Greek company Orange Wave is set to establish an agricultural, commercial, industrial logistic area in New Valley with investments of $200 million during the first stage, according to chairman of the Internal Trade Development Authority Ibrahim Ashmawy. The new logistic area will be built on 10,000 feddans, with initial investments at $US50 million
The Government has set aside Sh. 2 billion for e-voucher system to enable farmers buy subsidized fertilizer. The Agriculture Cabinet Secretary confirmed that following the approval by Cabinet last week on e-voucher access of fertilizer, farmers will now be able to access subsidized fertilizer during the upcoming long rains. Farmers of maize, coffee, rice and potato will be able to access fertilizer in the nearest agro vet shops.
The Ghana Rubber Estates Limited (GREL) has opened a second rubber processing factory at Tsibu near Abura in the Ahanta West Municipality of the Western Region. The 25-million Euro project constructed within a year, has the capacity to add value to about 75% of raw rubber produced by GREL for shipment to various clients within the supply chain globally.
According to the GDP figures for the fourth quarter of 2019, recently released by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), agriculture, forestry and fisheries contracted 7,6% quarter-on-quarter, double digit production declines in the grain and horticulture industries was the main cause of decline in output by the farming sector.
The project will include the provision of farming equipment, a 50-megawatt solar farm and irrigation dam. It will cover 60,000 tonnes ($55 million) worth of fertilizer for wheat and soy farming as well as $26 million for projects such as the expansion of grain storage silos.
The Saudi cabinet has approved a cloud-seeding program that aims to increase rainfall in the Kingdom by almost 20%, the program was developed after a review of global practices and visits to other countries in the region to study their experiences of cloud seeding.
Malaysia is targeting North Africa and Middle East as the new export markets for its palm oil to reduce reliance on existing markets such as India, China and the European Union. This comes in light of the government dropping its plans to file a World Trade Organization complaint against the EU restrictions on palm oil.
The Israeli Ministry of Agriculture announced a solution Monday to the ongoing butter crisis afflicting the country, forcing business owners that import butter from abroad to sell their products at controlled prices, the crisis was caused when Israel's largest agricultural cooperative, Tara, decided to cease production of butter.
According to the results of 2019, Ukraine became the second largest supplier of agro-food products to Turkey and occupied 11% in terms of the structure of Turkish imported agricultural products ceding only to Russia. At present, negotiations are being conducted in order to sign Free Trade Area between Ukraine and Turkey, which could have a positive impact on the trade of agro-food products between these countries.
Egypt has topped the list of countries that export oranges for the second year in a row, with exports totaling 1.7 million tons in 2019, accounting for 38 percent of the global exports of oranges in 2019, according to ASWAQ Financial company. Aswaq explained that farmers had boosted efforts to plant orange trees to meet global demand for the citrus fruit, taking advantage of the climate in Egypt, which is conducive to growing orange trees.
The European Union on Thursday contributed 11 million euros ($12.1 million) to aid the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in efforts to contain the upsurge, which has expanded from East Africa into the Persian Gulf. The outbreak is the worst seen in Ethiopia and Somalia for 25 years and the worst infestation in Kenya for over 70 years. Djibouti and Eritrea have also been affected with swarms reported in South Sudan, Uganda and Tanzania.
Ethio Lease, is set to help Ethiopia improve its agricultural productivity by leasing affordable agricultural equipment to farmers, it signed an MoU with the Ministry of Agriculture and the Agricultural Transformation Agency to lease agriculture equipment to ATA sponsored farmers’ mechanization Centres.
The Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending and Nigerian Meterological Agency, have entered a strategic partnership that would aid use of meteorological data to boost agricultural output. Under this partnership, NIRSAL will pursue strategies to downscale the Seasonal Rainfall Prediction (SRP) components like temperature, onset of rainfall and dry spells, cessation of rainfall to farmers.
INFOMINEO RESOURCES
A highlight of some of our resources to expand your knowledge on Africa and the Middle East.
As a continent rich with natural resources, Africa has a long and complex history with the cultivation and exploitation of cash-crops as a source of income. Many African countries rely heavily on cash-crops to boost their exports and generate foreign currency. It is estimated that cash-crops constitute over 50% of Africa’s total agricultural exports.
Land reforms have been a thorny issue in Africa since the independence periods. Many countries, including South Africa and Nigeria, are still trying to navigate the complex matter of land rights, land reorganization, and the proper way to distribute agricultural land based on historic and socio-economic considerations.
INFOMINEO
Infomineo is a data and research service provider, that specializes in Africa and the Middle East, dedicated to supporting global companies in getting access to information that powers their investment decisions in the region. Through a direct presence in key markets such as the UAE, South Africa, Kenya, Egypt and Morocco, Infomineo provides a quick access to market data on key questions such as: market and product prioritization, partner identification, commercial due diligence, route to market, supply chain mapping and competitive analysis among others. Along with conductingCustom Research for clients, Infomineo also delivers an Expert Network service and a Business Translation service.
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