Nicaragua on Monday, October 23, 2017 deposited its instruments of accession to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, becoming the 169th Party to the global treaty.
Daniel Ortega, President of Nicaragua
Nicaragua’s accession to the Agreement has been lodged formally with the UN headquarters in New York and will be effective as of November 22, 2017.
Executive Secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate (UNFCCC), Patricia Espinosa, in Bonn on Tuesday, October 24 welcomed Nicaragua’s accession to the Paris Climate Change Agreement.
“I very much welcome Nicaragua’s accession to the Paris Agreement,” she said in a statement. “All Parties to this historic agreement are important and all of them are necessary to fight climate change.”
This year’s German-based Global Climate Risk Index said Nicaragua is the fourth most-vulnerable country to climate change in the world yet has one of the lowest per capita greenhouse gas emissions.
“We must get on track as fast as possible to meet the Agreement’s goal of limiting the global average temperature rise to well below 2C degrees and as close as possible to 1.5C. It is most important now to ensure governments, business and multilateral organisations, including the UN, coordinate their response closely to work further, faster and together for more ambitious climate action,” said Ms Espinosa.
In a landmark ruling on Tuesday, October 24, 2017, the Indian Supreme Court bench comprising of Justice Madan B Lokur and Justice Deepak Gupta banned the use of dirty furnace oil and pet-coke in Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh from November 1, 2017. These fuels are already banned in Delhi.
The Supreme Court of India
In a swift reaction, the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) has lauded the directive as “a big win for Delhi-NCR as well as the rest of the country fighting a tough battle against toxic pollution”.
The bench has also directed the Ministry of Environment and Forests & Climate Change (MoEF&CC) to notify the standards for nitrogen oxide (NOx) and sulphur oxides (SOx) for industrial sectors; the standards have to be complied with by December 31, 2017. In addition, the MoEFCC has also been directed to pay a fine of Rs 2 lakh to the Supreme Court.
This order has come in response to the findings and recommendations of the Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCA), which exposed widespread use of these fuels in industrial sectors of the NCR and found extremely high levels of toxic sulphur in these fuels.
Anumita Roychowdhury, CSE’s executive director-research and advocacy, elaborated: “EPCA investigations have exposed extremely high sulphur levels in these fuels, ranging from more than 20,000 parts per million (ppm) to 74,000 ppm in contrast to only 50 ppm sulphur in BS-IV transport fuels introduced nation-wide this year.”
Furnace oil and pet-coke are said to be the dirtiest by-products and residual fraction from the refinery process. Use of these fuels was banned in Delhi way back in 1996.
What has the court’s order done:
Eliminates the use of dirtiest industrial fuels in Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh and mandates first ever stringent NOx and SOx standards for industry nation-wide: This momentous order eliminates in one stroke the use of dirtiest bottom-of-the-barrel fuels from the industrial units of the neighbouring states of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan, and makes all industrial units across the country liable for compliance with the new emissions standards by December 31, 2017.
Enormous pollution reduction potential from the industrial sector: Use of such dirty fuels contribute hugely to toxic gases like sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide in the air. Moreover, these gases, once out in the air form secondary particulates and add to the particulate load. A large number of industrial units operating in Ghaziabad, Faridabad, Bhiwadi, Noida and Greater Noida, Hapur, Bulandshahar, Alwar, Jhajjar, Gurugram, Rohtak, Mewat, Sonipat, Rewari, Palwal, Karnal, Meerut and Muzaffarnagar have been using these dirty fuels.
Says Roychowdhury: “This is a very important step forward as air pollution in industrial areas is very high. Till now, there were no air pollution monitors in industrial areas of NCR. But following the Supreme Court order, air quality monitors have been installed this year in Bhiwadi, Ghaziabad (Vasundhara), and Faridabad. A CSE analysis of the data shows higher pollution levels in these areas compared to other locations – with Bhiwadi indicating the highest levels.”
CSE researchers point out that the order is expected to have nation-wide impact, as industries across the country will have to comply with the new standards for SOx and NOx that are not regulated currently in India.
The intervention of the Supreme Court has been described as very opportune and timely as the recently enforced GST has created huge incentive for these dirty fuels to thrive. Both these fuels are included in GST and are in the 18 per cent tax bracket. But the industries that use these fuels for manufacture get a credit. The tax of 18 per cent is fully credited to industry. But the cleaner option, natural gas which is not included in GST pays VAT as high as 26 per cent (such as in Uttar Pradesh). This incentive is thus fanning and expanding the use of dirty fuels. Demand for pet-coke has increased to such an extent that last year India imported 14 million tonnes of pet-coke, which is more than the domestic production. If imports and domestic production are added, then India has used more pet-coke than China, when its pollution was at its peak.
