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Former Agric Minister calls for speedy passage of L.I to restrict the importation of agric products.

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The Former Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto is calling for speedy passage of the Legislative Instrument restricting importation of certain agricultural products.

Speaking at the launch of the 70th anniversary of the Faculty of Agriculture at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Dr. Afriyie Akoto said the delayed passage of L.I puts Ghanaian farmers at a disadvantage.

“12 of these products are agricultural products are cultivated by our farmers in Ghana.

“Our farmers are heavily disadvantaged under the current import regime. They desperately need a level playing field in order to compete effectively with their counterparts abroad,” he said.

In November 2023, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture pushed for the establishment of a regulation that will restrict the importation of what they call strategic products.

Some of the items include rice, fruit juices, innards, fish, cement, and some other 17 items.

However, the government suspended the L.I following massive opposition from various stakeholders including the minority in parliament.

The Vice-chancellor, Prof. Rita Akosua Dickson touted KNUST’s commitment to ensuring the growth of Ghana’s agricultural landscape.

“New frontiers of agriculture have emerged, coupled with the negative effects of climate change and the need for climate change adaptation mitigation strategies, all the new technologies including artificial intelligence, internet of things and what have you are going on around us.

“As a leading science and technology university in this country, we have a responsibility to ensure that technology works for us as a university and the country as we keep our eyes on food security and all the issues that are related to agriculture in this country. We have led the way and we must continue to lead the way,” she emphasized.

The Faculty of Agriculture has been instrumental in efforts to ensure sustainable agriculture in Ghana.

The Faculty has for over 70 years contributed to programmes such as the Danida Root and Tuber Value Chain Project, AUSAID Improved Yam Storage Project, Ghana Poultry Project (GPP) Youth mentorship Programme, Finatrade Foundation Model Farm Concept among others.

With a student population of over 5,000, the faculty has been particularly facing infrastructural challenges.

The Dean of the faculty, Prof Enoch Adjei Osekere called on alumni and other stakeholders to help curtail the challenges.

“Student numbers have not come with commensurate infrastructure, academic and other staff support. Our lecture space is highly inadequate, laboratories lack state-of-the-art equipment and teaching materials are almost outdated.

“These challenges have reduced the effectiveness of teaching, learning and hands-on experiences,” he stated.

Some distinguished alumni were awarded for their accomplishments in various sectors of the Ghanaian economy.

An alumni and former Minister for Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration, Hackman Owusu-Agyemang spoke about how the ideals of KNUST have positively impacted his life and career.

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Agriculture without investment is like dancing without music – Prof Eric Danquah

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The 2022 Africa Food Prize winner Prof. Eric Danquah has called on African governments to increase investments in the agricultural sector.

He said there is a frustrating lack of investments by African governments in agricultural science because there is a lot of short-term thinking by visionless leaders.

“Despite typically being farmers themselves, many African politicians mentally uncouple farming and science. They somehow expect smallholders to flourish even if research and development gets no money.

“But to paraphrase a former Tanzanian president, agriculture without investment is like dancing without music,” he said in an interview.

The founding director of the West Africa Centre for Crop Improvement (WACCI) at the University of Ghana said Africa cannot afford to keep on importing so much food.

“Spending foreign exchange on crops we could be growing locally is not only perverse but also unsustainable,” he said.

“When good African science gets into their hands, our farmers can compete, improve their livelihoods, and feed their countries,” he assured.

Prof. Danquah said African crop scientists must ensure that they are using the most efficient methods such as speed-breeding and other advanced technologies to develop better seeds for farmers.

“We have to keep abreast of what is happening elsewhere and be on the lookout for new, sometimes unexpected partnerships. At the same time, we must always align our science with societal needs,” he said.

“That means, for example, breeding varieties that help improve smallholders’ resilience rather than “only” tolerating a particular pest or disease.

