Day: June 20, 2024

Helpline Social Support Initiative, an NGO, in partnership with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Embassy in Nigeria, shared meat during the Eid el-Kabir to women, vulnerable groups and persons living with disabilities in the FCT.

Dr Jumai Ahmadu, Founder of the initiative, who made this known on Wednesday, thanked the UAE Embassy for its kindness and dedication to making a positive impact in the FCT.

Ahmadu said that the gesture demonstrates the embassy’s commitment to community support through the spreading of joy and compassion to those in need.

She also commended the embassy for identifying with the initiative, saying ‘ this is the third year it is supporting the needy in Abuja and its environs with this gesture.’

‘ Their generous contribution of fresh meat donations benefited our women and individuals living with disabilities, spreading joy and compassion to those in need.

‘ This marks the third consecutive year of their support, which has made a significant difference in the lives of our beneficiaries
, including the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

‘ We are grateful for their kindness and dedication to making a positive impact in our community.

‘ Thank you to the UAE Embassy for your unwavering support and to our team for their tireless efforts in serving our community.’

She noted that Eid el Kabir was an opportunity and occasion to put smiles on the faces of the less privileged, especially women.

Ahmadu, therefore, called on other relevant organisations at all levels to go beyond ‘funfairs that characterised every festivities and use such occasions to assist the vulnerable in the society.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Addis Ababa: The Government of Ethiopia is working on landscape restoration through various initiatives to combat deforestation, degradation and climate change, Ethiopian Forestry Development Director-General Kebede Yimam said today.

The nation has also developed policies, strategies and plans to protect foresters, he stated, recalling the Green Legacy Initiative as one of government efforts to combat environmental degradation, deforestation, and climate change.

Therefore, the director-general stressed that it’s important to work in collaboration with various stakeholders for effective land management and restoration in a research based and holistic manner.

Kebede made the remark at a workshop on disseminating research findings and policy implications of landscape approach and climate-smart agriculture.

The primary goal of the workshop organized by International Water Management Institute (IWMI) is to promote policy actions for eco-regional and landscape development approaches and climate-smart agricultur
e and to share important research findings in order to hasten Ethiopia’s transformation to a sustainable food system.

IWMI Principal Researcher, Amare Haile Selassie said the purpose of today’s workshop is dissemination of research findings on landscape and climate-smart agriculture for over one decade in Bale Zone and in Central Rift Valley area.

‘We have been collecting data, we have been analyzing those data and interpreting them in a way that gives lessons for development partners working on implementation of development activities, and to enable adaptive learning in this whole process of natural resource landscape and climate-smart agriculture implementation activities,’ he stated.

As a result, the workshop highlighted the pivotal role in promoting climate-smart agriculture, sustainable landscape management, and nature-based solutions for equitable sustainable development in Ethiopia.

The principal researcher further pointed out that IWMI is working with various development partners in implementing o
ne of its major interventions — the solar pump for irrigation initiative, that has been under implementation since 2016.

According to him, the solar pump irrigation system has been benefiting many small-holder farmers in different parts of the country.

‘There are so many activities that we are implementing with NGOs, as part of Bounty of the Basket (Ye Lemat Tirufat), Green Legacy as well as in climate smart agriculture. If you take the wheat irrigation, this is the government direction, we are complementing this very clearly.’

Farm Africa Ethiopia Country Office Director, Shewit Emmanuel said on her part that the organization has been working in different regions of Ethiopia to increase the production and productivity of farmers and pastoralists.

In doing so, ‘we have reduced deforestation by more than 59 percent just in Bale Zone and other regions. Now the community has a high awareness on what kind of forest friendly kind of livelihood they can implement and take ownership of the protection.’

Thus,
‘this workshop is about documenting what we have to document so that we can scale out.’

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

Some residents of Nsukka, in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu State have lamented the high cost of eggs, making it beyond their reach.

The residents expressed their views in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Nsukka while reacting to the present market price of a crate of egg that goes for N5,000.

Mrs Stella Nduka, a housewife said for some time now her children have not been able to eat egg because of its high cost.

‘The present situation where one egg sells for N200 and a crate of egg sells at N5,000 is worrisome.

‘Before, I usually used egg to cook noodles for my children but now I can’t afford it because of its high cost.

‘My customer in Ogige Market Nsukka says the fault is not from the sellers as they sell according to how they buy from the poultry farms.