Roychowdhury points out that, today, China has stopped imports of pet-coke. But India has become a dumping ground of pet-coke from the US, which has banned its internal use because of pollution.
Implementation will have to be the priority now
There has been a lot of delay already in the framing and implementation of the standards and the ban. All concerned agencies will now have to focus on implementation of the order. In fact, the EPCA had filed its first report on the matter in April 2017 asking for expansion of the ban on use of furnace oil and pet-coke which was already in force in Delhi, to the rest of NCR. In the due process of hearing the MoEF&CC made a plea saying instead of ban, industries should be allowed to adhere to emission standards.
Harish Salve, Amicus Curiae in the matter, brought to the notice of the Supreme Court that there are no emission standards for SOx and NOx for industries. In response, the Court on May 2, 2017 directed that the standards be issued by the MoEF&CC by June 2017. In July 2017, the ministry asked for more time, which was granted. But industries were put on notice that they would need to comply with standards by December 31, 2017.
Today, the MoEF&CC submitted to the Supreme Court the draft emission standards for SOx and NOx, issued on October 23, 2017. The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) submitted an affidavit saying that it had sent the proposed standards to the ministry on June 27, 2017. For two industrial sectors – Nitric Acid and Fertilisers – the standards had been sent way back in 2014. Clearly, the process of standard-setting was caught in a time warp. The Judges of the apex court were not amused by this inexplicable delay.
Said Sunita Narain, director general of CSE and a member of the EPCA: “India has continued the use of these extremely polluting fuels without any regulation for too long. Any further delay in standards and implementation of the court order will make the air pollution and health risk worse. Implementation of the directive from the Supreme Court today has to be the top agenda for pollution control and we must take action urgently.”
The 7th Regional Conference on Human Rights and Agribusiness in South East Asia on Tuesday, October 24, 2017 issued a resolution calling for a range of measures aimed at securing real change in land tenure recognition and security.
Delegates at the conference
The resolution calls for accessible mechanisms to map and register customary lands, to provide clarity of ownership. The resolution also called for a rethinking of the underlying business model of plantations to stop pressures on communities to surrender their lands, both by promoting alternative production models and alternative financing models.
The conference, which is the seventh in a series of annual conferences organised by Forest Peoples Programme in collaboration with the South East Asia National Human Rights Institutions Forum, aimed to examine progress made since the first conference in 2011 hosted in Bali where the declaration called for urgent steps to reform or reinforce national laws and policies relating to land tenure, agrarian reform, land use planning and land acquisition so that they comply fully with human rights obligations as defined under international law.
Participants also discussed methods of legal reform in order to establish binding obligations on human rights for companies as well as worker’s rights in South East Asia, and noted called on regional governments to set up monitoring and reporting systems, and citizenship provision, for the many tens of thousands of stateless children born into plantation worker settlements.
The conference also reiterated the importance of binding legal solutions to the significant challenges facing the agribusiness sector in South East Asia, not only through national legal reforms and effective enforcement of existing laws, but also potentially through the strengthening of the standards overseen by the regional human rights body – the ASEAN Inter-Governmental Commission on Human Rights.
Before the conference, some participants had the chance to visit Olak-Olak village in the district of Kubu Raya, West Kalimantan. The fact-finding trip was organised by Link-AR and Pusaka, with the aim of investigating the challenges faced by the Olak-Olak community and surrounding villages due to the expansion of palm oil in their area. The results of the mission were shared at the conference by community spokespeople and discussed further at the event.
Appalled by the significant intimidation, violence and high level of criminalisation faced by the community the participants of the conference, who represented many international human rights institutions and civil society organisations, signed a letter to Wilmar (a purchaser of palm oil from the area) expressing their serious concern.
Director General of National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA), Dr. Rufus Ebegba, has said that regulators of modern biotechnology need to be necessarily trained so as to ensure that Nigeria benefits maximally from the technology.
Participants at the workshop
Dr Ebegba made the observation while opening a training session for staffers of the agency organised in conjunction with M and A Global Projects entitled, “Capacity Building for Effective Biosafety Management in Nigeria” in Abuja on Monday, October 23, 2017.