“That’s a subtle mindset shift, but a vital one. And it means a greater focus on multi-disciplinary teams that develop, implement and learn together,” he noted.

The University of Ghana professor said the Covid pandemic was a big reminder of the fragility of African food supply chains.

“Here in Accra, as in most of the continent’s cities, informal channels play a crucial role in ensuring access to food and income.

“To tackle major challenges to the supply chain, African countries must meet their own needs locally. We can’t depend on imports,” he said.

He said African farmers could and should be more productive than they are currently.

“They deserve better varieties, developed locally…African crop science still lacks the critical mass required to serve the continent’s agriculture appropriately,” he said.

Prof. Danquah called for more efforts to tackle brain drain on the African continent. “International experience is highly valuable.

“Just look at all the places where our faculty trained! What matters is that Africans who study overseas then come back. And for WACCI, with its international intake, there is also an intra-continental aspect,” he said.

“One of the most rewarding sides to my job is seeing the impact that our alumni make back home. Former WACCI students are now spearheading crop improvement in more than 15 African countries.

“Who would have thought that would be possible 20 years ago? There were many doubters. But my WACCI team believes in young scientists, and they continue to justify that confidence,” he added.

Prof. Danquah observed that battling brain drain also requires high-quality organizations and facilities that encourage Africans to stay and work at home.

“We have to offer people a great place to work, in all respects. That’s why “People” are one of the five priorities in the University of Ghana’s 2024-29 Strategic Plan,” he said.

“In crop science, ambitious academics want top-class labs, greenhouses, and demo plots. And they need good long-term prospects – properly endowed fellowships, for example, not just a series of temporary grants. Nobody can live on a vague “we might extend it” from governments or donors,” he added.

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Apply Now: €250,000 For Your Food Security Technology Solution.

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In recent years, Africa has faced significant challenges in achieving food security, a situation exacerbated by factors such as climate change, population growth, and limited access to advanced agricultural technologies.

However, technology-powered solutions offer a promising path forward in addressing these challenges and improving food security across the continent. Agritech investments can build a more sustainable, resilient, and equitable food system that can combat climate change, reduce poverty and hunger, and empower marginalized groups.

€250,000 Kofi Annan Award

2023 Kofi Annan Award seeks to support technology-powered solutions and approaches that are helping to improve food security and systems in African countries. Social entrepreneurs with digital or technology-powered solutions for Africans should address one or more of the following priority topics:

  • Inclusion of marginalized groups in food security
  • Enhanced nutrition for women
  • Circular solutions and reduction of post-harvest losses

Nine promising teams will participate in a fully virtual Innovation Bootcamp to collaborate with technical and industry mentors and can apply for €250,000 equity-free funding. The three ventures selected to receive EUR 250,000 will also be welcomed into a WFP Sprint Programme. This 12-month acceleration program offers mentorship, a global network of influential partners, and resources designed to expedite growth and impact.

Apply Now! Deadline is February 8, 2024

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Apply Now: $5,000 Seed Grants For African Startup Business Entrepreneurs

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Seed funding for business entrepreneurs in Africa is vital for catalyzing economic growth and fostering innovation across a continent brimming with potential. Start-up funding enables local talent and ideas to address unique African challenges and unlocking market opportunities.

Entrepreneurs: Sign Up Now for Funding Emails

Financial support is crucial for job creation and reducing unemployment rates, especially among the youth. It also encourages diversity in economies largely dependent on a few sectors, reducing vulnerability to global market shifts. Entrepreneurs in Africa can drive significant social change, offering solutions tailored to local needs, and enhance global integration through business.

$5,000 Grants for African Entrepreneurs

Tony Elumelu Foundation Entrepreneurship Programme is open to Africans from all 54 African countries with scalable business ideas or a business that has been operational for no more than 3 years. The Foundation will distribute non-returnable seed capital of $5,000 to entrepreneurs seeking to turn their business dreams into reality.

