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Danger looms as drought hits Volta Region rice production.

The site of a rice farm plagued by drought in the Volta Region.

The Ghana Rice Inter-Professional Body (GRIB) has revealed that rice production in the Volta Region of Ghana faces bleak consequences this year due to ongoing drought conditions which are disrupting production in some parts of the Region.

According to the body, farmers in the Akatsi North and South districts in the Volta Region have been gravely affected by poor rainfall patterns and are likely to lose their entire output for the 2021/2022 season.

“In Ketu South alone, over 700 hectares of rice have been lost to the drought. “The problem covers several areas including Kpoglu, Avalavi, Klenomadi and Avie in Ketu North, Akatsi in Akatsi South, Tongu Districts, Afadzato South District and Hohoe Municipal areas,” the President said.

This comes as a blow to the sector, which is an attempt to wean the country off rice importation by achieving self-sufficiency in production by 2025.

As if that is not enough, the affected farmers will have to wait till next year before they can earn some income.

Speaking to the reporter, President of GRIB Nana Agyei Ayeh II said some members of the farmers reached out to him to ascertain the situation and find a solution to the looming danger.

The President, together with some of the officials of the John A. Kufuor Foundation paid a working visit to the farms, and on their observation, several hectares of rice under cultivation are lost due to climate change and low levels of rainfall in these communities.

The woes of the farmers are further exacerbated by the huge investments they have already made in land preparation, seeds, and fertilizer.

However, the provisional production figures by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) indicate that about 973, 000 metric tonnes of rice were produced in Ghana in 2020. But, this figure could be hard to match in 2021 if the current situation persists.

Nana Agyei Ayeh II revealed that the existing dam structure which was built to harvest water to irrigate the farmlands is in a dire state of disrepair, leaving farmers at the mercy of the harsh weather conditions.

“We cannot continue with rain-fed agriculture. As you can see, this year, farmers have lost their investments simply because the rains failed them.

We would like to appeal to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to provide dugouts for these areas. These will aid in water conservations for the purposes of irrigation in such times like what we facing now” he added.

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Ivory Coast cocoa producers suffer amid global price fall

Cocoa beans dried on tarps in the sun in Aboisso town square in southeastern Ivory Coast before being returned to the warehouse where they had already spent several damp months, symbolising the crisis in the world’s top cocoa producer.

In the Ivory Coast, the purchase price paid to growers is set by the state. In early October, just before the presidential election that saw Alassane Ouattara re-elected, it reached 2,800 CFA francs (nearly five dollars) per kilo—an unprecedented level.

But after peaking at the end of 2024, global cocoa prices began to slide in the summer of 2025, mainly due to the return of abundant production after years of shortages, and the Ivorian purchase price became too high.

Exports slowed, stocks piled up in the warehouses of agricultural cooperatives — intermediaries between producers and exporters, operating like consignment depots — and many growers were not paid.

In early March, in an effort to halt the crisis in a sector that accounts for 14 percent of GDP and supports five million people, the Ivorian government drastically cut the purchase price of cocoa paid to growers to 1,200 CFA francs.

A few weeks after this decision, in the Aboisso warehouses, the beans continue to deteriorate from prolonged exposure to tropical humidity.

“We have to, from time to time, expose them to the sun to limit the damage. Otherwise, the mould gets into the product, and we won’t know where to sell it,” Dongo Yao Kra, 49, told AFP.

He is president of the Socoopagos cooperative, which works with around 2,300 growers in the Sud-Comoe region.

“The more time we waste, the more quality we lose,” Yao Kra said.

Part of the stock was harvested before the price cut, and the cooperative must still honour the previously locked-in price of 2,800 CFA francs a kilo.

“It’s a real headache,” complained Yao Kra, who calculated the total — and unfeasible — cost his cooperative faced at 230 million CFA francs.

– ‘Deserve to be respected’ –

A crisis meeting called by the cooperative last week gathered around 50 cocoa growers in Songan, a village three hours by dirt road north of Aboisso.

Heated exchanges in French and the local Maninka language erupted, especially over the timing of the price cut.

