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Benin Flood Crisis : The NewsMarket

Benin Flood Crisis : The NewsMarket.

BENIN: Counting the cost of flooding

Photo: UNDAC

Agriculture experts in Benin say the destruction to crops - some farmers losing 100 percent - will hit families hard for a long time to come

DAKAR, 8 November 2010 (IRIN) - Relief agencies and the government of Benin have appealed for US$46.8 million to help the West African nation recover from the worst flooding in nearly 50 years: Agricultural experts have warned of huge damage to land and livelihoods in rural communities.
“We are talking of farmers losing 100 percent of their crops,” warned Saïd Hounkponou, head of Benin NGO Initiatives pour un Dévéloppement Intégré Durable (IDID). “When you have fields of maize, manioc and other crops flooded to that degree, there is nothing left to harvest.”
Jacques Djima Bonou, secretary-general of the Féderation des Unions de Producteurs de Bénin (FUPRO) said FUPRO’s recent assembly in Bohican had canvassed farmers on their individual losses. “Of course there has been flooding in the past, but nothing like what farmers have been exposed to this year,” Bonou told IRIN.
“In the north there are hundreds of fields of maize that have been lost and hundreds of fields of yams. The cotton crop has also been badly damaged. The rains are continuing and it is too early to say how much has been lost.”
Hounkponou said the scale of the flooding caught communities completely off-guard, even in areas where there is a long history of dealing with floods. “Take the Ouémé river valley, for example. Here people are used to the river swelling and then receding, and adapt their planting techniques accordingly. But this year the flooding was far stronger and their fields were washed away.” …

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Ooni of Ife urges unity amongst Yoruba people

By Dayo Johnson

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AKURE—DISTURBED by the perceived disunity amongst the Yoruba, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Okunade Sijuwade, weekend, advocated unity among the Yoruba race particularly among the traditional rulers in the region.

Oba Sijuwade speaking at the coronation of the Olugbo of Ugboland, Oba Fredrick Obateru Akinruntan in Igbokoda, Ilaje local government area, however noted that “God had already started a reformation work in the land.”

The monarch prayed that God would successfully complete the work in order to ensure the development and progress of the Yoruba race.

Oba Sijuwade said “it is imperative for the people to be united and allow peace to reign to enable the Yoruba race continue to witness human and infrastructural development.”

He pleaded with the people of Ugboland and Ilaje in general to cooperate with Akinruntan as he (Olugbo) was ready to employ his wisdom and God given wealth for the development of the riverrine area of Ondo State.

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Robbers Attack Traders Coming from Cotonou at Mile 2

News Nov 3, 2010

By Evelyn Usman

Human and vehicular movements were disrupted yesterday at Mile 2, along the Lagos/ Badagry Expressway, following sporadic gunshots from a robbery gang which intercepted a vehicle conveying traders from Cotonou, Benin Republic.

The robbers, numbering six, laid an ambush for the vehicle at the Mile 2 bridge. Time was 7am.

Eyewitnesses said the bandits, some of whom were masked, ordered their victims to lie flat on the ground and dispossessed them of cash and other valuables…

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Soldiers foil couple’s attempt to sell baby

Nigeria News Nov 2, 2010

By John Ighodaro
CALABAR—A couple, who attempted to sell a three-year old boy for N800,000 at Bogobiri area of Calabar, Cross River State, has been arrested by officers of the 13th Brigade Command of the Nigerian Army, in Calabar.

Vanguard gathered that the couple, had come to Bogobiri, a popular Hausa quarters in Calabar, weekend, when soldiers were tipped off and then set to work to accost the couple.