Successful applicants will join the over 9,000 current beneficiaries, from 54 African countries, and receive business training, mentoring, seed capital, and global networking opportunities.

The Programme is a 10-year, $100 million commitment to identify, train, mentor and fund 10,000 young African entrepreneurs implementing the philosophy of Africapitalism, which positions the private sector as the growth engine for Africa and emphasises the importance of creating social and economic wealth.

Apply Now! Deadline is March 1, 2024

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Burkina Faso, Niger, Mali to decide fate of Ghanaian traders following ECOWAS ‘exit’

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There’s a looming diplomatic row as Burkina Faso’s Military leader Ibrahim Traoré has disclosed that his country will consult Mali and Niger to take a final decision on whether to allow Ghanaian traders and other West African nationals to do business in their countries.

He said a final determination would be made on the matter as consultation would first have to be made by leaders ofNiger Mali and Burkina Faso.

”We remain pan-African. Anyone in Africa or an African who wants to come to Burkina, is welcomed. We will decide what measures to take in due course regarding traders coming from Ghana, Nigeria and other West African countries),” he said.

The three nations officially announced last week that they were departing from the sub-regional ECOWAS trading bloc.

This raised fears from the Ghana Union of Traders (GUTA) which said its members import vegetables and other livestock from Mali Burkina Faso and Niger would be affected.

“This thing is going to affect us more than the other member states. We should bypass the ECOWAS to find an immediate solution,” Dr Joseph Obeng, President of the Union told Joy News.

He added “the cross border trading activities that goes on is going to be impacted negatively. Look at the cola nut that we ship to Niger, the onions that we bring from there and the tomatoes that we bring in.

“Also consider the bulk of things that the Burkinabes come to buy from us [in Ghana] so definitely it’s going to have a negative impact”.

Ibrahim Traore added that the departure from ECOWAS is well thought.

He added “it’s not a burst of anger. If it was an outburst, we would have done it a long time ago”.

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Disburse GH¢1.8m to farmers affected by Bird Flu – PAC orders Agric Ministry

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Parliament has directed the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) to provide compensation to farmers who suffered losses due to the avian influenza or Bird Flu outbreak between 2015 and 2018.

The 2022 Auditor General’s Report has revealed that a significant portion of the allocated compensation funds, exceeding GH¢1.8 million, remains unutilized in the Ministry’s account.

The Ministry of Agriculture contends that the funds have not been distributed because affected farmers have not communicated the necessary details to the Ministry.

However, during a Public Accounts Committee session, the committee’s chairman, James Klutse Avedzi, instructed the Agriculture Ministry to locate the affected farmers and disburse the funds within the next month.

“I am sure you have a list of the farms that are affected and a certificate for destroying the birds as well. All that you need is to have the affected farmers’ bank details to do the transfer and I am sure that you have the contact details of these farmers.

“So we are giving you one month to disburse the monies to them quickly. Call them so that they will give their bank details so you can do the transfer for them.”

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Importation Of Cocoa Started Over 20 years Ago, Ignore False Claims– COCOBOD

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The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) has clarified that all cocoa processing companies established in Ghana after November 2001 are legally allowed to import cocoa beans for processing within the country.

This statement comes in response to a misrepresentation on social media regarding the circulation of an official letter granting Afrotropic Cocoa Processing Company Limited permission to import cocoa beans for processing.

In its official statement issued February 4, 2024, COCOBOD called on the public to disregard the false claim derived from the leaked letter, emphasizing that the practice of importing cocoa beans is intended to assist companies in meeting their desired recipes for chocolate production and other purposes.

Regarding the leaked letter, COCOBOD expressed concern over misinterpretation on social media platforms and subsequent dissemination of misinformation. The board cleared the air, stating that all post-November 2001 cocoa processing companies in Ghana have the legal right to import cocoa beans for processing within the country.

The statement also shed light on the industry’s long-standing practice of blending Ghana’s premium cocoa with beans from other producing countries.

