AGRA president Dr. Agnes Kalibata is urging African governments to prioritise intra-regional trade on the continent to help ensure food security.
Speaking at the Food+ Forum on the sidelines of the 78th United Nations General Assembly, she expressed concern; “Intra-Africa trade is currently at 15%. Africa does not trade with itself on food. Africa gets food from everywhere else except Africa.”
“There exist opportunities for the continent to eat what we produce, and produce what we eat. This is the food systems transformation needed for the continent,” she said.
Organised by the Foreign Policy Magazine, Dr. Kalibata spoke on the theme; “Tilling the Future: Transformational Solutions in Agriculture.” It was moderated by Foreign Policy CEO and publisher, Andrew Sollinger.
She said that to continue transforming agri-food systems, Africa needs to address climate change as an urgent and pressing problem that demands immediate attention.
“The hunger we are seeing is a combination of so many things. But the bottom line of it all is the issue of climate change.
“Africa will struggle to feed itself if we don’t deal with the issue of climate change… This is a whole combination of things we are seeing and it will get worse,” she warned.
She called for immediate actions to “ensure smallholder farmers have the resilience needed for sustainable farming, and are planning ahead.”
“Africa needs to foster resilience in agriculture. Doing so, we’ll secure our future and also create vital employment opportunities,” she said.
Dr. Kalibata said Africa needs to prioritise indigenous crops and diversify the kind of crops grown on the continent to survive climate change.
“Africa has a diversity of commodity crops. We need to tap into this diversity more. For example, Africa has surprised the world in surviving the Russia – Ukraine Crisis, because of this diversity,” she said. “We need to market African indigenous crops more,” she added.
The AGRA boss called for “a different transformational plan for Africa’s food security.” “We need a Marshall plan that will invest in the food systems in real-time,” she added.
AfDB’s $25 billion food security goal progressing well, with $12 billion worth of food already produced.
AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina aims to eliminate food insecurity in Africa within five years, citing technology and financing capabilities.
Climate challenges, global grain market disruptions, and nutrition crises underscore the urgency of AfDB’s efforts to enhance food security in Africa.
The $25 billion goal of the African Development Bank (AfDB) is “well on track,” according to AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina, whose organization supports programs in over 30 African nations that have contributed to the production of almost $12 billion worth of food.
“As far as I’m concerned, we shouldn’t be talking about food security in Africa more than five years from now. There’s no reason for it,” the AfDB president disclosed to the American news agency, Reuters. “We have the technology and the financing to do it at scale,” he added.
According to the report following the news agency’s discussion with the AfDB president, “Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, one of the world’s top grain exporters, sent tremors through global grain markets, threatening food supplies for some of the most fragile nations, including many in Africa.”
The development of the El Nio weather pattern and the failure of a deal to move grain from Ukraine via the Black Sea have worsened the world’s food security problems.
Adesina brought up the expansion of special agro-industrial processing zones, which in Nigeria alone might increase from covering eight states to 35 after a recent request, during her remarks on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly sessions in New York. These are rural regions where infrastructure development is being prioritized in order to attract food and agricultural businesses.
“Twenty-seven more states in Nigeria made a request to us to continue to support them in this particular area,” the AfDB president said.
According to the AfDB, 216 million children in Africa are affected by undernutrition and stunting, and over half of all child fatalities on the continent are caused by inadequate nutrition. The economic cost of poor nutrition is estimated to be 11% of Africa’s GDP.
Before governments gather in late November for international climate talks in Dubai, Adesina said he expected the International Monetary Fund board to push proposals to channel $100 billion in funding to vulnerable nations through multilateral development banks.
Honey is one of the most demanded commodities on the international market with high nutrient value and huge economic benefits. Ghana produces a lot of honey for the international market, especially for the EU market but, there is no policy framework regulating apiculture activities. This has enabled delisting Ghana from the EU making, meaning banning Ghana from selling her honey to the EU market leading to the bemoaning of honey producers after production.
To enhance quality honey production to bring Ghana back to the EU market, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana have called on the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to support the interventions to formulate policies to strengthen the sector.
During the call, the CEO of the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana, Farmer Anthony Morrison revealed that apiculture is the second economic activity for several women in the agroforestry and plantations centers in the country. Although the hives are owned by the men, the women are given the opportunity to take care of the hives serving as a socio-economic activity for the women.
Irrespective of the several interventions that the private sector is putting in place to improve the apiculture sector in Ghana, there are three key issues that need to be addressed.
According to the CEO, Ghana does not have a policy strategy on apiculture development, secondly, how the private sector can bring innovation into the honey industry especially the movement of honey in terms of traceability and lastly to inculcate the school children into the industry in the form of providing hives for the various school vegetations.