“It’s as if they stopped a football match halfway through to change the rules,” fumed father-of-five Antoine Ouattara Sie Kouabou, 54, who is still waiting for what he’s owed for his 830 kilos of cocoa beans.

Some growers worry about returning to their fields where the labourers they normally employ are also waiting for their pay.

In January, the Coffee Cocoa Council, which regulates the sector, said it would buy back any unsold beans. However, the Socoopagos cooperative said only 45 out of 380 stored tonnes had been taken. They grumble that a government promise to guarantee prices in hard times using a Cocoa Council reserve fund had not been kept.

“It’s a scam, they deceived us,” charged Dolford Diby, 55, who is only getting by because he also has a rubber plantation and is involved in pig farming.

“This country is built on agriculture; we deserve to be respected,” he added.

– ‘Up to the state’ –

“Would you agree to be paid 1,200 CFA francs?” ventured a cooperative member to the agitated growers, referring to the still unsold pre-March produce.

Frowns and groans met the suggestion. “No!” one said resolutely, standing up. “We don’t agree,” said another, waving a receipt that says he is owed the 2,800 CFA franc rate.

Similar grumbles and rebukes have been heard in Duekoue in the west of the country, grower and trade unionist Yao Yao told AFP.

“It’s up to the state to take matters into its own hands or the exporters,” he said.

Last week, Obed Blonde Doua, vice president of the Coffee-Cocoa Interprofessional Organisation, told reporters that between 57,000 and 60,000 tonnes of cocoa still lay unclaimed out of the 100,000-tonne backlog that had been inventoried in cooperative warehouses.

The Coffee Cocoa Council did not respond to AFP’s requests for comment.

“Let’s make sure that producers can earn the 2,800 CFA francs on the remaining stock,” urged Blonde Doua, “so that the social climate can be peaceful.”

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Farmer Services Centre is to transform Ghana’s agriculture for wealth creation for every farmer – Agric Minister

Mechanization is critical to transforming agriculture by improving efficiency, increase crop yields, reduce reliance on human power, and facilitate precision farming.

To alleviate economic hardship and improve the livelihood of the farmers, the government under the leadership of H.E John Dramani Mahama has introduce an initiative called Farmer Services Centre that aims at providing mechanization services to farmers in the farming regions.

At the sod cutting ceremony at Takoratwene in the Kwahu Afram Plains South, the Minister for Food and Agriculture, Hon. Eric Opoku mentioned that the farmers services centre is agriculture transformation that seeks to improve farmers livelihood.

According to President, Minister said no farmer should be living in destitute. Farmers in European countries and Americas are the worthy ones, however, it is adverse in the part of our world.

To achieve this, Minister said the farmers should conform to the cooperative formation that will enhance farmers data gathering to enable easy access to credit facilities to expand their agriculture activities.

“We are collating the data of every farmer on our system, therefore, we urge every farmer to register in the system called Akuafo Anidaso to enable easy and equal distribution of services to our cherished farmers,” he added.

It is the aim of the government to establish the service centres across all the 271 agriculture districts in the country but in the meantime the government would be providing 50 services centres.

To fuel the efficient use of the service centre coupling with year round production, the government has set up 2 irrigation schemes at Afram Plains. Minister explained that one irrigation system at Kunadu would irrigate 900 hectares of farmland and by 7th to 9th month it should be ready to provide water for the farmers.

Moreover, to curb food glut and provide ready market for the farmers in the region, according to the Minister, the government in partnership with African Golden Foods, a UK company to put up a processing factory, to purchase the food crops that would be produced in the region for value addition.

He debunked the allegations of issuing permits for the importation of maize to the country and emphasized that the NDC government has not issued any permit to anyone to import maize into the country. However, it is the will of the government to purchase the locally produced maize to improve the livelihoods of the farmers.

“Due to the dry spell that occurred in 2024, the past government gave permits to some people to import maize to supplement the locally produced maize, upon the arrival some of these people are expecting the government to give them tax exemption to those goods but the government did not grant this exemption making the goods hoarded at the warehouses,” he explained.