Ghana’s cocoa is known for its exceptional quality, and the importation of cocoa beans allows factories to manage costs and implement operational strategies effectively.

This practice, which has been in place for over 20 years, has enabled companies to import cocoa from countries such as Cote d’Ivoire, Togo, Nigeria, and Ecuador.

COCOBOD reiterated its commitment to ensuring the sustainability and growth of the cocoa industry in Ghana.

The board continues to explore innovative approaches to support cocoa processing companies, enabling them to maintain high standards and meet the demands of the chocolate market.

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Ghana Cocoa Board Clarifies Cocoa Importation Approval: Urges Public to Disregard Misinterpretation

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The Ghana Cocoa Board has approved the request of Afrotropic Cocoa Processing Limited to import 2,500 and 1,000 tons of cocoa from Cote D’Ivoire and Nigeria, respectively.

In a letter signed by the Chief Executive Officer of Cocobod, Hon. Joseph Boahen Aidoo, dated January 25, 2024, regarding the importation of cocoa beans from Cote D’Ivoire and Nigeria, he indicated that the importation must be done through the sea and must pass through the Tema port.

The CEO highlighted that Afrotropic Cocoa Processing Limited, upon receiving approval, must also go through the required process to obtain authorizations from state institutions like the Customs Division of the Ghana Revenue Authority before commencing the importation. Ghana Cocoa Board, therefore, requested Afrotropic to provide detailed information on the name of the vessel, shipment schedule, quantity of beans to be imported, and the expected date and time of arrival.

The Ghana Cocoa Board has noticed that there has been widespread circulation of this official letter to Afrotropic Cocoa Processing Company Limited, and it has been a subject of misinterpretation on social media, leading to misinformation.

The Ghana Cocoa Board, through their Public Affairs Department, has clarified the letter Cocobod wrote to Afrotropic Cocoa Processing Limited in a press release dated February 4, 2024, to address the misinterpretation of the letter.

The Board highlighted four clarifications to the letter:

  1.  All processing companies in Ghana established post-November 2001 are permitted by law to import cocoa beans for processing in Ghana.
  2.  The practice is to help the companies meet their desired recipes for chocolate production and other uses.
  3. Ghana’s cocoa is premium cocoa, and as part of cost management and operational strategy, companies often blend premium Ghana cocoa with less premium cocoa beans from other producing countries.
  4. It is an industry practice that has existed for over 20 years to allow factories to import from other countries, including Cote D’Ivoire, Togo, Nigeria, and Ecuador.

 The Ghana Cocoa Board, therefore, urges the public to disregard the misinterpretation of the letter leading to misinformation.

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Only 15.0% of farms in Ghana are commercialised – Report

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Only 15.0% of farms in Ghana are commercialized, C-Energy Global Holdings has stated.

It report on “Creating Agriculture Financing Schemes for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security” also revealed that only 4.0% of total bank lending in Ghana went into agriculture in the last five years.

The report said low mechanization, poor farm recordkeeping, poor rural transportation infrastructure, post-harvest losses, among others are the core challenges affecting the agriculture sector performance and hindering finance for the sector. Typically, agriculture portfolios are thin for all financier groups.

“Agriculture however remains rain fed and on a subsistence basis with only 15% of farms in Ghana commercialized. Low mechanization, poor farm recordkeeping, inadequate storage & processing capacities, poor rural transportation infrastructure and post-harvest losses are the core challenges affecting agriculture sector performance and disincentivizing financing for the sector”.

Considering the existing funding gaps, the report, said more interventions are expected from funds and financial institutions especially the Agriculture Development Bank and Ghana EXIM Bank whose core mandates include providing funding to actors in the agriculture value chain.

Ghana’s agriculture economy is valued at about $12.6 billion. The sector contributed an average of 20% to Gross Domestic Product in the last five years.

