Media/Information > IFDC in the News > May 2011

IFDC in the News

Though Headquartered There, IFDC Not a Part of TVA

May 30, 2011, MUSCLE SHOALS, Alabama – "In April 1974, amid food shortages around the world and rising energy and farm supply prices, then Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, in a speech to the United Nations, pledged the availability of U.S. fertilizer technology and strong material support." (TimesDaily)

The Hunger Challenge: Feeding the World Isn't Easy

May 30, 2011, MUSCLE SHOALS, Alabama – "With the world population expected to increase by almost three billion people by 2050, a Muscle Shoals organization will be at the forefront of ensuring farm production increases accordingly." (TimesDaily)

New Platform to Help Farmers Get Market Data

May 30, 2011, NAIROBI, Kenya – AMITSA is a new platform that will provide farmers with up-to-date data of agricultural inputs. (The East African)

Nations Conquer Hunger Through IFDC's World-Changing Work

May 29, 2011, MUSCLE SHOALS, Alabama – “Improved technologies have enabled me to triple my harvest for potatoes, maize and wheat,” said Joseph Gafaranga, who is a Rwandan farmer and executive secretary of Imbaraga-North, an organization of farmers in Africa. (TimesDaily)

Kirchner Private Capital Group Announces Formation of Kirchner Food Security Group

May 26, 2011, BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – The Kirchner Private Capital Group has formed the Kirchner Food Security Group to pursue opportunities related to the challenges of producing sufficient food to feed the world’s expanding population.

Africa’s Food Security Hinges on Access to Technology

May, 26, 2011, NAIROBI, Kenya – "Even a modest increase in the transfer of technology and information through the agriculture value chain would increase crop production in Africa tenfold, according to experts who took part in the FCI Trade Summit in May 15-18 in Nairobi, Kenya." (Farm Chemical International)

Des Guerriers Pour La Revolution Verte Au Faso

May 25, 2011, OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso – Launched in May 2011, the primary goal of the PRODIB project is to increase agricultural productivity and to boost the incomes of approximately 375,000 smallholder farmers in Burkina Faso. (L’Observateur)

Getting Fertilizer into Farmers’ Hands

Farmers’ access to mineral fertilizer in Nigeria is limited. In fact, fertilizers are much more difficult to purchase than a bottle of Coca-Cola, which is available in most rural villages. (Grain de Sel)

USAID Administrator Talks About "The True Yields of Food Security"

May 24, 2011, WASHINGTON – In a keynote speech today at The Chicago Council on Global Affairs Symposium, Rajiv Shah, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, discussed progress made through the U.S. government's global hunger and food security initiative – Feed the Future.

In Free Market, Seeds of Africa's Food Solution

May 22, 2011, CATANDICA, Mozambique – Mozambican farmers using improved seeds are seeing increased crop yields. Funded by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa, an IFDC project in Mozambique is strengthening agro-dealer networks to make improved seed and other inputs available to rural farmers. (Associated Press)

IFDC Launches Ag Input Reporting Network

May 17, 2011, NAIROBI, Kenya – IFDC launched its Internet-based price-reporting tool (www.amitsa.org) for eastern and southern Africa at the FCI Trade Summit in Nairobi. (Farm Chemicals International)

Only Licensed Dealers to Sell Agro-Chemicals, Says EPA in Ghana

May 17, 2011, HO, Ghana – Only licensed agro-dealers will be allowed to sell agro-chemicals in Ghana, according to the country's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). (Ghana News Agency)

Rivers to Create Employment for Youths in Agriculture

May 16, 2011, PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria – The Rivers State government will create agricultural employment opportunities for youths in the state, according to Governor Chibuike Amaechi. (The Nigerian Observer)

Guti Urea Helps Mymensingh Farmers Grow 50,000 Tons More Rice

May 12, 2011, TRISHAL, Bangladesh – Farmers in the Mymensingh district of Bangladesh have used Guti urea on over 50,000 hectares of land, resulting in 50,000 tons more rice. (The Financial Express)

USAID and the Netherlands Boost S. Sudan’s Private Sector

May 6, 2011, JUBA, South Sudan – A consortium of development partners, including the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the Kingdom of the Netherlands, IFDC and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), signed a communiqué to promote food security and the development of the agricultural private sector in the new nation of South Sudan.

Seed Assistance Voucher Program Launched to Stimulate Kyrgyz Agricultural Sector

May 5, 2011, BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan – About 30,000 farmers in Kyrgyzstan have received quality seed through the Seed Assistance Voucher Program.