He highlighted that the President has urged the Ministry of Education to purchase the egg gluts to feed the school children as part of school feeding programme. This became necessary when poultry farmers lamented of egg gluts collapsing their businesses.

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Reverse the decision that excludes artisanal fishermen from annual the fishing closed season – Prof. Aggrey-Fynn

Professor Joseph Aggrey-Fynn, a Professor of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences at the University of Cape Coast (UCC), has entreated government to reverse its decision excluding artisanal fishermen from the annual fishing closed season.

He said the exemption was not scientific and did not augur well for the replenishment efforts, as the artisanal fishermen also contributed significantly to the depletion of the fish stock.

Delivering his inaugural lecture, Prof Aggrey-Fynn insisted that efforts to replenish the country’s dwindling fish stock required the participation of all players.

“Closed season is for all categories of fishers but this year, we excluded the canoe fishermen. It is not the best because they are all part of the problem.

“We are not saying that they are causing the illegality, but they are part of the problem and so why do you have to take them out?” he queried.

Prof Aggrey-Fynn, also the Founding Director of the Institute for Oil and Gas, UCC, delivered his lecture on the topic: “Ghana’s declining fisheries resources: Reality or myth.”

He highlighted the contributions of the fisheries sector to the Ghanaian economy and food security, indicating that it contributed 1.2 per cent to the national GDP and provided 60 per cent of the annual protein needs.

However, he observed a fast depletion of the fish stock, particularly the sardinella species, due to overexploitation, poor fisheries management, and some climatic conditions.

Experts and policymakers have introduced the annual fishing closed season as a mitigation measure, but the implementation is characterised by pushbacks and complaints of hardship from fishing communities every year.

In spite of the inconvenience it brought to the fishers, Prof Aggrey-Fynn maintained that it was a necessary measure.

He acknowledged the poverty in many fishing communities and proposed that fishermen must be given supplementary livelihoods to reduce their dependency on fishing.

“If you go to some fishing communities, some of the fishermen are richer than us, the lecturers.

“But it is only a few of them who are making the money and so we have to give them some opportunities which will improve their lives,” he said.

Prof Aggrey-Fynn called for a change in taste for overexploited, overpriced, and endangered aquatic species like squid, shrimps, and snappers, to lesser-known but equally tasty fish species, to check the depletion.

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Forests remain one of the most valuable natural assets in Ghana – RESCONI

The Resource Conservation Initiative – RESCONI has emphasized that forests remain one of the most valuable natural assets underpinning environmental sustainability and socio-economic development, particularly in developing countries like Ghana.

The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed 21 March the International Day of Forests (IDF) and 2026 is themed “Forests and Economies” The theme highlights the critical role forests play in driving sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction, highlighting that economic development and environmental sustainability can go hand-in-hand.

The Programme Officer for Resource Conservation Initiative – RESCONI, Akosua Pokua Boakye underscored the need and importance of this day on the global environmental calendar.

She mentioned that, it’s important to achieve the SDG goals because globally, forests support over 1.6 billion people and host more than 80% of terrestrial biodiversity, reinforcing its importance in both economic resilience and ecological stability.

“In Ghana, the forestry sector continues to play a vital role in national development. The sector contributes significantly to employment and export earnings, supporting over 100,000 direct and indirect jobs and generating substantial foreign exchange through timber exports.

“Also, non-timber forest products such as mushrooms, medicinal plants, bushmeat, and fuelwood provide income, nutrition, and healthcare support for many rural households.

“The country’s economy, which is largely dependent on natural resources and rain-fed agriculture, is therefore closely linked to the health and sustainability of its forest ecosystems” she added.

RESCONI events

In commemoration of the day, the Resource Conservation Initiative- RESCONI in collaboration with the Renewable Natural Resources Students Association of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (RENARSA-KNUST) undertook an Inter-Program Quiz Competition and Media Engagement activities with Focus FM (Focus FM Visitation) a campus-based radio station.

These activities aimed at promoting knowledge sharing and public engagement. The competition brought together students from Forest Resource Technology, Natural Resource Management, and Environmental Science in the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology.

