President Donald J. Trump has named Mississippi State University President Mark E. Keenum as chairman of the Board for International Food and Agriculture Development.

The university said the White House announced the appointment this week. The board was created in 1975. Board members are primarily from universities and provide advice on U.S. international assistance efforts in areas such as global food security and world hunger.

Keenum is an agricultural economist who previously served as undersecretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture under President George W. Bush.

IsDB Launches Report On Agriculture, Rural Development

The Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has launched a major report on transforming agriculture and rural development in its member countries.

The annual report was launched on Monday by the President of the IsDB Dr Bandar Hajjar at the 43rd annual meeting of the bank holding in Tunis, Tunisia. Dr Mansur Muhtar, the Vice President (Operations) of the IsDB, was also at the launch.

The report highlighted how the IsDB is working with member countries to change lives and build capacity of farmers, especially those in rural areas.

“Agriculture is very important especially if we have a value-chain approach. Our role as a development bank is to find new ways of helping farmers. We believe awareness is important in improving agriculture in our member countries,” Dr Hajjar said.

According to the IsDB President, the role of the private sector in meeting the financing needs of 57 member countries is crucial. “We have to think about innovative ideas that will attract the interest of the private sector,” he said.

Also speaking at the launch of the report, Tunisian International Development Minister disclosed that the IsDB has financed projects worth US $3.2 bn in his country across several sectors such as power, agriculture, youth employment.

The IsDB meeting, which holds from April 1-5, 2018, attracted stakeholders from its 57 member countries.

Bayelsa Farmers Trained On Plantain Cultivation

Plantain Cultivation: The senator representing Bayelsa West, Chief Foster Ogola, has trained over 500 rural farmers in the state on the cultivation of plantain.

Flagging off the two-day training in Sagbama Local Government Area, Ogola urged the farmers to start plantain cultivation in rural areas.

The senator, who was represented by his legal adviser, Mr. Afini Egbegi, said the objective of the workshop was to teach the rural farmers improved, new skills and agricultural best practices in plantain and fish farming where the people have comparative advantage.

He stressed that it was better to teach the people how to fish than to give them fish.

He said the training was part of his empowerment initiatives for his constituents, and advised the people to tap into the opportunities that abound in commercial agriculture.

According to him, “Time of doling out gifts and cash to young men and women is gone, now those expectations have been dampened by the realities of today.

This programme is expected to educate our rural farmers and give them opportunities to horn new skills that are obtainable in plantain and fish farming to better their lives.”

Addressing participants at the training, the executive director of the Nigeria Stored Products Research Institute (NSPRI), Professor Olufemi Peters, commended Senator Ogola for his foresight and initiative in sponsoring the workshop.

He pointed out that the training was expected to examine ways to minimise food losses and explore alternative uses of food through value addition, thereby contributing to food security and increased livelihood of rural people.

Peters urged rural farmers in the state to embrace agricultural best practices to improve their yields and income, stating that agriculture was a serious business.