Farmers concerned about impact of floods on crops

While a ban on pesticides is being discussed in the Kenyan parliament, more and more farmers are already switching to organic farming. This is not only good news for the farmers themselves, but for their customers, too.

Australia's vocal criticism of China's human rights record has long angered Beijing. When Canberra called for an investigation into the origin of the coronavirus in 2020, Beijing slapped high tariffs on some Australian products.

The carcasses of goats and sheep strewn across the scrubland of northern Kenya are testament to the devastation wrought by the once-in-a-generation floods that have hit the region. In just one area of Marsabit County, herders lost around 20,000 goats and sheep last week after the torrential rain, Roba Koto, the top government official in North Horr constituency, said.

A project is supporting agricultural innovation in rural Burkina Faso by connecting farmers using small easy-to-use transmitters. They can transmit FM broadcasts within a small town and its surrounding fields.

At least six people have died in floods that were sparked by heavy rainfall in the eastern state of Queensland.Scores of others have been evacuated, with authorities scrambling to respond to calls for help.

The war in Ukraine is shaking up the global agricultural sector. With sanctions blocking supplies from Russia, soaring prices caused by high demand for fertilizers from alternative producers are threatening crops.

French presidential candidates continue their charm offensive on the agricultural electorate. They hope to win the vote of farmers, who now make up only 1.5 percent of the active population but whose vote remains key. One contender has decided to skip the event, though: current frontrunner Emmanuel Macron. Plus, FRANCE 24's Florence Villeminot takes a deep dive into campaign finance laws in France.

At least 306 people have been killed in flooding around Durban in South Africa. On a visit to the stricken city, President Cyril Ramaphosa described the devastation as a "catastrophe of enormous proportions". Also, Amnesty International accuses Mali of stalling war crimes and abuse investigations. And after the French city of Bordeaux, the international tour of an exhibition highlighting the African experience heads to Abidjan in Ivory Coast.

Thousands have been displaced and scores are missing in what is considered to be one of the worst natural disasters on record. South Africa's weather service is warning of even more heavy rains.

The death toll from South Africa's unprecedented floods has risen to nearly 400. Police army and volunteers have widened the search, and the dozens of people still missing after the storm that devastated Durban over the weekend. In Senegal, citizens express their anger at the failures of the healthcare system after a pregnant woman died in hospital. And in South Sudan, the World Food Programme warns that millions are on the brink of hunger.

Thousands of troops have been deployed to South Africa's flood-ravaged KwaZulu-Natal province where residents are still searching for the missing more than a week after torrential rains began.

South Africa is grappling with one of the biggest natural disasters in the country's history. Floods killed more than 400 people and destroyed thousands of homes.