He said that, due to the evolving nature of technology, the need to train and retrain members of staff who will be regulating products of the technology in the country cannot be over-emphasised.
The four-day training session, according to Dr Ebegba, is part of the federal government’s strategic effort to build the capacity of staff to ensure effective regulation of modern biotechnology in the country.
He said that the agency was not established by government to stop genetically modified organisms (GMOs) nor to promote it but to ensure it is safe to human health and the environment.
He added: “Biosafety is very crucial to our national economic strives that will bring about more agricultural yields for food sufficiency and profits for Nigerian farmers.
‘’The issue of biosafety has been on the front burner. Even the permits granted by the Agency last year have been criticised by many environmentalists. NBMA has been taken to court but we are not deterred. There is a need to equip our staff for proper regulation as we will not allow Nigeria to become a dumping ground for unsafe GMO products.’
Our key responsibility is to serve as an unbiased umpire to ensure that the practice modern biotechnology is safe for the people while it boosts the economy.
Also speaking, Director, Environmental Biosafety and General Release, Chinyere Nzeduru, said the workshop is meant to equip the staff of the Agency with relevant skills needed for the discharge of their duties.
“This Agency is a very sensitive one as issues of modern biotechnology are very technical and require people who are up to date and knowledgeable to carry out biotechnology regulations in the country. Hence the constant training of staff,” she said.
The four-day training is aimed at building the capacity of the staff in legal, scientific, technical and economic areas as it pertains to biosafety in the country.
It has become the norm for the Nigerian biosafety chief, Dr Rufus Egbeda, to rise to the defense of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). This was my response to some participants (not Nigerians) at a high profile meeting, who also saw this article published on Premium Times “Nigeria bio-safety chief defends GMOs” on October 9, 2017, and were visibly alarmed that a regulatory officer would be promoting GMOs, when he should be the umpire. In fact, one said: “This couldn’t happen in my country.”
Mariann Bassey-Orovwuje
I am taken aback with some of his statements such as, “Genetically modified organisms are not different from their conventional counterparts.” If this was true, why would GM promoters or scientists go into so much trouble of inserting activated toxin genes from the soil-living bacterium Bacillus thuringiensi (Bt) into some crops? When the NBMA boss admits that the crops are “modified,” how can these “modified” crops be the same with their natural, untainted, conventional counterpart?
Monsanto adduced the same arguments in their application to bring in their GM Maize to Nigeria. They asserted that their maize is equivalent to conventional maize. As we have said in many quarters, and we will say it again, the theory of “equivalence” is a worn out argument that has been discredited by independent science, including in a joint South Africa-Norway Biosafety project published in 2011.
Monsanto’s Maize application to NBMA was accompanied with a cocktail of chemicals – glyphosate formulations which will be applied to MON 89034 and NK603 ( Maize). Contrary to Monsanto’s claims of its safety, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), a sub-unit of the World Health Organisation (WHO), concluded that there was strong evidence of genotoxicity and oxidative stress for glyphosate entirely from publicly available research, including findings of DNA damage in the peripheral blood of exposed humans. In a nutshell, the agency said glyphosate is likely to cause cancer.
On October 19, 2017, against all odds and despite industry scaremongering and pressure, the proposal to fully ban glyphosate by 2020 went through EU Parliament Environment committee. That means the EU Parliament environment committee supports glyphosate ban by 2020.
Lets us be reminded that the BT cotton, another of Monsanto’s application that had been rejected in Burkina Faso for failure to deliver good quality yield, one of the hyped promises from Monsanto. It was that same failed variety that was recycled and submitted here in Nigeria, and was approved by NBMA possibly to mark its first year of existence. Many reports of this Bt cotton’s abysmal failure abound. In the words of Parshuram Ghagi, from Yavatmal district in India, whose relative died of pesticide poisoning, “Bt Cotton resistance claims have proven hollow.”
Dr Sharad Nimbalkar, former Vice-Chancellor of Dr Panjabrao Deshmukh Krishi Vidyapeeth, states unequivocally, “Bt Cotton variety in use has lost its potency. Besides, pests become resistant to even the pesticides over a period of time. As a result, the number of sprayings required to save the crop has increased.”
