Agrégateur de flux

Des inondations historiques au Maroc ont fait quatre victimes ce week-end, et beaucoup de victimes collatérales. Les éleveurs et agriculteurs lancent un cri d'alerte : des milliers de bêtes et des hectares ont été engloutis. Récit de Laura Cambaud.

Le ministre des Affaires étrangères Jean-Noël Barrot s'est dit "effaré" et "indigné" mercredi par les faits révélés la veille mettant en cause un diplomate français, Fabrice Aidan, dont le nom apparaît à plusieurs reprises dans les dossiers Epstein. "Quand j'ai pris connaissance de ces informations, j'ai été effaré et j'ai fait ce que chacun aurait fait à ma place" en signalant les faits à la justice et en lançant une enquête administrative ainsi qu'une procédure disciplinaire, a déclaré le ministre sur RTL.

Après sept ans de sécheresse, la nature reprend des couleurs au Maroc. Les précipitations abondantes de ces dernières semaines ont redonné de l’espoir aux agriculteurs. En quelques chiffres, il est tombé 121 millimètres de pluie entre septembre et janvier, le double d’il y a un an. Les barrages sont remplis à 65 % désormais, ils l’étaient à seulement 28 % auparavant. Certaines régions revivent, c’est le cas de Guelmim, dans le sud du pays, la « porte du Sahara ».

En marge du Mining Indaba, la République démocratique du Congo a organisé un forum d'investissement pour la province du Lualaba. Le pays, qui produit 70 % du cobalt mondial – utilisé notamment pour les batteries de voitures électriques –, sait que ses minerais stratégiques sont convoités, notamment par les États-Unis. La gouverneure du Lualaba appelle aux investissements du monde entier.

Les pays membres de l’OTAN s’apprêtent à lancer cette semaine une nouvelle opération dans l’Arctique, en réponse aux déclarations américaines selon lesquelles le Groenland faisait face à des menaces sérieuses de la part de la Chine et de la Russie.

The post L’OTAN envoie un signal politique en lançant l’opération Arctic Sentry appeared first on Euractiv FR.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres addresses the 426th meeting of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP). Credit: UN Photo/Evan Schneider

By Oritro Karim
UNITED NATIONS, Feb 11 2026 (IPS)

Since the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in October of last year, humanitarian conditions in Gaza have notably improved — but aid agencies warn that progress is extremely fragile. Acute shortages of lifesaving medical care and psychosocial support persist, hunger remains widespread, with conditional cash assistance as the primary barrier preventing full-scale food insecurity, while Israeli attacks continue to undermine stability and humanitarian efforts.

Addressing the 2026 Opening Session of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, United Nations (UN) Secretary-General António Guterres warned of the urgency of the current situation in Gaza.

“We enter 2026 with the clock ticking louder than ever. Will the year ahead bend towards peace–or slip into the abyss of despair?” Guterres said.

Guterres urged all parties to fully implement the ceasefire agreement, exercise maximum restraint, and comply with international law and UN resolutions, while calling for the rapid and unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid, particularly through the Rafah crossing, where aid personnel face the most severe restrictions. He also condemned the suspension of international NGOs, explaining that it “defies humanitarian principles, undermines fragile progress, and worsens the suffering of civilians,” adding that shelter, food, education materials, and other basic necessities must reach those in need.

In recent months, food security conditions in Gaza have shown notable, though uneven, improvement. Since the ceasefire went into effect, the World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have brought over 10,000 trucks of aid into Gaza, representing roughly 80 percent of all humanitarian cargo. With this, the enclave was able to narrowly avoid the onset of famine.

WFP’s deputy executive director Carl Skau noted that most families he met were “eating at least once a day”, with some even managing two meals. Commercial goods such as vegetables, fruit, chicken, and eggs have gradually returned to local markets, while the distribution of recreational kits has helped children cope with the psychological toll of over two years of conflict.

