United Nations Radio

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is calling for a second green revolution as a way to reinvigorate agriculture.

Mr. Ban told the high-level segment of the UN Commission on Sustainable Development that a new generation of technologies and farming methods are needed in order to have improved yields of crops with minimal environmental damage. These new methods, he stressed, should also take into account the effects of climate change.

The Secretary-General insisted that nowhere is the challenge of boosting agricultural productivity more pressing than in Africa.

"Africa was largely by-passed by the first green revolution. Now, the time has come to work for an African green revolution. It is urgently needed: to feed a rapidly growing population, to improve nutrition and health, and in the process, to accelerate progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals."

One of the key recommendations of the Millennium Development Goal Africa Steering Group, convened by the Secretary-General, is to support the launching of an African green revolution.

For United Nations Radio, I'm Dianne Penn.

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