A new peer reviewed analysis “GMO Bt toxins: Safe for people and environment or super toxins?” systematically compares GMO and natural Bt proteins and shows that GMO developers, in the process of inserting Bt toxins into crops, have removed many of the elements contributing to this narrow toxicity. Thus developers have made GMO insecticides that, in the words of one Monsanto patent, are “super toxins”. The authors of these review additionally concluded that references to any GMO Bt toxins being “natural” are incorrect and scientifically unsupportable.
It is worrisome to read that the Biosafety Chief said “that cowpea and sorghum were presently being tried at the Institute of Agricultural Research in Zaria,…also another product under trial called the `newest rice’ by the National Cereal Research Institute, Badegi.” Is this for real? Aside from applications for Bt Cotton (MON 15985) and Confined Trial (1) NK603 AND (2) MON89034 X NK603 Maize, and most recently the AMY3 RNAi Transgenic Lines (transgenic Cassava Clones) by International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and ETHZ Biotechnology Lab in Zurich, that were announced by NBMA, there is no clarity on how other staples, cowpea (beans), sorghum, rice, all major Nigerian stable food, are being genetically modified and on field trials in Nigeria.
When did the trials for cowpea, rice and Sorghum begin? Which institution(s) or corporation(s)/companies, laboratories are collaborating with the said institutions doing the trials? Under what laws were these trials authorised? How come it was not subjected to public comments like the case of the cotton, maize and cassava as provided by section 25(1) National Biosafety Management Agency Act 2015 which states: “The Agency shall upon the receipt of the application and the accompanying information under section 23 of this Act, display copies of such application and relevant information at such places and for such period as the Agency may, from time to time determine to enable the general public and relevant government ministries and agencies study and make comments on the application and relevant information within 21 days. The director-general, therefore, urged citizens to view genetically modified organisms from a knowledge angle and ignore statements that paint it as harmful.”
Earnestly, is Nigeria’s chief biosafety regulatory officer saying that GMOs pose no harm or risks? GMOs are basically regulated because their safety is in doubt. If indeed GMOs are safe, why should we have a regulatory agency? Why do we need a Biosafety Management Agency? The Agency was established to provide regulatory framework, for safety measures to check the adverse effects that GMOs would have on human health, animals, plants, and the environment. If indeed GMOs were safe, NBMA should be disbanded and the staff redeployed to line agencies. Staff promoting GMOs can be sent to the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), the agency mandated to promote GMOs. That is where they would be a perfect fit.
In 2010, the American Academy of Environmental Medicine warned that evidence is strong enough that GMOs directly cause health harm to warrant warning people to avoid eating them. The academy noted that numerous studies and incidents have suggested that GMOs can cause problems including immune dysfunction, insulin disorders and damage to organs and the reproductive system.
Also, in the earlier peer review studies, “GMO Bt toxins: Safe for people and environment or super toxins?”, the authors said, “Ciba-Geigy measured its Bt 176 toxins to be 5-10 times more toxicologically active when inserted into plants. Monsanto patented a series of novel Bt toxins with up to 7.9-fold enhanced activity and called these ‘super toxins’ having ‘the combined advantages of increased insecticidal activity and concomitant broad spectrum activity’. The most powerful of these is now found in commercial MON863 corn.”
I dare to say that agroecology is the bold future for farming in Nigeria and Africa as a whole. Let us keep those toxic chemicals, pesticides and insecticides, and all those imported solutions out of our food and agricultural systems and out of our plates.
Nigeria deserves a biosafety regulatory system that is unbiased, pro environment and pro people. I am afraid that NBMA as presently set up and run is skewed in favour of GMOs. Going by the incessant statements of the Director General, the NBMA cannot be an unbiased referee, as its clear it is already flying the colours of the pro-GMO train.
By Mariann Bassey-Orovwuje (Lawyer; Chair, Alliance for the Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA); Coordinator, Food Sovereignty Programme for Friends of Earth Nigeria and Africa)
Countries across the world on Monday, October 23, 2017 celebrated the International Snow Leopard Day, an annual holiday dedicated to saving one of the rarest wild cats on the planet.
The snow leopard. Photo credit: wikipedia
The snow leopard, also known as the ounce, is a large cat that inhabits alpine and subalpine zones in the mountain ranges of Central and South Asia. As of 2016, the size of the total wild population was estimated at between 4,000 and 8,000 individuals. However, this estimate has been disputed because snow leopards live in hard-to-reach places and lead a secretive way of life.
The snow leopard is listed as an endangered species on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species.