Cash crops and other commodity exports from agriculture account for 20-25% of total export revenues for the nation.

The sector is also responsible for employing over 35% of the total employed labor force.

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The UN International Day of Women and Girls in Science comes off on 11 February

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The UN International Day of Women and Girls in Science, celebrated on 11th February, is an annual international day event to recognize the critical role women and girls play in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

In Ghana, the Day is usually designated to promote STEM education among girls. It is also used to project women in STEM-related fields and their achievements to motivate more girls to venture into male-dominated fields. Since 2019, the Greater Accra Regional Unit of the Ghana Education Service (STMIE/STEM Unit) has been collaborating with several stakeholders to commemorate this important occasion. 

This year, the STMIE/STEM Unit, in collaboration with Women in Engineering (WIE) and Anchor Resource Management and Trading LTD (ANCHOR), will be celebrating the Day by focusing on women in agribusiness and engineering. The overall objective is to use the Day as a platform to draw attention to the strong linkages between STEM disciplines and Agribusiness, and thus expose the students or girls to appreciate the good side of agriculture and the numerous opportunities available to help them to be independent and to live a sustainable lifestyle.

The Day will be commemorated worldwide under the theme: “Women in Science Leadership: A New Era for Sustainability”.   

Brief background

Gender equality has always been a core issue for the United Nations. It is an undeniable fact that gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls will make a crucial contribution not only to economic development of the world, especially Africa, but also to progress across all the goals and targets of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Yet, there exists a significant gender gap across all the various economic and developmental actors, globally. Typically, gender gap has persisted throughout the years at all levels of STEM disciplines all over the world. Even though women have made tremendous progress towards increasing their participation in higher education, they are still under-represented in these fields.

In Africa, for example, only 30% of science professionals are females. Ghana follows this trend; only 14% of all students attending university are females and women made up 26% of PhD graduates in 2018. (Sources: UNESCO Science Report, 2021 & UNDP Ghana)

On 22nd December 2015, the United Nations General Assembly met to adopt resolution 70/212 titled “International Day of Women and Girls in Science”. This resolution formally proclaimed February 11 as the annual observation of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science.

2. Benefits to participants: Participants especially students or girls will have the platform to connect and network with industry experts and players in agrifood systems, engineering, and other related field of interests.  Especially to:

(a) Expose students to the women (leaders) who are breaking bounds to better the lives of people in their society.

(b) Promote mentorship and career development to supports the next generation of women leaders in STEM

(c) Urge students to cultivate the spirit of entrepreneurship while schooling

(d) Use STEM to create employment for a sustainable lifestyle.

 3. Proposed activities, 3 main (key highlights):  

(a) An industrial tour to 2 agro-processing companies (Friday, 9th February, 2024). The objective of the tour is to expose STEM students to practical working environment with theoretical learning and pave the way for them to gain more insights into the industries. 

(b) Sports (Sunday, 11th February, 2024):  Health walk in the morning and other sport activities including athletics, football, indoor games, volleyball, table tennis, etc.

(c) Workshop (Monday, 12th February, 2024): Main features include –

i. Pitching of products from agribusiness women and exhibition of science projects.

ii. Training session including best farming practices and types, products, agrotech, agribusiness, data analytics, climate technology, etc.

iii. Talks including health and wellness, links between STEM and Agrofood Systems, strategic leadership, career counseling (science, agribusiness, and its affiliates).

The venue for the Sports and Workshop activities is at Knutsford University College, East Legon, Accra.

4. Eligibility: Players within the agrifood systems, engineering, science and other fields especially women, students (including upper primary, secondary, and tertiary levels) civil society organisations, private sector, etc.  Target size: 300 participants

5. Support needed: Cash or kind donations are highly welcomed. The target is to raise a total of GH¢101,100. This is geared towards social mobilization, refreshments and the training of the students.

6. Contact details: +233 24 707 9969, +233 24 408 5614, +233 24 477 0615

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