Farmer Morrison bemoaned that likewise the cocoa industry where most of the cocoa farmers have not tasted chocolate before, most people at the honey producing communities have not tasted honey before, however, the private sector want to package honey in smaller economic pack to enhance the availability of honey to those at the disadvantage communities.
“Honey is a low handing fruit that can actually impact the socio-economic lives of many people in our rural areas, but we need such a driver as policy to help guide our operations so that all of us; the government, private and state agencies would have some form of direction and work together to make sure the sector is developed”, Dr. Courage Besa-Adanu, the convenor, Make Ghana Honey Fit for Local and Export project said.
He acknowledged the interventions that have taken place for the past years by the Agric Ministry, FAO and other non-governmental organizations, yet to actualize a holistic industry with all the organs functioning properly, there should be a policy that touches on how the various aspects of the value chain need to be developed.
He underscored the improvement made by the private sector to lift the face of apiculture when the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana in partnership with other private organizations trained about four hundred and fifty people within two years with the support from QSI and GIZ.
The training has enhanced the formation and strengthening of associations within the apiculture industry with common voice, aims and objectives to protect the interest of the beekeepers and improve the quality of honey in Ghana.
The Chamber, and the private sector are very optimistic to alleviate the issues in the industry by training about thousand beekeepers, and the value chain actors in the year ahed.
Mentioning some of the interventions by the private sector, Dr. courage said, “in terms of the private sector, what we are trying to do is to streamline the apiculture sector in terms of traceability system and the traceability system is rapt in various tools, but the tools we are using right now is collective marketing”.
“Been sponsored by GIZ we are trying to develop a common code of practice manual for the sector where those who want to market in premium market both in Ghana and abroad could use that as a vehicle to get to those market, so if FAO can help us to put a strong policy together that would curtail all forms of irregularities and have a common direction for all the stakeholders to know its responsibilities to ensure that the various structures that are needed are put in place”, he added.
Dr. Dennis Owusu Adjei from the Animal Protection Directorate of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture said beekeeping is a livelihood support for the farmers during cocoa off season and forest conservation.
The Ministry is critical in supporting the apiculture sector to develop. However, with the engagement of FAO and the private sector policies could be drafted and sustained.
In response, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations assured to give its support to the good interventions that the government and the stakeholders would take to strengthen Ghana’s apiculture to improve food safety.
The Deputy Regional Representative for Africa and FAO Representative to Ghana, Yurdi Yasmi commended the team for such a remarkable step to strengthen the country’s apiculture to enhance food safety.
He acknowledged the existing activities of the stakeholders like GIZ, Olam and FAO to the development of Ghana’s apiculture.
FAO provides technical support unlike the World Bank and African Development Bank, FAO is not a funding agency but a technical agency of the United Nations, however, the organization could assist to look for funds. `
In 1970, my late father acquired a piece of land in the Ahafo Region and started cocoa farming with my mother.
After he passed in 1977, my now eighty-five-year-old mother continued with the project.
I grew up hearing stories of what life is like for cocoa farmers.
Years later, I examined the cocoa sector as part of my political economy PhD dissertation work. I, therefore, have a deep interest in what happens to cocoa farmers.
Politics of producer price
The announcement of the new cocoa producer price has generated a heated debate between our two main political parties.
While the government touts the historic increase in the producer price, the main opposition accuses the government of shortchanging farmers.
The welfare of Ghana’s cocoa farmers is important.
No one disputes that.
Governments, over the years, have tried to offer a decent producer price and other types of support to the cocoa farmer.
But we cannot overlook the politics that come with ensuring the welfare of our cocoa farmers.
We have a political duopoly (NDC-NPP) that regularly competes with each other to win the hearts and minds of Ghanaians, including our cocoa farmers, during elections.
That is why we regularly witness these “political fights” over which party has done a better job of looking out for the welfare of cocoa farmers.
Economics of producer price
There are economic realities that politics must contend with.
First, I agree that we must pay the farmer a fair price.
If you have ever read “Chocolate Nations: Living and Dying for Cocoa in West Africa” by Órla Ryan, you will appreciate the plight of cocoa farmers.
In addition, if you have ever visited cocoa-growing areas, you will see why we must do more for our cocoa farmers.
The real challenge is how you determine what a fair price is.
Ghana has a producer price formula and a producer price review committee that determines and recommends a fair price to the government.
When estimating the revenue component of the pricing formula, there is little control over certain inputs – the FOB price on the international market, the crop estimate and the exchange rate.