To commemorate the occasion, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in Nepal, considered a global leader in snow leopard conservation, organised an Inter School Design Challenge to educate young minds and provide them with an opportunity to level up their knowledge on the elusive cat through creative making.
The theme for the Inter School Design Challenge was “Keeping Them Alive”. The design challenge focused on solutions to key issues with regard to snow leopard conservation – climate change and habitat loss, human wildlife conflict and retaliatory killing, poaching, etc. The participants were provided with a box of supplies from which they unboxed their solution through creation of a simple creative idea. Their creations were judged on three categories and prizes given out to one in each.
International Snow Leopard Day was initiated by the countries that encompass the snow leopard’s range. They include Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
On October 23, 2013 they signed the Bishkek Declaration on the conservation of snow leopard at the First Global Snow Leopard Forum that took place in Bishkek, the capital of Kyrgyzstan.
The first International Snow Leopard Day took place on October 23, 2014. Its main goal is to raise awareness of the importance of snow leopard conservation, consolidate effort of environmental organization in the countries of the snow leopard range, and emphasise the importance of taking measures to prevent poaching.
The 23rd of October is globally celebrated as the International Snow Leopard Day to raise awareness on the issues and challenges of this species.
Nigeria’s delegates to the 23rd Session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC COP23) holding in Bonn, Germany next month have been urged to solicit for international partnership and funding.
Dr Yerima Peter Tarfa, Director, Department of Climate Change, Federal Ministry of Environment
Mr Richard Inyamkume, the Senior Programme Officer of Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation Initiative, an NGO, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja on Monday, October 23, 2017.
NAN reports that COP23 will hold from November 6 to 17.
Inyamkume said that delegates from Nigeria were expected to showcase the nation’s approaches and initiatives to address climate change impacts on the populace.
‘‘I understand that there are a lot of local initiatives in Nigeria that can assist in tackling climate change impacts but some of such vibrant initiatives exist within academic institutions and the private sector without funding.
‘‘Projects and initiatives can hardly see the light of the day where there is no funding to drive such projects.
‘‘The COP23 is another opportunity for government and organisations to solicit for international partnership and funding for viable climate change mitigation and adaptation of projects for Nigeria,’’ he said.
The programme officer expressed hope that delegates from Nigeria would pursue the nation’s climate change needs and be able to learn new strategies and approaches in solving climate-related problems.
“As a nation, we need to focus more on women clean cooking initiatives, youth advocacy, activism and capacity building initiatives, and the development of clean infrastructures that will speed up national development.
‘‘I believe that Nigeria is going to return from the conference with a lot of experiences and knowledge that can be harnessed to achieve the growth of green initiatives and projects,’’ Inyamkume said.
The re-appointed MD/CEO of the Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA), Peter Ewesor, has identified the issue of standardisation of equipment/materials and existence of quackery as major problems plaguing the sector.
MD/CEO of the Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency (NEMSA), Peter Ewesor
According to him, these have led to many unfortunate incidences of electrical accidents and electrocutions in Nigeria. The Chief Electrical Inspector of the Federation has however assured that these problems will be further strongly addressed as he begins his second tenure in earnest.
He was speaking at the mini hand-over ceremony during which T. T. Aliyu presented the report of his brief stewardship during the period he acted to the MD/CEO.
Ewesor noted and itemised the focus of the management as follows: “First is our unalloyed commitment to the implementation of the mandate of this Agency. As I had noted severally, the major challenge of the sector is quackery and we have evolved multiple strategies. We will make life unbearable for any group or individual who insist on endangering Nigerians through refusal to abide by professional safety standards.
“Recently, we secured a conviction of four accused persons at the chief magistrate court of Kaduna State for the offences of criminal conspiracy, forgery of the NEMSA Certificates and cheating contrary to section 59, 345 and 308 of the penal code of Kaduna State. This will serve as deterrence to those contemplating forging and counterfeiting NEMSA Certificate/instrument.
“We are going to intensify our efforts in terms of enforcement of technical standards and regulations, technical inspection, testing and certification of all categories of electrical installations, electricity meters and instruments to ensure the efficient production and delivery of safe, reliable and sustainable power supply and guarantee safety of lives and property in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI) and other allied industries/workplaces safety standards.
“The second focus is our determination to empower our staff to effectively discharge their responsibilities by ensuring a conducive environment for work, scale up on the necessary work equipment and investing in human capital development. Importantly too, we are already expanding our services, getting closer to people by inaugurating new Inspectorate field offices, such as the new Owerri Office, Bauchi and one coming up in Uyo.