According to the Public Relations Officer, PRO, of the 13th Brigade Command of the Nigerian Army, Lieutenant Olaniyi Osoba,  his Command acted on a tip off over the weekend, when some concerned citizens alerted the army regarding the evil plan of the couple…

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Bishop Condemns Arms Proliferation, Cautions On 2011 Elections

ANGLICAN Bishop of Enugu Diocese, Rev. Emmanuel Chukwuma, has cautioned politicians against acts capable of truncating democracy in the country, stressing that the recent interception of explosives is a disturbing trend that could threaten the smooth conduct of the 2011 general elections.
He also called on political leaders to eschew greed and a win-at-all-cost mentality.
Addressing journalists in Enugu as part of activities marking the 40th year anniversary of Enugu Diocese, Chukwuma emphasised the need for Nigerians to seek the face of God at all times, even as he called for thorough investigations to unravel the source and financiers of the shipment of arms intercepted by security agents recently.
He said that the development and the October 1 bomb blasts in Abuja, were ominous signals against the peaceful conduct of the 2011 general elections, adding however, that with prayers and tolerance the threats could be overcome.
He spoke as the Anglican Bishop of Nike Diocese, Rev. Evans Jonathan Ibeagha, called on Nigerians to pray fervently for the peace of the country, as it enters a crucial moment in her political history.
Bishop Chukwuma, who feels disturbed that certain Nigerians have refused to learn from history, insisted that failure of government to deal decisively with few individuals who have continued to hold the country to ransom has been responsible for ugly disturbances….

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Mills inaugurates Accra Tema Sub-Urban Railway Service

Tema, Oct. 29, GNA - President John Evans Atta Mills on Thursday inaugurated the 10.4-kilometre revived Accra-Tema sub-urban railway service and called on the managers of the facility to ensure maintenance, safety and quality service.
He stressed that maintenance is very critical to the project. President Mills said too often well-intentioned projects have been inaugurated with glee only for them to collapse in no time because of lack of maintenance.
President Mills warned that Government would not tolerate any revenue leakage in the running of the line and the service. The total cost of the project is $37.5 million. It is borne by the Government of Ghana and pre-financed by the contractor, M/S Amandi Investments.
It involves the acquisition of six coach 600 passenger capacity train and the rehabilitation of the railway stretch from Asoprochonaa at Sakumono.
With fanfare, the President, Ministers of State, Members of Parliament, traditional rulers, workers of the Ghana Railway Company, citizens and residents of Tema expressed joy at the completion of the project that would largely ease vehicular traffic congestion on roads from Accra to Tema, and make train services available and convenient for commuters….

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Weapon stash found in Nigerian port

Nigerian authorities have uncovered a shipment of weapons - including rocket launchers and grenades - concealed in containers at its busiest port.

The find at Apapa Port, in the economic capital of Lagos, follows twin car bombings in the capital Abuja on 1 October that killed at least 12 people. 
Nigerian National Intelligence Agency spokesperson Marilyn Ogar said security agents intercepted 13 containers at the port and had opened one so far.
She said: "We’ve been able to open just one container, and in a container you have 24 crates. 
"Out of the 24, we’ve opened eight so far. Out of the eight, four are filled with floor tiles, while the other four contain rocket launchers, grenades, explosives and mortars."
Officials allowed journalists visiting the holding yard just inside of the port’s main gate to see the 107mm rockets, rifle rounds and other weapons that they had seized.
Ogar said authorities planned to work throughout the night to open all the containers but declined to comment on where the shipment had come from and whether any arrests had been made, citing the ongoing investigation.
Nigerian National Security Adviser Andrew Owoye Azazi declined to say what ship carried the weapons into the port, however, he added the federal government would destroy the weapons

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Benin: UN emergency flight arrives with aid for flood victims

Women wait to fill their buckets and tubs with safe drinking water in Cotonou, Benin

28 October 2010 – The first flight in a United Nations emergency airlift carrying urgently-needed shelter for victims of Benin’s flood disaster arrived today in the southern city of Cotonou.

The 1,500 tents sent by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) are part of the overall UN response to the floods, which have affected over 700,000 people in the West African nation.

Benin is the country hardest hit by the recent floods that have affected over 1.8 million people in parts of Central and West Africa, and have killed nearly 400 people.

Authorities in the country, along with the non-governmental organization Caritas Benin, are coordinating the distribution of the newly-arrived tents as well as other humanitarian assistance to the affected population.

A second flight carrying an additional 1,500 tents is scheduled for Friday.

UNHCR’s regular operations in Benin are aimed at providing protection and assistance to some 7,300 mostly Togolese refugees and asylum-seekers located in the south of the country. The agency is assessing to what extent they have been affected by the disaster….

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