The quiz was designed to deepen student understanding of forestry concepts, climate change issues, biodiversity conservation, and sustainable resource management.

The Media Engagement (Focus FM Visitation) engaged the students and general public through an educational discussion on Focus FM.

It highlighted the economic importance of forests, emerging environmental challenges, and the role of youth in advancing conservation and sustainable forestry practices.

Students

Tahiru Saani, 3rd year student from Forest Resource Technology, Natural Resource Management, and Environmental Science in the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology said the activities have strengthened awareness on the economic importance of forests and its significant roles in the economic development of the country.

“The event encouraged critical thinking, and promote active participation of the youth in forest conservation efforts” he added.

RESCONI awarded cash price of GH₵ 700.00, learning materials and certificate to Forest Resources Technology for winning the Inter-Program Quiz Competition, Natural Resources Management also took home cash price of GH₵ 300.00, learning materials and certificate and Environmental Science was awarded educational materials and certificate.

RESCONI reaffirmed its commitment to environmental sustainability, capacity building, and youth-driven advocacy and calls on all stakeholders to support sustainable forest management practices and safeguard forest resources for future generations.

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Cattle prices hit GH₵ 25000 at Techiman ahead of Eid-Al-Fitr festivities

Livestock traders at the Techiman Cattle Market are reporting a positive turn in fortunes as the Muslim community prepares for the climax of the holy month of Ramadan.

Adom News Bono East Correspondent Wiafe Akenten, who visited the market, reports that despite a deceptively quiet atmosphere at the market grounds on Thursday, March 19, dealers insist that the current stability of the Ghana Cedi has provided a much-needed boost to their business operations ahead of the 2026 Eid-Al-Fitr celebrations.

The market, a major hub for livestock in the region, has become a focal point for activity as families and religious organisations look to secure cattle for the upcoming festivities.

For many years, the cattle trade in Ghana has been heavily influenced by the fluctuating value of the local currency, particularly because a significant portion of the livestock is sourced from neighbouring Sahelian countries. Cattle dealers noted that the relative calmness of the Cedi in recent weeks has stabilised the cost of importing and transporting animals.

While a three-hour observation at the market saw few immediate transactions, the traders were adamant that the underlying business climate is far superior to previous years. They attributed this to more predictable pricing, which has encouraged buyers to commit to purchases earlier than usual.

A survey of the Techiman Cattle Market reveals that prices for a single bull now range from GH₵ 7,000 to a staggering GH₵ 25,000, depending on the animal’s size and breed.

While the figures may appear daunting to the average consumer, traders in the Bono East Region maintain that the prices are a fair reflection of the current economic climate. They maintain that the relative stability of the Cedi has actually prevented even higher price points, which were feared earlier in the year.

The Bono East Regional Chief of Fulanis, Sariki Fulani Amadu Halidu, shared his perspective on the market dynamics, noting that the economic environment has finally aligned in favour of the traders

“The market is good as compared to previous years ahead of the Salla festivities,” Sariki Halidu noted during an interaction, highlighting that the currency stability has trickled down to benefit both the sellers and the final consumers.

Other traders echoed the Chief’s sentiments, explaining that while the physical “rush” at the market may appear lower than in peak years, the volume of pre-arranged sales and bulk orders has increased.

However, some dealers cautioned that while the Cedi remains stable, the high cost of animal feed and fuel for transportation still poses a challenge to their overall profit margins.

They expressed hope that the government would continue to maintain the current economic trajectory to ensure that the livestock sector remains viable throughout the year.

As the region gears up for the Friday celebrations, the Techiman market remains a barometer for the local economy, reflecting a cautious but firm sense of recovery within the agricultural trade sector.

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Government to interrogate Burkina Faso tomato export ban further – Dumelo

The Deputy Minister for Food and Agriculture, John Dumelo, has raised concerns over Burkina Faso’s decision to ban tomato exports, saying the government must “further interrogate” the policy and seek clarity on its implications for Ghana.

Speaking on JoyNews Pulse on March 19, Mr Dumelo said he had only recently come across a memo on the development and was yet to verify the full details behind the decision.

