereals has been higher than 30 per cent of the five-year average.

In Bundunbuto village, Puntland, Somalia, families' purchasing power has been halved compared with two months ago, meaning when they used to buy 25kg of rice and sugar, now they can only buy 12.5kg per month.

In Somalia, where a "risk of famine" was recently declared, nearly half the population -- over seven million people -- face acute hunger, of whom 213,000 are at risk of famine.

Shamis Jama Elmi (38), a mother to a family of eight, moved from Barate to Docoloha displacement camp in 2017 because of the drought. The $60 cash assistance she gets each month from Oxfam can only buy 12kg of flour, rice and sugar to sustain her family for half a month. "We eat one meal a day and used to eat 3 times a day. We only eat rice with salt."

Global food prices have hit a 50-year high and worldwide there are now 828 million people going hungry -- 150 million more than at the start of the COVID pandemic. The Ukraine conflict has caused a huge spike in grain and energy prices but these have only worsened what was already an inflationary trend. This means, even when food is available, millions cannot afford to buy it.

Even within advanced economies like the US, the poorest 20 per cent of the population are forced to spend four times more on food than the wealthiest 20 per cent.

"Our broken global food system, and the inequality that underlies it, have wrought a war of attrition to millions of poor people who have lost their last purchasing power and can no longer afford to eat," Saarinen said.

"To help those countries cope with rising food prices and the hunger crisis, rich nations must immediately cancel debt for those countries -- which has doubled over the last decade- in order to enable them to free resources to deal with the skyrocketing hunger and to import needed grains. This money can and should be easily recovered by taxing the ultra-rich."

To end the root causes of hunger, governments must better regulate food markets and ensure more flexible international trade rules in favor of the world's most vulnerable consumers, workers and farmers. Governments and donors should support small-scale farmers who in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa provide more than 70 per cent of the food supply.

Whatever Israel does, the US will support it.

What should ordinary people do

There are always so many people suffering in this world.

Hibo, aged 10, carries water in a jerrycan to her temporary house at Kaharey IDP camp in Dollow, Somalia. “We left our home in Guriel and walked for 10 days to reach Kaharey camp," she says. Four failed rains back-to-back have left more than 1.8 million children suffering life-threatening severe acute malnutrition. [Fazel/UNICEF]

What are the steps?

Waiting for a lasting solution to the issue...

When the price of food becomes too high to pay for, they value food.

Presidential candidate of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the 2023 elections, Atiku Abubakar, said yesterday he was open to meeting with Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike.

He stated in Osogbo, Osun State, while fielding questions from journalists.

Asked if the party was divided into factions, Abubakar said: “It is a social media drama. There is nothing like a Wike camp or Atiku camp. There is one PDP family.”

Atiku was also asked if there was a plan to meet with Wike for reconciliation, he responded, saying “why not? I am open to that.”

While noting that the party would surmount its present challenges, the former vice-president said:. “Some people get angry when things don’t go their way and so on and so forth. We will overcome that. I have every belief that we are going to do that.

The opposition party had been embroiled in rancour since Abubakar named Ifeanyi Okowa, governor of Delta State, as his running mate for the 2023 presidential election.

Some party stakeholders, including Samuel Ortom, governor of Benue State, had expressed concerns over Atiku’s decision to overlook Wike, who was recommended for the position by the party’s national working committee (NWC).

Wike placed second in the party’s presidential primary election which took place in May.

A few days ago, Abubakar had said actions are being taken to address the grievances of party members.

“We are taking action to address the feelings of all party members,” the former vice-president had said.

“The unity in our community is my priority. Our resolve to unify Nigeria starts in our party and moves to the community, then on to society.”

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) declared yesterday that high inflation across Nigeria, which impacts food prices, negatively affect household consumption, with no fewer than14.5 million people in urgent need of food and livelihood support between March and May 2022.

WFP is the world’s largest humanitarian organisation saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change. In a new report released yesterday, the UN agency revealed that among north-eastern households surveyed by WFP’s Essential Needs Assessment, 55 per cent reported not having enough food.

It said: “The Government’s Humanitarian Situation Monitoring Task Force reports that among households newly arrived from areas inaccessible to humanitarian actors, 77 per cent experienced crisis or emergency-level food deprivation and hunger. High inflation across Nigeria, especially impacting food prices, has negatively affected household consumption, with 14.5 million people needing urgent food and livelihood support from March to May 2022…”

The report noted that Nigeria has experienced one of West Africa’s most severe currency devaluation in recent years, adding that Bureau De Change (BDC) naira exchange rate against the United States dollars have nearly halved since 2018.

Amid these economic challenges and worsening food security, WFP said it has continued to provide life-saving food, nutrition and livelihood support interventions to vulnerable people of the North-East states of Borno, Adamawa and Yobe, while continuing pilot support to Katsina and Zamfara in the North-West.

According to the UN agency, conflict had affected industry, infrastructure and displaced over 2.2 million people in the north-east and more recently, intra-communal clashes. It stressed that crime had triggered the displacement of nearly one million people across the north-west and north-central zones, worsening food security and causing grave protection challenges to women and children.

WFP said it reached 679,117 people in May, 89 per cent of plan and 50,602 more than April. It listed areas of assistance to include 5,232 new arrivals fleeing areas of Borno State that are hard-to-reach for humanitarian actors. WFP plans to continue scaling up assistance leading into the forthcoming July-August lean season. WFP allocated USD 4.27 million in electronic vouchers to 350,904 individuals via WFP-vetted vendors.

In locations where criteria for cash transfers could not be met, WFP distributed 6,024 mt of domestically sourced produce, vegetable oil and salt, 910 mt more than April, an increase of 18 per cent,” it added

According to the agency, its nutrition support for pregnant and lactating women and children aged 6-59 months experiencing or at risk of malnutrition reached 133,917 children, caretakers and women with 691 netric tonnes of specialised nutritious food.

“WFP began the gradual resumption of seasonal livelihoods support in May, with plans to reach 14,304 people with asset creation and livelihoods activities by end June,” the report said.

The WFP is the food-assistance branch of the United Nations. It is the world’s largest humanitarian organisation focused on hunger and food security, and the largest provider of school meals.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQAYVCjA11c

Don't those who waste food have a bad conscience? So many people in our country don't have enough to eat, even on the brink of starvation, but some people throw food in the garbage. The unfairness makes my heart ache.