‘My customer says presently he buys a crate at N4,500 from the poultry farms and sells a crate at N5,000,’she said.

Mr Jude Ugwuoke, who has a fast food joint at Aku Road, Nsukka decried the high cost o
f egg, which he said had adversely affected his business.

‘Before, I used to prepare one packet of noodles with two eggs for my customers at N1,200 but because of the high cost of eggs it is now N1,500.

‘I am losing many customers because my customers are complaining that the N1,500 is too much as only few now patronise me.

‘Government should intervene before my business closes, by January this year, the cost of an egg crate was between N2000 and N2,200, ‘ he said.

Mrs Juliet Onah, who sells eggs together with other food items in Ogige market Nsukka food section, said the sellers should not be blamed on the present hike on egg price as they sell according to how they bought the commodity .

‘I buy eggs from poultry farms, I bought these eggs on Tuesday this week and I bought a crate at the price of N4,500 and resold at N5,000.

‘You can see my gain is only N500 in spite of the transport I paid to go buy the eggs.

‘In January this year, we sold an egg crate at N2,000 while the retailers sold one egg at N1
00. I don’t understand the type of inflation in this country,’ she said.

Mr Ernest Ugwu a poultry farmer attributed the high price of eggs to the high prices of chicken feeds.

Ugwu said that the only thing that would bring down the price of eggs was for the government to subsidise the ingredients used in producing feed.

‘If a poultry farmer buys feed at a high price to grow the chickens that lay the eggs, he/she will sell the eggs to cover the production cost as well as make a little gain that will enable him/her to remain in business.

‘No businessman or woman in the world will like to record losses rather than to make profit so as to remain in business, ‘ Ugwu said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Institute for Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) and an NGO, Building Blocks for Peace Foundation (BBFORPEACE), have decried the surge of hate speech in Nigeria.

The two organisations, at a two-day Training the Trainers on Combating Hate Speech Online and Offline, called on youths to synergise and galvanise efforts to address the menace.

The event, jointly organised by the two organisations in Abuja, brought together no fewer than 20 young participants from across the six Area Councils of the Federal Capital Territory.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the training with the theme ‘Together for Peace: Combatting Hate Speech Online and Offline Was supported by the Nigeria Youth Futures Fund (NYFF) coordinated by LEAP Africa.

Speaking at the event, Dr Joseph Ochogwu, Director General of IPCR stressed the need for youths empowerment and positive deployment of technology to shape the narrative of hate speech in Nigeria.

He said such would address bigotry, disunity and create the culture of p
eace and foster unity in the country.

Ochogwu said that the training could not have come at a better time as Nigeria continued to battle misinformation and hate speech impacting negatively on peace, security and stability of the nation.

Mr Rafiu Lawal, Executive Director of BBFORPEACE, in a welcome address highlighted the importance of steming the tide of hate speech in Nigeria.

‘Hate speech, harmful narratives including rumour, disinformation, fake news and ethnic phobia have had significant and far-reaching effects on many societies and Nigeria is no exception.

‘The proliferation of hate speech and harmful narratives now poses a critical threat to Nigeria’s social fabric, intergroup relationships, and overall unity, peace, stability and development of the nation.

‘Our four peacebuilding institutions are actively working in partnership towards mitigating the dreaded phenomenon of hate speech and information disorder across all spectrums of our society.

‘This is to foster sustainable peace, stability a
nd socio-economic development,’ he said.

While charging all stakeholders to work together to address the hate speech menace, Lawal disclosed that participants at the training would be supported technically and financially to implement small scale initiatives in all the Area Councils in Abuja.

Mr Kamaldeen Afolabi of the Nigeria Youth Futures Fund (NYFF) Grants and MERL Specialist, underscored the need to continue to build youth capacity.

He noted that, doing so, would provide opportunities for youths in order to facilitate good governance for peacebuilding.

NAN reports that the training engaged young people on various topics, including, management and peace building, social media as a tool for advocacy, dialogue, and political participation.

Other topics are: Nigeria’s Cybercrime Act 2024, Transforming Narratives through Storytelling among others.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Move Against Cancer Africa (MACA), a volunteer-based NGO has called for increased awareness to ensure early detection and treatment of kidney cancer.