However, progress remains fragile. The latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) assessment estimates that approximately 77 percent of Gaza’s population continues to face crisis-level food insecurity (IPC Phase 3), with around 100,000 people facing catastrophic conditions (IPC Phase 5). Moreover, most nutritious foods available in markets remain financially out of reach for civilians, leaving the vast majority of households heavily dependent on humanitarian food assistance.

For Gaza’s most vulnerable families, conditional cash assistance remains essential to accessing food. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), more than 3,200 agricultural households are currently supported through FAO cash programs, which also enable over 1,200 farmers to continue crop production and help more than 2,000 herders protect their livestock.

As markets gradually stabilize, humanitarian actors are seeking to shift their approach in favor of one that prioritizes building self-sufficiency. WFP has indicated its goal to transition to cash assistance as market conditions improve, shifting emergency relief efforts to restoring local food production and economic systems to allow for vulnerable families to be able to afford food. However, these efforts would require a significant upscale in funding, coordinated efforts between the international community, and the free flow of aid.

Meanwhile, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) reports that Palestinians continue to face widespread insecurity, driven by routine attacks on civilians and critical infrastructures. On February 5, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) released a humanitarian situation report documenting a sharp increase in airstrikes, shelling, gunfire, and fatalities between January 30 and February 5 compared to previous weeks. According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, at least 82 Palestinians were killed and 162 injured during that period, including children and a health worker, alongside extensive damage to civilian infrastructure.

Further underscoring the risks faced by aid workers, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies reported on February 4 that a paramedic was killed while providing assistance in the Mawasi area. That same day, OCHA reiterated that civilians and humanitarian personnel “must never be targeted or used to shield military activities,” stressing that children and aid workers are afforded special protections under international humanitarian law.

The UN has also stressed that living conditions remain especially dire for displaced communities across Gaza. On February 3, heavy insecurity in the Al Mahatta and Sanafour areas of Gaza City forced approximately 40 families to flee their homes, with only 10 families able to return by the following morning. UN figures indicate that “capacity and funding constraints” have limited humanitarian support to only roughly 40 percent of the remaining functional 970 displacement sites across Gaza.

Healthcare needs are similarly overwhelming, as a steady influx of injuries and disease is compounded by the near-total collapse of Gaza’s health system. According to Jonathan Fowler, Senior Communications Manager of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), the agency previously operated 22 clinics operating across the Gaza strip before the war, which has now fallen to just six.

“That makes it incredibly difficult to do our work and so many of our locations have been heavily damaged or indeed completely destroyed,” Fowler said. “On top of that, we remain banned by the Israeli authorities from bringing in any of our own supplies.” Despite numerous access and security constraints, UNRWA aims to assist approximately 15,000 patients each day, underscoring the scale of unmet medical needs across the most vulnerable areas.

Furthermore, OHCHR has documented a sharp rise in cases of mistreatment and abuse against displaced Palestinians by Israeli military forces, particularly along the newly reopened Rafah border crossing. As of February 5, Palestinians returning through the crossing for three consecutive days have reported consistent patterns of “ill-treatment, abuse, and humiliation”.

According to testimonies collected by the agency, returnees were escorted from the crossing to military checkpoints, where some were handcuffed, blindfolded, threatened, and intimidated. Others reported being subjected to invasive body searches, having personal belongings and money confiscated, and facing physical violence and degrading interrogations. Several individuals were also denied access to medical care and bathroom facilities, with some forced to urinate in public.

OHCHR also documented allegations that returnees were offered money to return to Egypt permanently or pressured to act as informants for the Israeli military.

“The international community has a responsibility to ensure that all measures affecting Gaza strictly comply with international law and fully respect Palestinians’ human rights,” said Ajith Sunghay, head of the UN Human Rights Office in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. “After two years of utter devastation, being able to return to their families and what remains of their homes in safety and dignity is the bare minimum.”

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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Boris Maurice AÏWANOU, l'un des gardes rapprochés du chef de l'Etat Patrice Talon n'est plus. Il a tiré sa révérence ce mardi 10 février 2026.

