Climate-smart agriculture boosts food security in vulnerable communities Climate-smart agriculture boosts food security in vulnerable communities
Silence Charumbira / Limpho Sello
MATHOLANG Bereng, a widowed mother of two from Makoabating, Mafeteng has freed herself from the clutches of poverty by participating in a drought alleviation project in her district.
Dubbed ‘Improving Adaptive Capacity of Vulnerable and Food Security Populations in Lesotho (IACoV)’, the initiative is a four-year project launched last October and is expected to end in 2024.
The project is being executed by the Lesotho Meteorological Services (LMS) and the Ministry of Forestry, Range and Soil Conservation in partnership with the World Food Programme (WFP).
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Lesotho experienced a 14 per cent decline in family planning coverage in certain districts in 2020, compared to 2019, with one district registering a significant 40 per cent drop.
This was shown by an analysis of data from the District Health Management System (DHMS2), undertaken by UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency. COVID-19 restrictions as well as a strike by health-care providers in July 2020 due to a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) impacted the uptake of family planning services last year. In addition, it was noted that health workers did not consider family planning services an essential service during the lockdown.
Family planning uptake drops in Lesotho due to COVID-19 restrictions, analysis shows
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MASERU, Lesotho Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Lesotho experienced a 14 per cent decline in family planning coverage in certain districts in 2020, compared to 2019, with one district registering a significant 40 per cent drop.
This was shown by an analysis of data from the District Health Management System (DHMS2), undertaken by UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency. COVID-19 restrictions as well as a strike by health-care providers in July 2020 due to a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) impacted the uptake of family planning services last year. In addition, it was noted that health workers did not consider family planning services an essential service during the lockdown.
New Customs Bill tabled in Parliament
MASERU-A new Customs and Excise Bill which is meant to ease collection of taxes at the borders was tabled in Parliament this week.
The chairman of the Parliamentary economy cluster, Mahooana Khati, who is the MP for Quthing, said while the new law will help make the Lesotho Revenue Authority (LRA)’s job easy at the border, it will also “help businessmen import and export easily”.
The Bill was sent to parliament during the 2018/2019 fiscal year but the cluster has only just finished deliberating on it.
Khati said the Bill, once enacted into law, will make it easier for people to clear their goods. This will stop congestion at the borders.