These uncertainties mean that the committee must rely on a combination of historical data and best estimates to arrive at what that fair price should be.
Second, and related to the above, is the exchange rate implication for the computed expected revenue.
When the currency depreciates, the expected revenue in the local currency is higher.
Alternatively, when the currency appreciates, the expected revenue in the local currency is less.
For example, the Cedi equivalent when the exchange rate is GH₵11 is not the same when it is GH₵8.
It is, therefore, easier to point to increasing revenue accruing from cocoa sales when there is currency depreciation than when there is currency appreciation and use that as a basis to demand more from cocoa farmers.
Third is the choice of how Ghana sells its cocoa. In layman’s terms, we sell tomorrow’s cocoa at today’s price (forward sales).
This means that although tomorrow’s price could be higher, for whatever policy and budget imperatives we hedge our best bets and use this approach, we cannot judge the fairness of the producer price by comparing an approach that sells tomorrow’s cocoa at today’s price to an approach that sells tomorrow’s cocoa at tomorrow’s price (spot sales).
When the world market price of cocoa is good, it is much easier to wish you sold your cocoa using the spot sales approach.
Fourth, the strategy of your buyers can undermine genuine efforts to pay a fair price.
Think about the brilliant initiative where Ghana and Cote d’Ivoire jointly announced a Living Income Differential of four hundred dollars ($400) per metric tonne to ensure better producer prices for the farmers.
Documented research shows that there has been difficulty in implementing this because of the major buyers devising strategies to buy cocoa from other producers to avoid paying the living income differential.
When all is said and done
I appreciate the concerns of how well a government treats cocoa farmers.
There is nothing new about this “fight” though.
I do not recall an opposition party ever applauding a ruling government whenever cocoa producer prices are announced.
Anytime a sitting government announces the cocoa producer price, the opposition response is “The government could have done better.”
I once applauded a sitting government for increasing the cocoa producer price.
By the next morning, someone had contacted a friend asking if I was a sympathiser of that ruling government.
I am only the son of a cocoa farmer interested in the political economy of the cocoa sector.
The writer is a Democracy and Development Fellow at the Ghana Centre for Dem
About Fifty (50)and more women farmers, processors, aggregators, agric input dealers, packagers, and other value chain actors, are expected to participate in the 13th edition of the monthly ‘Agri-Woman Market Place, to be held at the Forecourt of Agrihouse Foundation office, Dzorwulu. The event is scheduled for the last Friday of September, specifically on the 29th of this month in 2023, commencing at 9 a.m. and closing at 5 p.m.
The Rainforest Alliance, an International Non-profit Organization is supporting cocoa companies, traders, cooperatives, farmer groups and gold associations to implement measures that will help to prevent, identify and address forced labour and child labour in their daily operations across the globe.
The organization as part of their “Yen Ne Mmofra No Nti” project has introduced a Tool called the Human Rights Due Diligence Toolkit prepared for cocoa cooperatives, mining firms, gold associations, and groups operating in the cocoa and gold sectors of Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire and globally.
The tool will provide relevant information on the nature and impact of human right issues we include child labour, forced labour and gender discrimination in the cocoa sector, as well as the legal frameworks and internationally recognized standards that govern cocoa and gold mining.
Workshop
Speaking at a validation workshop held in Accra on the Tool, Country Director for Rainforest Alliance, Ghana/Nigeria, Kwame Osei Boateng mentioned that an estimated 1.56 million children are in child labour in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana.
According to him, studies show that most of the children who work on cocoa farms do so within their household or extended family.
“Our challenge is that the sector is stricken with poverty and hence culminated in many difficulties at the farmer level.
“I believe that we are all in this together and by completing this tool, implementing and scaling it up, it will go a long way to reduce the incidence of child labour and bring cases to its lowest level” he said.
Senior Project Manager, Joyce Poku-Marboah explained that the involvement of relevant stakeholders is highly beneficial.
She indicated that whiles it makes them feel valued and involved, it allows for buy-in of the tool and most importantly gathering of direct feedback from those who will use it.
She further stated that one of the objectives is to ensure uptake of the of gender-sensitive HRDD tool in 120 selected cocoa cooperatives, companies, and gold mining associations covering over 300,000 members by the end of 2024.
“The Rainforest Alliance with funding from NORAD, and implementing partners; International Cocoa Initiative and Solidaridad Ghana want to increase awareness, engagement and socio-economic resilience of 12,500 vulnerable individuals including, children, youth, women and men.
“The outcome of this project will be that the Ghanaian government at a district, regional and national level will implement measures to prevent, identify, and address forced labour and to protect vulnerable groups” she mentioned.