Deuil à la Présidence de la République du Bénin. Boris Maurice AÏWANOU, l'un des gardes rapprochés du chef de l'Etat est décédé ce mardi 10 février 2026. Il est mort des suites d'une crise d'asthme, selon les informations.
Le regretté est un agent discret et un maillon essentiel du dispositif de sécurité présidentielle. Aux côtés du chef de l'Etat depuis une dizaine d'années, il s'est illustré par son professionnalisme, sa loyauté et son engagement sans faille au service de la protection du chef de l'État et des institutions de la République.
Paix à son âme !

La marketplace panafricaine Jumia, a officialisé son retrait du marché algérien. Après 14 ans de présence, la plateforme cessera ses opérations d’ici mars 2026, dans […]

L’article Après 14 ans d’activité, JUMIA met fin à son aventure en Algérie est apparu en premier sur .

Bruxelles pourrait ajouter le savon à base d'huile de palme et le café instantané aux règles relatives à la déforestation.

The post EXCLUSIF : L’UE va modifier la liste des produits concernés par les règles relatives à la déforestation appeared first on Euractiv FR.

Après avoir semblé se calmer sur le Groenland, Donald Trump s’attaque désormais à l’intégrité territoriale de son voisin du nord par une méthode plus insidieuse : l’encouragement actif au séparatisme albertain. Ce que la plupart des observateurs français semblent avoir manqué, c’est que l’administration américaine ne se contente plus de provoquer Ottawa par des tweets incendiaires – elle organise méthodiquement la sécession d’une province canadienne de la taille du Texas.

Les rencontres secrètes

Depuis avril 2025, des officiels du Département d’État américain ont rencontré à trois reprises des dirigeants de l’Alberta Prosperity Project (APP), un groupuscule séparatiste d’extrême droite qui milite pour l’indépendance de cette province pétrolière de cinq millions d’habitants. Le Financial Times a révélé fin janvier que ces militants cherchent désormais une ligne de crédit de 500 milliards de dollars auprès du Trésor américain pour financer la transition vers l’indépendance. Autant dire que Washington ne se contente pas d’observer – il finance potentiellement la balkanisation du Canada.

Jeff Rath, conseiller juridique de l’APP qui a participé à ces rencontres, s’est vanté auprès du Financial
Times : « Les États-Unis sont extrêmement enthousiastes à l’idée d’une Alberta libre et indépendante. »
Il affirme avoir « des relations bien plus solides avec l’administration Trump qu’avec le Premier ministre Mark Carney ». Le message est sans équivoque : l’Amérique de Trump considère désormais ouvertement les séparatistes albertains comme des interlocuteurs légitimes, au même titre – voire davantage – que le gouvernement fédéral canadien.

La machine de guerre médiatique

Scott Bessent, le secrétaire au Trésor, a mis de l’huile sur le feu lors d’une interview sur Real America’s Voice, média de droite ultra-trumpiste : « L’Alberta est un partenaire naturel pour les États-Unis. Ils ont de grandes ressources. Les Albertains sont des gens très indépendants. » Il a ajouté qu’une rumeur circulait sur un référendum imminent, avant de conclure : « Les gens parlent. Les gens veulent la souveraineté. Ils veulent ce que les États-Unis ont à offrir. »

Le représentant républicain Andy Ogles du Tennessee a été encore plus direct sur un plateau de la BBC :
« Je pense que les gens d’Alberta préféreraient ne pas faire partie du Canada et faire partie des États-Unis, parce que nous sommes des gagnants. » Sur le podcast de Steve Bannon, l’ancien conseiller de Trump, l’analyste Brandon Weichert a même esquissé la feuille de route : « Si l’Alberta vote pour l’indépendance, nous la reconnaîtrons et la mettrons sur la voie pour devenir le 51e État– exactement comme le Texas et la Californie qui se sont d’abord déclarés indépendants du Mexique avant de rejoindre l’Union. »

Le rêve trumpiste

L’objectif de Donald Trump est limpide et procède en trois temps. Primo : pousser le mouvement séparatiste albertain à recueillir les 177 732 signatures nécessaires d’ici mai 2026 pour forcer un référendum. Secondo : si Ottawa tentait de bloquer ce référendum au nom de l’unité canadienne, Trump brandirait l’étendard du « droit des peuples à disposer d’eux-mêmes », retournant contre son plus proche allié une rhétorique qu’il a bien souvent combattue ailleurs. Tertio : dans le scénario optimum, une Alberta indépendante serait rapidement absorbée par les États-Unis, apportant 84% de la production pétrolière canadienne et des réserves massives de terres rares.

