Researchers on banana and industry players in the same from all over Africa will later in the year converge in Kenya to develop a 10-year strategic roadmap that would harmonize and guide efforts to promote the marketing and trade of the crop in the continent.

The conference would be the first-ever Pan-African banana conference to link research to markets within the African context and aims to shape and change the way bananas are produced and marketed in Africa, linking state of the art research to new markets and stimulating trade.

According to a Press Release from the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), the results will in the long-term change commercial banana production from a donor aid-supported system to one which is sustained by an invigorated private sector that actively seeks technological interventions.

Bananas are among the most important food and staple crops in Africa, providing food security, nutrition and income for millions of smallholder farmers.

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The East African Grain Council has launched the Warehouse Receipt System (WRS) in Kenya that will cut out exploitative middlemen and unlock the commercial potential of farming.

The system allows farmers and traders to deposit maize at a certified warehouse during the months of December to March and obtain a warehouse receipt.

The move means that farmers can now use the receipt to obtain money from Equity Bank while awaiting sale of their stored produce at the most profitable time.

Its proponents forecast that the move will increase maize production, and that of other cereals, by as much as of 300% and comes as Kenya reels from an acute grain shortage accentuated by an undeveloped market and political crisis. The warehouse receipts form the country’s first organised commodity market.

Labour Minister Membathisi Mdladlana has urged farmers to expose those that are not complying with the law. The minister was addressing farmers on Thursday at a Northern Cape grape farm, during a two-day inspection of the province’s farms for acceptable working conditions of vulnerable workers. His visit was part of the department’s ongoing workplace inspections checking on adherence of labour laws.

He commended the “growing trend of exemplary employers” who did not do just enough to comply with labour legislation but went the extra mile to ensure the welfare of their employees and their families. Minister Mdladlana was particularly impressed by the conditions under which the 200 Southern Farms employees and their families work. The table grape exporting farm, situated on the banks of Orange River bordering Namibia, about 200 kilometres from Upington, is one of few farming industries where employees are treated with utmost care.

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Scientists at the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) have developed new striga weed resistant seeds that may double yields in many African countries.

The unveiling of the seed, which is coated with herbicide, follows a 12 year study that looked into its viability.

According to Dr. Fred Kanampiu, an agronomist with CIMMYT, farmers will now plant seeds that are immersed in the herbicide – Imazapyr.

When the seeds germinate, striga weed that grows alongside the maize plant also sprouts up, taking in the nutrients and liquid that are mixed with the herbicide.

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The recent publication of the amended Biosafety Bill 2007 that is due for tabling in parliament has now given consumers and farmers more voice to protect their interest as the country gears to legalize the use of genetically modified foods.

In the new amended Bill, the number of consumers and farmers representatives in the National Biosafety Authority has been increased to 2 each from the earlier recommended one.

According to the National Council of Science and Technology (NCST), the new Bill has also created compensation fund that will take care of damages to any person for any injury caused to him, his property or any of his interests.

The period within which the authorities communicate to such a person upon receiving his or her complains has been reduced from 270 days to 150 days.

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