Tropentag 2019 - Student blog - Food policy and food security

Bridging the gender gap

Louisa Wong — Wed, 25 Sep 2013 23:36:15 +0000

According to the World Economic Forum (WEF) report, Lesotho is ranked first in Africa for bridging the gender gap and eighth in the entire world - with 95% of women able to read and write, compared with 83% of men. Women can take up important positions in the job market and can be as competitive as men. It’s only one side of the story. Lynn Brown was sharing her point of view about gender sensitive agriculture in the Breakout session about under-nutrition

AT A GLANCE!! - Science Forum 2013

Pamella Ogada — Tue, 24 Sep 2013 15:50:41 +0000

"Agricultural research and nutrition go hand in hand with regards to food security." This was the opening remark for the Science Forum 2013. With that, key factors in research regarding major crops like maize and rice, and the requirement of genetic research, need to be put in place. The innovative transfers of research findings is very essential especially to the farm levels; through networking and partnership, exchange is promoted among international agricultural centres, institutes and scientists. Maggie Gill, ISPC Council Member and Science Forum 2013 Chair Funding bodies allocate funds for agricultural research institution in partner countries, with the role for its member organizations being to support European agricultural research and development to promote knowledge transfers. This would contribute to success of international agriculture research for development. System level-objectives of these funding bodies include reformation which focuses on reducing rural poverty, improving food security in terms of quantity, quality and affordability, improving nutrition and health, and a sustainable management of environment and natural resources.

DAAD Alumni back in Germany for the Summer School

Minette Flora Mendoza De Asis — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 22:36:16 +0000

Alumni from various countries around the globe with professional background relating to agriculture and environmental resource management come together and participate in the Summer School program funded by the Deutsch Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). Two universities in Germany organized and hosted the event from the 11th until the 18th of September 2012. Specifically, the Justus Liebig University Giessen group deals on the theme “Handicaps and Advantages in the Tropics: Current Aspects in Teaching Results gained from Research” while the group from the University of Hohenheim focused on “Tropical Agrobiodiversity as a guarantor for sustainable food security“. The aim of the program is to exchange knowledge and experiences among the participants. Simultaneously, it also intends to foster networking like the development of joint research projects. Within the 8 day period, the activities of the two groups include excursions, lectures and alumni seminars. After the end of the summer school, the two groups meet together at the Tropentag to gather more insights on the latest debate and researches related to the tropics and present their findings and recommendations to the plenary on the 21st of September 2012. Photo of the organizers in Uni Giessen

If you had the chance to meet Ban Ki Moon, what would you tell him?

Minette Flora Mendoza De Asis — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 09:13:21 +0000

Here is a clip of what Dr. Achim Dobermann, the Deputy Director General (Research) of the International Rice Research Institute has to say to the current Secretary General of the United Nations. Find more videos of the interview on youtube

TIPS TO WIN AN AWARD REVEALED: Reginald Guuroh shows you HOW!

Minette Flora Mendoza De Asis — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 10:10:57 +0000

“The choice of a research topic and the quality of the work for an MSc thesis are the main reasons why I was given the Hans H. Ruthenberg Award for Best Graduate Thesis in 2012”, says Reginald. Reginald from Ghana, has been awarded the prize for his research entitled “Contribution of Home Gardens to Household Income Generation in Burkina Faso (A Case Study of Bieha District). “Working with smallholder farmers in one of the most food insecure countries in the world like Burkina Faso has caught the attention of the award giving body”, he added. “I think employing both qualitative and quantitative research is necessary in order to capture the complex problems in the field”, he continued. In his opinion, the ability to analyze the data properly, answer the research questions and adequately discuss the findings of the research convinced his supervisors to give him this mark of 1.3 which was a minimum criteria for the award. Now, Reginald is a PhD candidate in Bonn, working on Range land ecology in West Africa on the WASCAL project (www.wascal.org). Photo with Reginald Guuroh (right) Find the interview of the other awardees: Athena Birkenberg http://blog.tropentag.de/node/245 Lilli Scheiterle http://blog.tropentag.de/node/244

Food and the Arab Awakening

De-Registered User — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 14:42:09 +0000

The capacity to produce sufficient and healthy food to feed its population has become a central issue in most of the middle and low income nations. Food insecurity and poverty go together in most cases. The poor are also the vulnerable. In a study conducted in the highlands of Ethiopia, it was found that the variables (such as education level, age, etc) that play a significant factor in leading to poverty where different from those affecting vulnerability. Nevertheless, the most vulnerable are those caught in the vicious circle of poverty. It was inferred from a research conducted in Tajikistan that the heterogeneity of the effect of food crisis across different household segments (like rural, urban etc) needs to be considered at policy level to create solutions that truly have an impact. Agricultural Development – The Poverty Exit Strategy

Research in Africa Wins Award

De-Registered User — Wed, 05 Oct 2011 16:29:47 +0000

Andrea Bues and William Leiser win the Hans H. Ruthenberg-Graduate- Award 2011. Bues was awarded 2500 Euros for her master thesis work in Ethiopia, which focused on institutional analysis of agricultural foreign direct investment, water rights and conflicts. A student of Humbolt University, Berlin, Bues' research was able examine how access to water resources can contribute to alleviating poverty. Leiser from University of Hohenheim, won 2500 Euros for his work in Mali. He studied the variation for adaptation of sorghum to low phosphorous soils. His research is an effective contribution towards the reduction of hunger and improvement of food security. This award is given by the Fiat Panis Foundation. This year's jury members comprised of Prof. Tilman Brueck (Humboldt-University of Berlin), Prof. Ulrike Grote (University of Hannover) and Prof. Joachim Sauerborn (University of Hohenheim). The jury decided the award based on scientific excellence, innovation and applicability. (By : Priyanka Parvathi and Divya Rajeswari Swaminathan)