Formerly one of the country’s breadbaskets, the Northern Region of Ghana suffers from widespread food insecurity and poverty. Only 10 percent of the region’s land area is currently cultivated, but there is great potential for the production of staple food crops such as rice and soybean.
Agriculture in the region is largely rain-fed, causing production levels to vary according to weather conditions. Smallholder farmers have very limited access to improved seeds, quality fertilizers and the credit to purchase them. They also lack knowledge of proper crop and water management practices. Often, farmers are unable to sell their production because of post-harvest losses and a shortage of storage and processing facilities.
To address these issues, the Agricultural Value Chain Mentorship Project is contributing to the government’s objective of achieving food security and developing the region’s agricultural sector into an agro-industrial economy. The goal is to transform the agricultural value chain into a highly productive, efficient, competitive and sustainable system by strengthening the capacity of agro-dealers, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and farmer-based organizations (FBOs). Funded by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa and the Danish International Development Agency, the three-year project (2011-2014) will target 34,000 smallholder farmers and 680 FBOs.
The project is implemented by IFDC, the Ghana Agricultural Associations Business and Information Center (GAABIC) and the Savanna Agricultural Research Institute (SARI). IFDC’s role is to increase rice and soybean farmers’ access to output markets by building the entrepreneurial and technical capacity of SMEs. This includes strengthening SMEs’ linkages with domestic, national and international markets, agro-dealers, agribusiness service providers, FBOs and farmers. IFDC will increase SMEs’ access to commercial finance and farmers’ access to storage facilities and processing services.
GAABIC will improve agro-dealers’ business management skills and their capacity to provide customers with fertilizers and seeds. SARI will train FBOs and their farmer-members in integrated soil fertility management (IFSM) and encourage its widespread adoption.
Through the mentorship of stakeholders along the agricultural value chain, business growth and productivity are expected to continue after the project ends.