“With a ban on the tomato export, it’s something that we need to further interrogate. I read a memo yesterday and [it’s] something that I need to find out whether it’s true and why they’ve banned it,” he said, adding that authorities will engage further to determine the way forward.

His comments come at a critical time, as Burkina Faso has officially banned the export of fresh tomatoes effective March 16, 2026, in a move aimed at boosting local industrialisation and ensuring a steady supply for domestic processing factories.

The policy, which includes the suspension of all Special Export Authorisations, is expected to significantly affect Ghana, which relies on Burkina Faso for about 90% of its tomato supply an annual trade valued at over $400 million. The development has already begun triggering price increases in local markets.

Mr Dumelo linked the situation to government’s ongoing efforts to reduce import dependence through local production, particularly in northern Ghana.

He revealed that he had, over the past year, been engaging farmers across several communities to scale up tomato cultivation, especially during the dry season.

“I went to some communities in the north to encourage them to produce tomatoes in the dry season and when I went back, most of them had listened to the advice and were doing quite well,” he noted.

According to him, areas such as Garu, Zare, Tempane and Talensi recorded encouraging yields, with many farmers already harvesting tomatoes. He added that farmers have expressed interest in expanding production, pending government support.

“I encouraged them to let me know the support that they need to scale up for the next dry season and most of them were extremely excited,” he said.

The Deputy Minister further stressed that while Ghana’s reliance on imports particularly from Burkina Faso may not end immediately, sustained investment in local production could change the outlook within a few years.

“Government is committed to helping them scale up production it might not end almost immediately, but I think that within three or four years, we should be self-sufficient when it comes to tomato production,” he stated.

Mr Dumelo also highlighted ongoing interventions under the West African Food Systems Resilience Programme (FSRP), including pilot projects at the Vea Irrigation Dam in Navrongo and trials in Akumadan, which are expected to boost output.

He expressed optimism that increased production could begin to reflect in the markets by the end of the year, with significant improvements anticipated in 2027.

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Climate change could pose a major risk to cassava in Africa: study sets out what can be done now

Cassava is a starchy, tuberous root, introduced to sub-Saharan Africa by Portuguese traders centuries ago. It is a nutrition lifeboat for over 800 million people worldwide.

Sub-saharan Africa contributes over 63% of the world’s total cassava production. Nigeria alone grows over 20% of the world’s cassava, which is also the continent’s second most important staple food crop. It can produce a reasonable harvest even when soil quality is poor, rainfall is low, or when it has not been fertilised much.

In Africa, cassava is now grown in humid and sub-humid tropical regions, including Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda and Mozambique.

A warming climate is both the strength and the weakness of this crop. Cassava will be able to thrive in more places, but so will a deadly virus that kills the plant.

I was part of a team that aimed to predict and map where cassava and cassava brown streak disease might spread between now and 2080. We used computer models and climate data to do this.

Our results show that:

  • Over half of Africa is currently suitable for cassava farming. This could grow to nearly two thirds of the continent’s land area in future.
  • The disease already affects 33.7% of cassava production, but about 56.6% of the continent is at risk of the disease spreading.

This is because as the weather heats up, populations of whiteflies (Bemisia tabaci) expand. These spread the disease from plant to plant. This will be a threat to African food security.

Mapping the trends shows where people could plant disease-tolerant or resistant plant varieties as soon as possible.

Areas at the highest risk of disease outbreaks can be prioritised, along with the areas where it will be warm enough in future for cassava to grow. We suggest that national and international controls on the movement of cassava planting material must be tightly controlled to prevent the disease spreading.

Mapping where cassava can grow now and in a warmer future

Using scientific studies and data from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility, we set up a computer modelling approach that looked at where cassava and the disease have been found already, where the plant might expand under warmer conditions, and where the hotter climate would cause the disease to spread.

Our model identified that the environment in about 54.6% of Africa’s land area – about 16.2 million square kilometres – is currently suitable for cassava to grow, survive and extend. This includes countries such as South Sudan, Sudan, Somalia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, where there isn’t yet data on cassava.