Nous voilà arrivés à cette aberration géopolitique : le « grand frère américain », champion autoproclamé de la démocratie libérale, travaille activement à faire éclater de l’intérieur une démocratie parlementaire stable et prospère, membre du G7 et de l’OTAN.

La réalité du terrain

Pour l’instant, les chiffres semblent rassurants pour Ottawa. Un sondage Ipsos de janvier 2026 montre que seulement trois Albertains sur dix soutiennent le processus de séparation – et parmi eux, un sur cinq considère un vote en faveur du oui comme largement symbolique, une manière d’exprimer leur mécontentement plutôt qu’un désir ferme d’indépendance. Une pétition contre l’indépendance, « Alberta Forever Canada », a recueilli 438 568 signatures l’an dernier, soit bien plus que les séparatistes n’en ont jamais obtenu.

Mais la tendance inquiète. De plus en plus d’Albertains se montrent sensibles aux sirènes de Washington. Les sondages, s’ils restent défavorables à une sécession, le sont bien moins qu’auparavant. La rhétorique trumpiste sur « l’Alberta partenaire naturel des États-Unis » commence à faire son chemin dans une province qui se sent depuis longtemps incomprise par Ottawa et bridée dans ses ambitions pétrolières.

Le Premier ministre de Colombie-Britannique, David Eby, n’a pas mâché ses mots à propos des sécessionnistes : « Aller dans un pays étranger demander de l’aide pour démanteler le Canada, il y a un vieux mot pour ça : c’est de la trahison. » Mark Carney, lui-même originaire d’Edmonton, capitale de l’Alberta, s’est contenté d’une mise en garde diplomatique : « Nous attendons de l’administration américaine qu’elle respecte la souveraineté canadienne. »

L’État voyou

Ce dossier albertain illustre parfaitement la trajectoire de l’Amérique trumpiste : celle d’une superpuissance devenue État voyou, instrumentalisant le droit international quand il l’arrange, le piétinant quand il le gêne. Hier le Groenland, aujourd’hui l’Alberta – demain quelle autre démocratie alliée sera dans le collimateur ?

Romuald Sciora dirige l’Observatoire politique et géostratégique des États-Unis de l’IRIS, où il est chercheur associé. Essayiste et politologue franco-américain, il est l’auteur de nombreux ouvrages, articles et documentaires et intervient régulièrement dans les médias internationaux afin de commenter l’actualité. Il vit à New York.

L’article Alberta : quand Trump tente de faire éclater le Canada de l’intérieur est apparu en premier sur IRIS.

Le continent africain fait face aux niveaux de corruption les plus élevés du monde. C’est ce qui ressort de l'indice de perception de la corruption 2025, rendu public ce mardi 10 février par l’ONG Transparency International. Il agrège les évaluations d’experts et d’hommes d’affaires sur leur perception de la corruption et des mesures pour y répondre. Et dans le classement, l’Afrique subsaharienne obtient les moins bons résultats.

Decapitation strikes against the regime are likely. An invasion is not.

Les députés européens sont parvenus à un accord sur les conditions nécessaires à la reprise de la mise en œuvre de l’accord tarifaire UE-États-Unis, après avoir suspendu leurs travaux en raison de tensions liées aux récentes menaces concernant le Groenland. Un vote décisif est désormais attendu d’ici la fin février.

The post Les eurodéputés concluent un accord sur le pacte tarifaire UE-États-Unis et confirment un vote en février appeared first on Euractiv FR.