MACA champions campaigns and education on cancer-related issues across Africa,

Mr Caleb Egwuenu, Project Officer of MACA, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja, as Nigeria joins the rest of the world to mark the 2024 Work Kidney Cancer Day (WKCD).

NAN reports that every year, the World Kidney Cancer Day is observed in June to raise awareness about the disease, its causes, symptoms, and available treatments, and this year’s WKCD is June 20.

According to Egwuenu, adequate awareness on cancer-related issues, including risks, treatment, survivorship, palliative care, and prevention, was important in combating the scourge.

‘To mark this year’s World Kidney Cancer Day, the International Kidney Cancer Coalition (IKCC) and its affiliates, including Move Against Cancer Africa, have chosen a theme: ‘We need to listen
.’

‘It is an important reminder to listen to our body and educate ourselves about kidney cancer, its symptoms, the steps we can take to reduce our risk and support those affected by the disease.’

‘Note that there are no obvious symptoms of kidney cancer, but when there are symptoms, they can include blood in the urine, a lump or swelling in your back, under your ribs, or in your neck.

‘Other possible symptoms include pain between your ribs and waist that does not go away, loss of appetite or loss of weight, consistent tiredness or no energy, persistent fever or excessive sweating , including at night.

‘This is why routine checkups are very crucial, and healthcare professionals are advised to listen to their patients.

‘Patients should have the right to be heard, and If you feel you are not being listened to, seek a second opinion for symptoms that do not improve’.

‘Patients with kidney cancer, are advised to listen to healthcare professionals who provide them with advice and support, and have open conve
rsations to ensure access to enough information for informed health decisions,’ he said.

According to Egwuenu, open communication between a patient and a healthcare provider is needed in handling cancer-related issues to ensure shared Decision-Making (SDM).

He added that early detection of kidney cancer significantly improves treatment outcomes and, therefore, called for regular health check-ups and screenings, especially for individuals with a family history of kidney cancer or other risk factors.

He noted that adopting a healthy lifestyle, such as maintaining a healthy weight, quitting smoking, managing high blood pressure, and avoiding exposure to harmful chemicals, can reduce the risk of kidney cancer.

‘By raising awareness and promoting early detection and treatment, we can strive towards better outcomes for individuals battling kidney cancer,’ he said.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA) has called for the establishment of an electricity offences tribunal for faster dispensation of electricity related offences.

The Managing Director of NEMSA, Mr Aliyu Tahir, who made the call in Abuja on Thursday at a news conference, said that the tribunal should have an in-built appeal system.

Tahir said that NEMSA in house-counsel should be vested with powers to prosecute electricity offences.

‘The establishment of this tribunal will assist NEMSA to enforce its mandate of ensuring that electrical materials, equipment and instruments used in the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) are of standard and specifications.

‘The sanctioning of violators is a long process as it involves several steps .To fast- track the prosecution, this tribunal will go a long in ensuring that violators are effectively prosecuted

‘The establishment of this tribunal is not under NEMSA Purveyor and we have made a submission to the legislature on this,’ he said.

According to him, as at March 31, NEMSA had inspected and tested 21, 681 electricity installations projects out of which 13, 154 were certified.

He said that 16,624 electricity networks were monitored, adding that about 4,921 factories, hazardous installations and public places were inspected, tested and certified fit.

Tahir said that 2,655,488 electricity meters were also tested and calibrated and 487 incidences were investigated.

The managing director said that NEMSA was taking several measures to enhance its enforcement activities.

He listed the measures to include the development of the Nigerian electrical and construction guidelines manuals, provision of the state-of-the art equipment for meter test statistics, expansion of NEMSA facilities across the nation.

Others, he said were the completion and inauguration of a new National Meter Test Station (NMTS) and the opening of a new Inspectorate Field Office (IFO) in Enugu.

‘Construction of a new NMTS in Kano and Benin city, establishment of new inspec
torate field office in Uyo, Akwa Ibom, Minna, Niger, Dutse, Jigawa,Oshodi Lagos, Owerri, Imo and Bauchi.

‘NEMSA had issued an enforcement notice to Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos), to disconnect from their networks all structures within the Right-of-Way(ROW) of transmission and distribution lines nationwide,’ he said.

Tahir assured Nigerians of the agency’s determination to continue its statutory function of technical inspection, testing and certification of electrical materials in the NESI.

He, however, solicited the support of the media for effective coverage of NEMSA activities.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria