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Interpol after jack Pemba over nude leakage

By
Isaiah Mwebaze
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Jack Pemba with Ivan Byekwaso.

The pornography committee recently shook the entertainment industry when it begun making arrests of individuals found guilty of breaking the law concerning the Pornographic Act.

Pornographic Act Committee was commissioned in 2014 and is headed by Dr. Anette Kezaabu and a nine member panel, under the Ministry of Ethics and Integrity.

The committee sanctioned a number of arrests of perpetrators including local celebrities and socialites like Judith Heard and Jack Pemba who made headlines this year due to their leaked nude photos and graphic footage that continue to promote the culture of immorality and social degradation.

These apprehensions follow a nationwide campaign that brings awareness and sensitization to the various dangers that pornography consumption poses to not only the community but users as well.
The chairperson cited ‘cheap popularity’ and prostitution as some of the major causes for pornographic content circulating on social media.

Dr. Anette Kezaabu

“Most girls want to become famous and be known, so the quickest way for them is to to release nudes and sexual provocative images on social media.” Dr. Kezaabu told Eagle Online.
Among the culprits apprehended by police are Lillian Rukundo and Ashburg katto, who were both found guilty of producing and distributing pornographic content despite the committee’s various efforts to warn citizens against indulging in such lewd behavior publicly.

It was also revealed that some perpetrators with vast resources have managed to evade arrests by flying out of the country or bribing officials, but measures have been put in place like the enlistment of Interpol to ensure that these individuals are captured and prosecuted.

“There is no one who is untouchable by the Law, in fact Jack Pemba ran out of the country and when we put Interpol on him, he started sending lawyers and so forth but he is going to be produced and he will face the Law.” said Dr. Kezaabu who together with the Criminal Investigative Division and Uganda Communications Commission have set up a network of experts and professionals to detect and lock up producers and suppliers of pornography within the country.

However, the committee made it clear that compliance with authorities in special cases that involve unintentional/forced participation like cases such as child pornography, or victims of vengeful motives, the culprits would be allowed a plea and will not be prosecuted heavily as those with intention to distribute pornography both commercially and publicly.

Efforts have been made to ensure that anti-pornography studies are introduced into the school curriculums all over the country in order to create and sustain a pornography free future for Uganda’s generation.

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Sudhir reserves part of land in Masaka for vegetable growing

By
Our Reporter
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Sudhir and Rajiv testing the fertility of the Masaka land.

Ugandan investor, Sudhir Ruparelia has allocated part of the land he acquired in Masaka district for vegetables growing so as to meet the international demand.

“Farming is the backbone of this economy and I do not want to be left behind,” he said recently as he toured the land in Masaka.
Ruparelia and some members of his family and managers of Ruparelia Group recently toured the said to find out whether the land was fertile enough to support his horticulture business.

In March Sudhir acquired nine square miles of land in Kayunga district to expand on his horticulture and floriculture farming business. Sudhir bought the land in Bbale County as part of expansion to Masaka and Entebbe road floriculture business.

His flower businesses last year were selected the best from the East African region and top the flower exporting countries from East Africa.

Sudhir flower business employs more than 5,000 people both indirect and directly. Ruparelia is one of the top employers in Uganda while his Ruparelia Group is one of the top tax payers and employers in Uganda the country.

His growing horticulture business has made Uganda one of the leading fresh flower exporting countries in the world. He runs two floriculture firms in Entebbe Wakiso district, Rosebud and Premier Roses. The two companies are the biggest producers of flowers in Uganda, exporting over 180 million stands annually to over 10 countries.

Some of the flowers grown by the two companies are; Sweetheart Rises, Valentino (dark red), Viva (blight yellow), Chelsea (Orange), Red Calupso ( blight red), Meera (Champagne), Akito (white) and Brushing Akito.

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Diaspora Basoga donate to the elderly back home

By
Our Reporter
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Donations being delivered

Members of the Busoga Nordic Development Association (BUNDA) in Partnership with the Minister of Foreign Affairs in OBB, Owek. Joan Machora Kitto have donated an assortment of aid to the elderly and needy at the Jinja Home of the Elderly and Needy Persons.

The assortment donated on Sunday included Mattresses, Blankets and a Solar system that was fully installed at the home. They will also sink a borehole to provide safe drinking water to the Elderly and needy in the home.

The mattresses and Blankets were handed over to the Administrator of the home, Peter Musoke by BUNDA chairperson Eria Mutyabule who was in company of his vice, Violet Biryeri, Susan Ndizawa and Owek. Machora Kitto.

Beneficiaries taking some of the donated items

The function was officiated by OBB’s Attorney General, Robert Kafuko who represented the 2nd Deputy Katukiro Osman Noor Ahmed.

He was accompanied by the Chief Prince (Issabalangira) of Busoga Samuel Zirabamuzale, the Nkono of Bukono chiefdom and OBB Ministers.

Owek. Kafuko pledged that OBB will work in partnership with BUNDA through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to develop Busoga region.

He said OBB is ready to work with BUNDA to extend more charity to other Elderly and needy children in the region.

Eria Mutyabule said BUNDA is ready to extend support to vulnerable children, widows and elderly in the region in partnership with Owek. Machora Kitto.

A tree being planted in remembrance of the gesture

Owek. Machora, in her speech, appreciated BUNDA for the support they extended to the Elderly at the Jinja Home of the Elderly and Needy persons.

She said the gesture was a sign to show solidarity with the Elderly and needy in the society.

After the speeches, Owek Kafuko and Owek. Machora launched BUNDA in Busoga and a Certificate of Acknowledgment was handed over to Eria Mutyabule.

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Campaign to eradicate polythene bags launched

By
Our Reporter
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Plastic at a garbage Collection centre in the city

By Maria Nassiwa

A campaign to abolish polythene bags commonly known as “Kaveera” in Uganda has been launched under the theme; “tuve ku kaveera”.

The campaign, led by the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), Vivo Energy and NBS Television, is aimed to sensitize the masses on the dangers of polythene bags in our environment.

The campaign has been launched by the state minister for water and environment Goretti Kitutu who called upon the media’s support in protection of wetlands

“As the State Minister for water and environment, I will not forget to mention other challenges where I want media to support us like protection of wetlands,” said Kitutu.

According to Daniel Okello director of health in KCCA, says KCCA spends 7 billion shillings annually on waste collection and 5% of garbage collected are polythene bags (Kaveera) and these bags cause blockage of the drainage system and hence causing floods.

Earlier on in July 2009, the then minister for Finance, Ms Syda Bbumba, during her budget speech, imposed a total ban on plastic bags.

A moratorium of six months was given to the general public as transition period during which arrangements where to be made, find alternative packing materials that are environment friendly.

Government argued that the polythene bags were blocking drainage systems and degrading the soil. It announced the ban and prohibited the importation and local manufacture of polyethylene bags. However, the ban was not effective.

In as much as polythene bags have different uses, Ugandans overly depend on the carrier bags which have adverse impact on the environment thus this campaign is intended to help Ugandans make informed decisions on polythene bags use.

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Celebrating International Day of the world’s indigenous peoples

By
Our Reporter
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Uganda will join the rest of the world to celebrate the International Day of Indigenous peoples on August 9 under the Theme: Indigenous peoples’ migration and movement.

Records show there are an estimated 370 million indigenous people in the world, living across 90 countries. They make up less than 5 per cent of the world’s population, but account for 15 per cent of the poorest. They speak an overwhelming majority of the world’s estimated 7,000 languages and represent 5,000 different cultures.

Indigenous peoples are inheritors and practitioners of unique cultures, and have retained social, cultural, economic and political characteristics distinct from the dominant societies in which they live. Despite their cultural differences, indigenous peoples from around the world share common problems related to the protection of their rights as distinct peoples.
In Uganda, the indigenous peoples include ancient communities of hunters and gatherers, such as Benet and Batwa, also known as Twa. They also include minority groups like the Ik, the Karamojong and the Basongora.

As a result of loss of their lands, territories and resources due to development and other pressures, many indigenous peoples migrate to urban areas in search of better prospects of life, education and employment. They also migrate between countries to escape conflict, persecution and climate change impacts.
Despite the widespread assumption that indigenous peoples live overwhelmingly in rural territories, urban areas are now home to a significant proportion of indigenous populations. In Latin America, around 40 per cent of all indigenous peoples live in urban areas — even 80 per cent in some countries of the region.

In most cases, indigenous peoples who migrate find better employment opportunities and improve their economic situation but alienate themselves from their traditional lands and customs. Additionally, indigenous migrants face a myriad of challenges, including lack of access to public services and additional layers of discrimination.

The 2018 theme will focus on the current situation of indigenous territories, the root causes of migration, trans-border movement and displacement, with a specific focus on indigenous peoples living in urban areas and across international borders. The observance will explore the challenges and ways forward to revitalize indigenous peoples’ identities and encourage the protection of their rights in or outside their traditional territories.

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UK Defence Secretary cautions on premature exit of AU troops from Somalia

By
Our Reporter
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Williamson talkingt to AMISOM Force Commander Lt. General Jim Beesigye Owoyesigire.

UK State Secretary for Defence Gavin Williamson has lauded the progress made on the security front in Somalia, but cautioned that the premature exit of the AU troops from the Horn of Africa country could have an adverse effect on gains already made.

The Defence Secretary said the UK government was keen to ensure the exit of AMISOM from Somalia is not undertaken, until the latter is fully capable of handling the national security responsibility.

“The role they play is one that has sometimes been a little bit forgotten around the world, but it should be something that should be highlighted and should be celebrated; because without the decisive action that has been undertaken, without the work that they have been doing to deliver security, Somalia would be in a very difficult place,” the Defence Secretary said shortly after meeting with the AMISOM Force Commander Lt. General Jim Beesigye Owoyesigire, the Deputy Head of AMISOM Simon Mulongo and other senior AMISOM officials, at the Force Headquarters in the capital Mogadishu, on Tuesday.

“We discussed a number of issues, particularly the ongoing support that they give to the African Union and AMISOM, the Transition Plan implementation, the activities that we are trying to scale up in Somalia; and also, we discussed the new (UN) resolution. AMISOM has certain tasks to undertake in the fulfilment of its mandate,” Mulongo said.

The minister, who was making his first official visit to Somalia expressed the UK government’s commitment to furthering support to the Somali National Security Forces through capacity building.
“What we need to do is make sure that the Somali government has the necessary capabilities and resources, to be able to deliver security within its own borders,” he noted.

The Rt. Hon. Williamson also visited the AMISOM Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Cell, where he interacted with the AU and Somali facilitators on issues of child protection, gender and conflict related sexual violence.
He commended the “extensive cooperation” among diverse stakeholders, that is enabling the reconstruction of Somalia.

“Coming here to Somalia, for the first time, has made a huge impression on me,” he noted. “It’s been great to see the close working relationship we have with AMISOM and so many different nations from right around the globe. What has struck me are the real opportunities that Somalia presents.”

The UK government through the United Kingdom Mission Support Team (UKMST), is supporting the AU Mission in diverse ways and has bolstered training support to the troops and their counterparts in the Somali security forces in Mogadishu and in the federal states.

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Survey reveals 11 facts about household finances in Uganda

By
George Mangula
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Globalization, market and poverty in South Africa
Globalization, market and poverty in South Africa

Data from Twaweza’s new Sauti za Wananchi survey, a nationally-representative, high-frequency mobile phone panel survey, which captured 1,925 respondents between October 6-13, 2017, has revealed major facts about household finances in Uganda. Eagle Online brings the readers the issues captured:

According to the survey, the most serious problems facing Ugandan households are financial. One out of four citizens (26 per cent) say the most serious problem facing their own household is poverty or inequality, while one out of eight (15 per cent) mention hunger / drought or the high cost of living (14 per cent). Public services are the next concern, including water (13 per cent), health (10 per cent) and education (9 per cent).

At national level, there are fewer consensuses. One in six citizens (16 per cent) say the most serious problem facing Uganda today is health, more than for any other issue, but poverty and inequality (14 per cent) and implementation of the constitution (13 per cent) are cited by similar numbers. Several other issues are also named by significant minorities, including corruption (9 per cent), hunger / drought (9 per cent), and water (8 per cent).

The survey shows that 5 out of 6 or 84 per cent of the citizens interviewed are unhappy with the country’s economic management. “The same economic concerns are evident in citizens’ levels of satisfaction in the direction Uganda is heading, the report of the survey shows.
It also indicates there are also high levels of dissatisfaction with the country’s trends on corruption (80 per cent) and employment (71 per cent). However, the report says a majority (62 per cent) are satisfied with the country’s progress on improving security.

The report further reveals that one out of two citizens (49 per cent) had, in the three months before the survey, gone a whole day without eating due to a lack of money or other resources.
Larger numbers experienced difficulties with food security over the same period. “Five out of six (85 per cent) have been worried that they would run out of food, and three out of four (75 per cent) had to skip a meal,” says the report.

However, the report says there is considerable variation in experiences of food security across Uganda, although the number of people going without food for a whole day remains high across groups. 45 per cent of the urban areas and 51 per cent of the rural areas had people go for a whole day without food. Wealthier households had 39 per cent and poorer ones had 60 per cent often go hungry.

The sharpest variations come when considering specific sub-regions. In Karamoja, five out of six residents (85 per cent) went a whole day without food in the three months before the survey, and the numbers are also very high in Central (75 per cent), and Teso (73 per cent). In comparison, one out of ten residents of Lango (9 percent) and three out of ten in Bunyoro (30 per cent) and West Nile (30 per cent) experienced this problem.

The survey also established that only 1 out of 5 or 22 percent of the households had sufficient income to cover their daily needs. This number is consistent across urban (23 per cent) and rural (22 per cent) areas, and wealthier households (28 per cent) are slightly more likely to say their income is sufficient than poorer households (20 per cent).

The report says that some households look for alternative means when they run out income. “When a household’s income comes up short, various coping strategies are used, including borrowing money or obtaining food and other supplies on credit (43 per cent), cutting back on consumption (26 per cent), or asking for assistance from family or friends (15 per cent),” it says in part.
In the hypothetical situation of being given a gift of UGX 350,000 by the government, most citizens interviewed said they would spend on average Shs185, 000, or a little over half the amount, on starting or boosting a business venture. Substantial amounts (Shs59, 000 of the hypothetical gift would also be spent on boosting agricultural productivity and Shs44, 000 on school fees.

“Much smaller amounts would, on average, be spent on day-to-day living expenses, including Shs20, 000 on food and Shs2, 000 on non-food items such as fuel and phone credit,” reads the report.
The report of the survey reveals that only one in six citizens (17 per cent) of the citizens interviewed has a bank account, either alone or jointly with another person. Men (22 per cent) are nearly twice as likely as women (12 per cent) to have an account, and those in urban areas (25 per cent) are much more likely to have an account than those in rural communities (13 per cent).

The report shows there are also strong links with age and wealth, with young people (6 per cent) and the poor (6-7 per cent) particularly unlikely to have a bank account. The wealthiest citizens (37 per cent) are the most likely to have bank accounts.

The most commonly mentioned reason for having opened a bank account is for savings or keeping money safe (64 per cent) while the most common reason given for not having an account is a lack of sufficient funds to make it worthwhile (92 per cent).

“Looking back at earlier data collected, there has been no significant change in the proportion of citizens holding bank accounts in Uganda over the past few years; there may even have been a small decline. The Financial Sector Deepening Trust found that 21 per cent had a bank account in 2009,” the report says. This, the report says, suggests access to formal banking services has been slower than the rate of population growth.

The National Financial Inclusion Strategy, highlights a need to focus on people of particular groups who are more financially excluded than others. The Sauti za Wananchi data shows there is lower ownership of bank accounts among the women, rural communities and young people between 18 to 24 years.

Borrowing money in the past five years
According to the report, one out of three citizens (35 per cent) of the citizens interviewed said they had taken a loan or borrowed money in the past five years. This number is higher among men (40 percent) than women (29 per cent), but consistent between urban (34 per cent) and rural areas (35 per cent).

The biggest source of loans are informal savings groups (30 per cent of those taking a loan) and Savings and Credit Cooperatives (SACCOs; 23 per cent).
Most loans are taken either to invest in a business venture (33 per cent) or spend on school fees, education or training costs (33 per cent).

Owning a mobile money account
According to the survey, a clear majority of citizens (68 percent) make use of mobile money services. But this is higher in urban areas (82 percent) than rural (63 percent). The figures are slightly higher among men (71 percent) than women (66 percent).

“There is no clear link between age and the use of mobile money, but wealthier citizens are more likely to use such services (87 per cent) than the poor (48 per cent),” the report says, adding that mobile money services are dominated by MTN Mobile Money: just over half the adult population interviewed (54 per cent) report using MTN. This is followed by Airtel Money (25 per cent). Other mobile money services have very low reported user levels.
The most common use of mobile money services is to send and receive money and Six out of ten citizens (62 per cent) report using mobile money for this purpose. A significant number (26 per cent) also use the service as an alternative bank account – a simpler way to keep money safe. Further, one out of ten citizens (9 per cent) report receiving their salary or wages through mobile money services.

One out of three citizens (32 per cent) report having borrowed money or airtime from MTN extra, and one out of four (25 per cent) has done so from Beerako.
A clear majority of citizens are satisfied by the value for money offered by mobile money services. Just under half (46 per cent) say the price is just right, and one out of five (22 per cent) say it is so cheap as to cause doubts about the quality of the services offered. One out of three say the service is too expensive (32 per cent).
The report notes that the rapid take-up of mobile money services since their launch in Uganda in 2009, rising to 68 percent of the population in just eight years, can be contrasted with the slow or stagnant take-up of bank accounts.

Access to mobile money services outpaces not just formal banking, but other forms of financial products as well. While two out three citizens (68 per cent) make use of mobile money services, less than one out of six has a debit card (14 per cent) or an account with a SACCO (14 per cent), and less than one out of twenty has an account with a Microfinance Institution (4 per cent), a pension (2 per cent), insurance product (2 per cent) or credit card (1 per cent).

People considered financially included by the survey are those who have an account with either a bank, SACCO or Microfinance institution (MFI), or use mobile money services. Three out of four citizens (73 per cent) are financially included using this definition; made up of three out of ten (28 per cent) who have an account with a bank, SACCO and/or (MFI and a larger proportion (44 per cent) who have no accounts with any of these institutions but who do have a mobile money account.

Financial inclusion is slightly higher among men (75 per cent) than women (71 per cent), and substantially higher in urban areas (85 per cent) than rural (68 per cent). The young and old are less likely to be financially included than those aged between 25 and 54, and there is, unsurprisingly, a strong link between wealth and financial inclusion.

Two groups are particularly dependent on mobile money services to increase their financial inclusion: women and the young. Both groups have very low levels of access to formal financial institutions (banks, SACCOs, MFIs), but to some extent make up for this gap through higher levels of access to mobile money.
The report says: “We are still in the relatively early stages of mobile money uptake and we do not yet have a clear sense of the possible implications of a population that is primarily financially included only through mobile money.” What are the long term implications for the country’s overall banking sector? It asks. Are mobile network operators best placed to manage so much of the nation’s money? Is there a connection between greater financial inclusion and food security?”
It calls for the tackling of the above questions. “These are some of the questions that are worth exploring as part of Uganda’s public policy discussions,” it says.

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Makerere researcher to receive medal from the Vatican for outstanding scientific study

By
Our Reporter
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Prof. Noble Banadda

Professor Noble Banadda, Chair of the Department of Agricultural and BioSystems Engineering at Makerere University in Uganda and a former RUFORUM Principal Investigator has been awarded the Pius XI Medal for the year 2018. The award, given by the Pontifical Academy of Sciences based at the Vatican, is in recognition of his outstanding scientific research.

He was selected by unanimous decision of the Academy Council from among many candidates proposed. The Pius XI Medal was established in 1961 by Pope John XXIII to recognize outstanding scientific merit in the field of the natural sciences achieved by a young scientist under the age of 45. It is awarded by the Pontifical Academy of Sciences every two years and a few of the winners have gone on to become members of the Academy. Twenty-eight winners have been awarded the medal since its launch in 1961, but Prof Banadda will be the first African to receive it.

The medal will be presented to Prof. Banadda during the next Plenary Session of the Academy to take place from 12 to 14 November 2018 at the Vatican under the theme, “Transformative roles of science in society: from emerging basic science toward solutions for people’s wellbeing”. The actual award will likely take place during the Solemn Audience be granted by Pope Francis to participants of the Session, during which Prof. Banadda will make a presentation on his most important scientific research.

About Prof Banadda
Prof. Noble Banadda holds a PhD in Chemical Engineering and MSc in Processing Engineering from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium) and a BSc Food Science and Technology from Sokoine University of Agriculture (Tanzania). In 2007, he won the Cochran Fellowship to undertake postdoctoral studies in the Department of Chemical Engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA).

A trailblazer, in August 2012 he was appointed a full professor at the age of 37 years. This was the first ever in the Department of Agricultural and BioSystems Engineering at Makerere University and the only one to-date. He was the youngest fellow to join the Uganda National Academy of Sciences in 2013 and the only person to qualify to be in both the young and senior academy in Uganda. In 2015, he was among only seven Africans that qualified as fellows of the prestigious Next Einstein Fellowship.

Prof. Banadda’s research interests are broadly in mathematical modeling, biological systems and renewable energy. In academia, he has served as a visiting professor in universities in Africa, Europe and USA and supervised several master’s and PhD theses. He has authored over 80 peer reviewed scientific papers in international journals and with 1,395 citations on Google Scholar, he is ranked 64th globally and 5th in Africa in waste management research.

Prof. Banadda first won a research grant from the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) in 2011 through it Competitive Graduate Research Scheme. His research was on, “Investigating contamination risks associated with wrapping indigenous foods in plastic bags during thermal processing.” The study that sought to address public health concerns found that both black and green polyethylene bags, commonly used to wrap food in Uganda, contained heavy metals in varying concentrations which migrated into food during cooking at different temperatures and their migration increased with increase in temperature and holding time. This therefore exposes people to ingesting heavy metals, though in small quantities, but which may accumulate over a long period of time and cause health problems.

In 2015, he won a second grant to carry out research on “Pyrolysis of agricultural waste for bioethanol production”. The purpose of this research was to produce ethanol from low cost agricultural biomass such as banana peels, straws, plant stalks, stovers and molasses in order to make it competitive as a direct fuel or blended into petrol as an additive. Success of this project will, among other benefits, enhance incomes, moderate fuel prices, attract youth into agriculture, and create jobs.

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No bad Sugar on Ugandan market -UNBS

By
George Mangula
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Sugar

The Uganda Bureau of Standards (UNBS) has refuted claims that the sugar which was recently banned in Kenya has found its way on the Ugandan market.

“UNBS would like to reassure the public that, based on the tests done so far, the current sugar on the market is safe for human consumption,” reads part of Friday’s statement.

The New Vision of on Friday ran a headline: “Banned Kenya Sugar Sneaked into Uganda”, causing fear among consumers.
“Our investigations have since established that the sugar reported belongs to Kakira Sugar, a local manufacturer certified by UNBS, contrary to the media reports that it had illegally been imported into the country,” the statement further read.

According to the statement, UNBS has instituted consumer protection measures to ensure that contaminated such sugar is not imported into the country. And that it has since June 2018 cleared 437 consignments of imported sugar and samples tested were found to comply with the required national standards.

“In addition, the UNBS market surveillance team randomly picked over 120 samples from Kampala, and border towns of Mbale, Busia, Malaba, Tororo, which were taken to UNBS laboratories for further testing and analysis,” read the statement.

From the laboratory analyses, it was established that all the samples tested did not contain heavy metals such as copper, lead, mercury that may have adverse effects on human health, it added.
In mid-June, an analysis carried out on samples of the 1,400 bags of illegal sugar seized by the Kenyan police in different operations, revealed that some of the sugar contained contaminated water insoluble matter.

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FAO Food Price Index posts sharp drop in July

By
Agencies
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The price of a kilogram of maize has dropped sharply in Uganda that government has pledged to buy at Shs500.

Global agricultural food commodity prices fell sharply in July, as all the major traded items posted notable declines, led by dairy and sugar.

The FAO Food Price Index averaged 168.8 points, 3.7 per cent below their June level, the biggest monthly drop since late last year. The index had been steadily rising in 2018 until June.
The FAO Food Price Index is a measure of the monthly change in international prices of a basket of commodities.

The FAO Dairy Price Index led the slide, declining 6.6 per cent, with butter and cheese quotations dropping faster than those for whole and skim milk powders.
The FAO Sugar Price Index fell 6 per cent to a nearly three-year low, largely driven by improved production prospects in India and Thailand, both important sugar-producing countries. Expectations of lower output in Brazil, the world’s largest producer and exporter, limited the fall in international sugar prices.

The FAO Cereal Price Index declined 3.6 per cent from June and is now below its year-ago level. Export quotations for wheat, maize and rice all declined, although wheat and maize values edged higher towards the end of July.

The FAO Vegetable Oil Price Index was 2.9 per cent lower, its sixth consecutive monthly decline, and is now at its lowest level since January 2016.
Part of the July slide was driven by spill-over weakness from the soybean market, which is affected by the trade dispute between China and the United States of America. Rapeseed oil values trended upwards, however, buoyed by improved demand from biodiesel producers and negative crop prospects in the European Union.

The FAO Meat Price Index declined 1.9 per cent from its June value, which was revised up in the wake of higher beef export prices from Brazil due to a truck drivers’ strike.

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