Our model also showed that as the climate warms, a further 2.1 million square kilometres will become highly suitable. This area is concentrated in coastal west African nations including Guinea, Sierra Leone, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Togo, Benin, Nigeria and Cameroon, as well as parts of central and east Africa.

Under future climate scenarios, both the suitable and highly suitable areas are projected to expand. Our research forecasts a 56%-60% increase in cassava-suitable habitats by 2050. Cassava will be able to flourish for the first time from the east coast of South Africa through Mozambique and into northern Madagascar.

This might seem positive for food security. Cassava’s resilience to global warming could help buffer African agriculture against climate shocks that threaten other staples like maize and beans.

However, this encouraging picture darkens considerably when considered alongside projections of future outbreaks of cassava brown streak disease.

Disease threat – is cassava safe?

A photo of a cassava cut in half with rotten parts on the inside - it has cassava brown streak disease
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture/Flickr

We estimated the risk of the disease by identifying places where the disease already occurs and looking at places that have similar temperature, rainfall and environmental conditions. We then ranked these new places on their suitability for the disease.

We found that about 33.7% of Africa’s land area (10.2 million square kilometres) is currently at risk of cassava brown streak disease invasion. East Africa is the hotspot, particularly Tanzania, Uganda and south-east Democratic Republic of Congo.

Our model also shows that if the climate continues to warm as it is doing, 55%-57% of Africa’s land area will be vulnerable to the cassava disease by 2050.

The models even predict that the disease will spread west into regions currently free of it. This includes Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Benin, Nigeria and Cameroon – zones that are current cassava production powerhouses.

Nigeria is Africa’s largest cassava producer, producing over 60 million tons annually. It faces potential disease introduction through two entry points: the borders of DR Congo with Congo and the Central African Republic.

How the cassava brown streak disease spreads

Cassava grows best in areas where temperatures are fairly stable and warm (about 25°C-35°C). Very high or very low temperatures can stop its growth.

The disease spread depends on two factors. The first is cultivation practices. Farmers frequently reuse planting materials from previous seasons. If these are infected, the disease will spread to newly planted fields.

The second factor is the way in which the whitefly, which spreads the disease, adapts to climate change. Warm conditions make it easier for the insect to survive, reproduce and spread into new areas.

Cassava’s resilience has underpinned African food security for centuries. Matching that natural resilience with human ingenuity and evidence-based policy will decide the crop’s future on the continent.

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Current Cocoa Pricing Mechanisms fail to protect farmers – COFAAA

The Cocoa Farmers Alliance Association of Africa has raised serious concerns that existing cocoa pricing models are failing to protect farmers across Africa.

In a statement released on Thursday, COFAAA Global President, Adeola Adegoke, said, “these systems were designed to stabilise prices in cocoa-producing countries, but in practice, prices have been quickly adjusted to match international market fluctuations.“

Instead of providing stability and protection, the current models are leaving farmers vulnerable to the volatility of the global cocoa market.

”The organisation noted that despite the historic cocoa price boom in 2024, when international prices reached about $12,000 per metric tonne, many farmers, particularly in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana, did not fully benefit due to semi-regulated and fully regulated market systems.

COFAAA highlighted that the downturn in cocoa prices over the past year has affected all origin countries in Africa and has dampened the enthusiasm generated during the 2024 price surge.

Adegoke emphasized that while global chocolate consumption continues to rise, African cocoa farmers still face low incomes, child labor risks, limited access to education, poor infrastructure, inadequate healthcare, and security threats such as illegal mining—challenges that threaten the long-term sustainability of the sector.

To address these issues, COFAAA has established the Global Members Assembly and Empowerment Forum.

The forum aims to evaluate the current situation, develop a continental position on cocoa pricing, and explore ways to support farmers through inputs and safety nets.

Adegoke stressed that Africa produces 70% of the world’s cocoa, with Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana alone accounting for 60%, yet the continent captures less than 6% of the $147 billion global chocolate market.