“And last but not the least is our rededication to the culture of integrity, transparency and openness in the management of the Agency. We are passionately committed to the anti-corruption crusade of the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari. We have always ensured due process in our operations and that has earned us the 12th position amongst 166 public institutions assessed by Public and Private Development Center (PPDC) in the 2017 FOI ranking recently conducted. Going forward we will ensure continuous maximum compliance with relevant extant rules and other regulations,” the Chief Executive said.
He assured Nigerians that the Agency would be more visible as it intensifies efforts to enforce safety of use of electricity and safety of lives and property in the industry and Nigeria at large.
Ewesor completed his first tenure on September 10, 2017 this year before his reappointment by President Muhammadu Buhari on the October 3, 2017 for a further term of four years in accordance with the provisions of section 7(3) of the Nigerian Electricity Management Services Agency Act, 2015.
Director General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, has annulled his appointment of President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe as the WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases in Africa, apparently due to widespread outcry.
President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe
“I have listened carefully to all who have expressed their concerns,” said Dr Ghebreyesus in a statement issued on Sunday, October 22, 2017.
He had previously praised Zimbabwe for its commitment to public health.
But critics pointed out that Zimbabwe’s healthcare system had collapsed in recent years.
During the first 20 years of his 37-year rule, Mr Mugabe widely expanded health care, but the system has badly been affected by the collapse of the Zimbabwean economy since 2000.
Staff often go without pay, medicines are in short supply, and Mr Mugabe, who has outlived the average life expectancy in his country by three decades, travels abroad for medical treatment.
Mr Tedros said he had consulted with the Zimbabwean government and decided that rescinding Mr Mugabe’s position was “in the best interests of” the WHO.
He said he remained “firmly committed to working with all countries and their leaders” to build universal health care.
Mugabe’s appointment was met by a wave of surprise and condemnation. The UK government, the Canadian prime minister, the Wellcome Trust, the NCD Alliance, UN Watch, the World Heart Federation, Action Against Smoking and Zimbabwean lawyers and social media users were among those who criticised the decision.
Ghebreyesus’ statement reads:
Over the last few days, I have reflected on my appointment of H.E. President Robert Mugabe as WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Noncommunicable Diseases in Africa. As a result I have decided to rescind the appointment.
I have listened carefully to all who have expressed their concerns, and heard the different issues that they have raised. I have also consulted with the Government of Zimbabwe and we have concluded that this decision is in the best interests of the World Health Organisation.
It is my aim to build a worldwide movement for global health. This movement must work for everyone and include everyone.
For me, what is important is to build political leadership and create unity around bringing health to all, based on WHO’s core values.
I remain firmly committed to working with all countries and their leaders to ensure that every one has access to the health care they need.
We must build bridges that bring us together and help us move forward in our quest to achieve universal health coverage.
I thank everyone who has voiced their concerns and shared their thoughts. I depend on constructive debate to help and inform the work I have been elected to do.
Gov. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State on Monday, October 23, 2017 in Akure, the state capital, signed Memoranda of Understanding with two firms on agricultural projects and appealed for speedy take off of the projects.
Gov. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu of Ondo State
Akeredolu signed the MoU for the construction of a powderised egg factory with Greenfield Poultry Ltd.
The second MoU with Adventum Global Inc, USA, was for the construction of a factory for cultivation and processing of large scale agricultural products.
The governor thanked the managements of the companies for their interest in the state, adding that construction work at the project sites should begin in no distant time.
He said that his administration would do everything possible to establish an independent power station to service all industries in Ondo.
Earlier, Mr Paul Obanua, Team Leader, Greenfield Poultry Ltd., commended the commitment of the state government to the egg factory project.
Obanua said that the factory to be sited in Emure Ile, Owo Local Government Area of the state, would be the first powderised egg factory plant in West Africa.
He said that the ground-breaking ceremony would be on Nov. 20 and added that the firm was partnering with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on the project.
The team leader said that the company was fully committed to helping in industrialising the state.
On his part, Mr Isaac Oghogho, Chairman, Adventum Global Inc, USA, said the firm would invest more than $40 million in the 4,000 hectare project.
Oghogho said the primary objective of the project was to set up an integrated agriculture value chain from cultivation to processing, marketing and distribution.
He said that more than 3,000 indigenes of the state would be employed by the scheme within the first three years of its commencement.