South Africa pull off a memorable victory over Afghanistan in the T20 World Cup as the Proteas edge past their opponents after two super overs in Ahmedabad.

A young female domestic worker was doing housework for her employer in Manila, the Philippines. Credit: ILO Asia and the Pacific/J. Aliling

By the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP)
BANGKOK, Thailand, Feb 11 2026 (IPS)

The COVID-19 pandemic reminded everyone how important care work is to daily life. When schools closed and hospitals filled up, often it was women and girls who stepped up at home. Their contributions made a big difference, yet these responsibilities often go unseen and unrewarded.

“For me, care work is the heart of humanity,” says Leah Payud, a resilience portfolio manager at Oxfam Pilipinas. “It anchors societies, families… and keeps them running. Without someone investing time, effort and resources in essential care tasks like cooking, cleaning, childcare, nursing the elderly and sick at home, nothing else would be possible.”

Strong social norms persist in the region where care tasks are automatically handed over to women and girls. On average, women and girls across the Asia-Pacific region spend two to five times more time doing unpaid care and domestic work (UCDW) than men.

In Viet Nam, women spend close to 19 hours a week on unpaid care, while men spend about 8 hours. In Malaysia and the Philippines, the gap is also clear. Women’s UCDW labour was valued at 1.6 times that of men. Despite working similar hours in paid jobs, women still take on most of the care responsibilities at home.

These care demands limit women and girls’ time, energy and ability to receive a full education or join the workforce. In 2023, fewer than half of working-age women in the Asia-Pacific region were employed, compared to nearly three-quarters of men. Many cited caregiving as the reason.

Meanwhile, paid care services remain underinvested in and undervalued. Those from marginalized or disadvantaged communities particularly bear the brunt due to low wages and relatively poor working conditions.

Experts further agree that supporting care work is good for families and the economy. A study by the International Labour Organization found that investing in care services like childcare and elder care could create up to 280 million jobs around the world by 2030. Most of these jobs would go to women. In Asia and the Pacific, recognizing unpaid care work could potentially add $3.8 trillion to the economy.

For those women in formal jobs and women entrepreneurs, the lack of care services can contribute to women dropping out of the workforce and being unable to grow and scale their businesses respectively. They face additional challenges, including the ‘motherhood employment penalty,’ ‘motherhood wage penalty,’ and ‘motherhood leadership challenge.’

Post-pandemic, ASEAN leaders have been paying more attention to this issue. In 2021, ASEAN introduced the ASEAN Comprehensive Framework on the Care Economy. It encouraged countries to invest in better care services and recognize the value of both paid and unpaid care work.

This Framework called for concrete steps to expand care services and support care workers, reflecting ASEAN’s broader goal of building inclusive communities.

The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and ASEAN also have been working together to strengthen care systems across the region. Through joint research, policy dialogue and technical support, the partnership helps turn data into action.

Together, ESCAP and ASEAN bring expert analysis to highlight the value of care work and support Member States to translate these insights into national policies. In 2023, ESCAP co-hosted a regional forum on care work with ASEAN.

The event brought together policymakers, community leaders and experts from across the region to share ideas on what support caregivers need most, while also delving into gender-responsive and care-sensitive policies and programs.

The topic gained further momentum when Lao PDR hosted the Third ASEAN Women Leader’s Summit in 2024, backed by capacity building and knowledge support from ESCAP and various development partners.

The Summit led to a new Declaration on Strengthening the Care Economy adopted by ASEAN leaders later that year, which recognizes the disproportionate presence of women in both the formal and informal care sectors, and identifies a range of gender-responsive priority actions.

“To create lasting change, we must prioritize transformative policies that recognize and redistribute the care burden equitably, without reinforcing traditional gender roles and norms. By promoting shared responsibility for caregiving among all members of society, we can pave the way for more meaningful opportunities for women to realize their full potential and empower women and girls to dream big and reach far,” says Cai Cai, Chief of the Gender Equality and Social Inclusion Section at ESCAP.