Adegoke also mentioned that cocoa farmers across Africa have raised fresh concerns over the effectiveness of the Living Income Differential (LID), questioning its ability to cushion the impact of falling global cocoa prices and improve farmer livelihoods.

“It is concerned that despite the sharp downturn in cocoa prices over the past year, the impact of the Living Income Differential has not been as strong as many had hoped,” the statement read.

COFAAA further questioned the long-term sustainability of the LID, asking whether it can serve as a reliable tool across varying economic cycles or if its impact depends on specific market dynamics.

While reaffirming support for the initiative, the group called on key institutions, including the Conseil du Café-Cacao, Ghana COCOBOD, and the Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana Cocoa Initiative—to provide clarity on the current status and future direction of the LID.

According to him, such guidance, would be critical for other cocoa-producing countries in Africa considering similar income-support frameworks.

The concerns come amid a broader downturn in global cocoa prices over the past year, which has affected farmers across major producing countries, including Nigeria, Cameroon, Uganda, and Sierra Leone.

According to the statement, public engagement for the initiative will begin on March 21, 2026, through a virtual session designed to encourage broader participation, strengthen collaboration, and advance a more sustainable future for Africa’s cocoa industry.

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Final-year student killed by bees on school campus

A 21-year-old final-year student at the A.M.E Zion Senior High School in the Central Region has died after being attacked by bees on the school premises.

The deceased, Emmanuella Quainoo, had enrolled at the private school for remedial classes to improve her science scores following an earlier WASSCE attempt. Around 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, she was reportedly swarmed by bees while on campus.

Despite being rushed to a nearby hospital, Emmanuella could not survive the attack. Medical staff reportedly recommended urgent treatment, including a blood transfusion, but her condition rapidly deteriorated.

Speaking to Citi News on Thursday, March 19, her grandmother, Vida Ayi Mensah, expressed deep sorrow over the incident.

She recounted, “We heard she had been attacked by bees at school, so we rushed there and took her to the hospital. She passed away the next day.

“We saw the doctors attending to her. She asked us to buy medications, which we had already done, and they also said she’d need a blood transfusion. While at the pharmacy, I was called that she had died, so I didn’t proceed with the drugs.”

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Ghana can be self-sufficient in tomatoes in four years – Dumelo

The Ministry of Food and Agriculture has urged farmers to intensify dry-season farming to boost local production of tomatoes and stabilise food supply, following Burkina Faso’s ban on tomato exports.

The directive by the Burkinabè government announced in a joint statement issued in Ouagadougou imposed an immediate nationwide halt on tomato exports “until further notice” to prioritise domestic supply for local processing industries.

The measure also suspends the issuance of Special Export Authorisations (ASE), effectively shutting down formal export channels. Traders with existing permits have been given a two-week window to complete ongoing transactions before all authorisations are revoked.

Authorities in Burkina Faso have warned that violations will attract sanctions under existing laws, adding that seized consignments will be redirected to local processing factories.

Reacting to the development, Deputy Minister for Food and Agriculture, John Dumelo, said Ghana must take steps to reduce its reliance on imported tomatoes by strengthening local production.

Speaking in an interview on Joy News on Thursday, March 19, 2026, he expressed optimism that sustained efforts could significantly reduce reliance on imports within a few years.

He acknowledged that Ghana may not immediately stop sourcing tomatoes from Burkina Faso but expressed optimism that sustained investment in local farming could change the situation in the medium term.

“For us, going to Burkina Faso for tomatoes might not end immediately, but once they get encouraged, within three or four years, we should be self-sufficient when it comes to tomato production,” he said.

Additionally, the deputy Agriculture Minister noted that the farmers must scale up dry-season production of tomatoes, promising that the ministry is committed to assisting farmers with whatever it takes to produce tomatoes, especially during this ban.

“I am yet to get the reason why the Burkina Faso government announced the ban and the details that come with it. But last year, I was in the Northern Region, and I urged them to produce tomatoes in the dry season. This dry season, I went back, and most of them are doing just that,” he said.

“I told them to let me know what they need to help them scale up production, especially in the next dry season… The government is committed to helping them to scale up production,” he added.

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