Many ASEAN countries are already taking action. Indonesia has launched a Care Economy Roadmap and National Action Plan (2025-2045). Cambodia is close to finalizing its own national action plan. Malaysia is developing a strategy to grow its care industry.

In the Philippines, care services are being strengthened through provincial and national care ordinances. Lao PDR is integrating care into both the Laos Women’s Development Plan 2026-2030 and the 10th Five-Year National Socio-Economic Development Plan. Timor-Leste is working on a new Domestic Workers Law and has set up a national Working Group on Care.

Together, these efforts reflect a shared regional commitment to making care more visible, accessible and valued.

Looking ahead, ASEAN’s next community vision presents an opportunity to make care and gender equality a stronger part of the region’s development story. Mainstreaming them across all three ASEAN community pillars will ensure ASEAN can harness all of its vast resources to accelerate progress towards achieving the global Sustainable Development Goals, in particular SDG 5 on gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls, with Target 5.4 aiming to recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work.

Care touches every part of life. Supporting care is not just about new policies. It is about recognizing the needs of real people from every background and building systems that respond to them. When we recognize and invest in care, we create more chances for women to work, for families to thrive and for communities to grow stronger.

The article was prepared with substantive input contributed by Channe Lindstrom Oguzhan, Social Development Division.

IPS UN Bureau

 

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À quelques semaines du mois de ramadan, la question de la stabilité des prix et de l’approvisionnement du marché national revient au premier plan. Lors […]

L’article Ramadan 2026 sans pénuries ni spéculation ? Tebboune fixe un cap strict pour les prix est apparu en premier sur .

« C’est le chaos total, 90 % des toits des maisons se sont envolés, tout ou en partie », décrit un responsable régional de l’ONG Action contre la faim, Rija Randrinarisoa.

Women make up more than half of IFAD’s project participants, while over 60 percent of its active project portfolio is youth-sensitive, reaching more than 12 million young people globally. Photo: Joyce Chimbi/IPS

By Joyce Chimbi
NAIROBI, Feb 11 2026 (IPS)

The global aid system is crumbling amidst chronic underinvestment in rural areas, posing a systemic threat to food systems everywhere.

With 1.3 billion young people in the world today – the largest generation in history, and nearly half of them living in rural areas – investing in their entrepreneurial potential is key.

Speaking during a press briefing on February 10, 2026, at the International Fund for Agricultural Development‘s (IFAD) 49th Governing Council, the president, Alvaro Lario, said investing in young entrepreneurs and women farmers unlocks new pathways for employment and ensures that rural areas become thriving engines of stability, prosperity and sustainable growth.

The overarching theme of the ongoing session of the Governing Council is “From Farm to Market: Investing with Young Entrepreneurs” and is being held at a pivotal moment when the global aid system is in urgent need of reinvention.

“We are at a very complex time of geopolitical fragmentation and constrained budgets for many countries. Food systems are going through various regular shocks that include climate shocks. So, rural transformation means economic growth, creating jobs and building stability,” Lario stated.

Lario advocated for public-private partnerships that connect farmers with private companies, which invest directly in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) through blended finance, guarantees, and various forms of debt or equity, ultimately increasing access to rural finance. Public finance alone cannot deliver the transformation of food systems, raise rural incomes, or create decent jobs.

IFAD’s president, Alvaro Lario, with Tony Elumelu, chairman of UBA, and Heirs Holdings and founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation. Credit: IFAD/Hannah Kathryn Valles

SME-driven value chains are critical to rural development. IFAD’s assessments show that SME-focused value chain projects are more likely to deliver transformational impacts – in other words, where incomes increase by more than 50 per cent because of the project. The Project for Rural Income through Exports in Rwanda (PRICE) increased returns to farmers through the development of export-driven value chains for coffee, tea, silk farming and horticulture.

In brief, he said the private sector accounts for more than 90 per cent of global food systems’ activity and that it complements public sector financing in a critical way by providing technology, market access, and logistics. Emphasising that these are the elements that allow small farms, pastoralists, fishers, rural entrepreneurs and other agri-food enterprises to grow and prosper.

Overall, at the Governing Council, Lario underscored the immense strategic and business value of investing in rural economies, presented new impact data and priorities for 2028-2030 and outlined the most effective models for scaling up productive investments. He was joined by Tony Elumelu, Chair of United Bank for Africa and Heirs Holdings, and founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, in outlining a new deal for rural economies.

They spoke at length about how to accelerate the shift to channel more private investments to rural economies. On young African entrepreneurs and facilitating their access to financing, he said as currently constituted, a bank cannot lend without collateral and consideration of social repayment.

“Since the regulatory environment does not permit banks to lend without taking these issues into consideration, countries create development financing institutions that can take some of the risks. And, also, having development financing institutions and global financing that help to de-risk transactions so that banks can come in and provide the capital,” Elumelu said.

“One of the reasons my wife and I established the Tony Elumelu Foundation is to support young African entrepreneurs. Access to capital is critical for entrepreneurship development. But oftentimes, people lack what it takes to access it. The Foundation has provided USD100 million. And every year, we identify young African entrepreneurs who have business ideas and train them on how to actualise these ideas.”

Further emphasising that access to capital, “while important, is not the only condition that will make you succeed. Business education is important. So we train them, appoint mentors for them, create a networking platform for them, and then provide them with the knowledge they need to receive capital. To date, in Africa, we have funded over 24,000 young African entrepreneurs. And the good news is that about half of these people are females.”

Elumelu said youth-centred interventions significantly boost agro-entrepreneurship as a key driver for economic growth, job creation, and stability while addressing the youth opportunity deficit.

“Nearly 21 percent of those who are funded in Africa are in agriculture and agribusinesses.  And out of these 21 percent, which is about 5,600 beneficiaries, 55 percent of them are females. So in a way, we are trying to help bridge that capital gap, finance gap. But that is not enough. It’s just a tiny drop of water in the ocean. So we need even more partnerships.”

Elumelu further drew on his Africapitalism philosophy, which is a call to action for businesses to move beyond short-term profit-seeking and instead make investments that generate socio-economic benefits for the communities in which they operate. And his foundation’s decade-long experience building Africa’s largest entrepreneurship ecosystem speaks to how entrepreneurship, private capital, and market-driven solutions can transform rural economies, expand food systems, and close the youth opportunity gap.

IFAD is an international financial institution and a United Nations-specific agency that invests in rural communities, empowering them to reduce poverty, increase food security, improve nutrition, and strengthen resilience. It has thus far provided more than USD 25 billion in grants and low-interest loans to fund projects in developing countries.

The Governing Council is IFAD’s highest decision-making body that, among other things, provides a forum for Governors to share their insights on priority areas for strategic action to lift the livelihoods of rural people.

This session also takes place at the beginning of the International Year of the Woman Farmer, declared in recognition of the key role that women farmers around the world play in agrifood systems and their contributions to food security, nutrition and poverty eradication.

Empowering youth and women entrepreneurs to initiate and expand agribusinesses serves as a vital catalyst for economic development and creates lasting positive impacts. Women make up more than half of IFAD’s project participants, while over 60 per cent of the active project portfolio is youth-sensitive, reaching more than 12 million young people globally.

IPS UN Bureau Report

 

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Itthon a marhahús, a baromfi, a szója, a cukor, az etanol és a méz a legfontosabb termékek, amelyeket a Mercosur egyezmény életbe lépése érintene. A szabadkereskedelmi megállapodás védintézkedéseiről kedden szavaztak az Európai Parlamentben. Bő kétharmada a képviselőknek a védő intézkedések mellett szavazott. Ilyen körülmények között, hogyha piaci zavar következik be, fel lehet függeszteni az importokat […]

Articolul Védintézkedésekről szavaztak a Mercosur-egyezmény kapcsán apare prima dată în Kolozsvári Rádió Románia.