Overview
A consultant for the Yen Ne Mmofra No Nti project, Dr. Albert Arhin in his presentation explained that the Tool is a comprehensive framework that enables companies, cooperatives, and organisations to identify, prevent, mitigate, and account for potential and actual human rights impacts within their operations and supply chains.
According to him, it uses a systematic and proactive approach to assess, address, and monitor human rights risks and violations.
Dr. Arhin explained that the primary goal of the tool is to ensure that organisations respect and promote human rights, as outlined in internationally recognized standards, such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Labour Organisation’s core conventions.
“Let me state that the key elements of a Human Rights Due Diligence system (HRDD) typically are Commitment, Risk Assessment and Mitigation, Grievance Mechanism, Remediation, Monitoring and Evaluation and lastly Communication and Reporting.
“Once you follow this process, you are 100% sure an organisations can identify and address human rights risks, improve supply chain practices, enhance social and environmental sustainability, and uphold their responsibilities to respect human rights” he said.
Appreciation
The participants were grateful to Rainforest Alliance for introducing this new HRDD tool to them and their famer organisations.
“We are excited that this tool provides guidance on communicating HRDD activities and producing annual reports to engage stakeholders. It will set the platform for meeting the EU HRDD Directive. ”
“We have learnt that the tool provides guidance on communicating HRDD activities and producing annual reports to engage stakeholders, demonstrate accountability, and foster trust” said Council Chairman of Cocoa Abrabopa Association (CAA), Ismail Pomasi.
A Nigerian company, EGTA Investment Limited on Saturday signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a Ghanaian conglomerate, Jospong Group of Companies, to boost of food production.
The MoU signed by the two entities at the Ghana High Commission in Abuja, was centered on boosting rice farming, wheat, soya beans, yellow corn, and sunflower production, among others.
The MoU was signed under the supervision of Alhaji Bello Goronyo, Minister of State for Water Resources and Sanitation and Mr Eddison Agbenyegah, Ghana Deputy High Commissioner to Nigeria.
Also present was Mr Aminu Goronyo, President of Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria (RIFAN). Speaking, Mr Bashir Ibrahim, Group Managing Director of EGTA, said the agreement between the two companies was important in promoting investments in agriculture.
He said that there was also the need for adequate investments to advance agricultural growth in Africa through cooperation, financial, social andpolitical relationships between African nations.
Ibrahim said: “It is on that basis that the ECTA delegation went to Ghana to negotiate this historic MoU; this led ECTA delegation to Ghana and Jospong delegation to Nigeria.
“To negotiate and come to agreement on this MoU built on the long standing friendly relations that has existed since independence between Ghana and Nigeria.
“In fact, if there are any two countries that do close to the extent that event in one country leads to same event in another, it is Nigeria and Ghana.
“So, the signing of this MoU is in line with that tradition. The future of Africa depends on this concept of cooperation, financial investment, technical, social, economic, political cooperation between African nations.”
Ibrahim described the cooperation between both companies as an extension of the historic relationship between Ghana and Nigeria, saying that the MoU would cover production of agricultural commodities.
He also said it would provide technical, financial and investment cooperation, as well as training and capacity building for Ghana’s agriculture ecosystem.
Ibrahim said that the agreement, which was one out of many with other foreign partners was made possible by President Bola Tinubu administration’s business-friendly commitment to make private sector key drivers in economic diversification.
Also speaking, Mr George Blavo, Lead Coordinator, Rice Project, Jospong Group of Companies, Ghana, said the agreement was in line with Ghana’s agricultural agenda.
Blavo, who signed the MoU on behalf of Jospong, said the agreement was basically aimed at lifting people of Ghana from poverty through agricultural development.
According to him, it would add value to the agricultural food chain, food security, reducing food imports, with the private sector as a pivotal force. “We are hopeful this MOU will further strengthen the Nigeria -Ghana bilateral relationship; which must ensure that partnership betwen Ghana and Nigeria is given priority.
“In Ghana, we cherish the long standing relationship between our two countries and it is our hope that this partnership will grow from strength-to-strength, for our mutual benefits,” he said. Blavo extolled Ghana-Nigeria relationship that focussed on economic, trade and investment, technology, security and agriculture.
According to him, the ceremony attested to the long standing relationship that existed between both countries.
For his part, Agbenyegah said that Ghana sought to learn best practices from Nigeria, which had since become a “Rice Super Power”, adding that the country has become one of the leading producers of rice in Africa.
“We are all aware that Nigeria is the biggest producer of rice and the contribution of ECTA to this achievement is well known to all of us.
“We are going to ride on the policies and business policies the Federal Government of Nigeria will reel out, to make this kind of cooperation easy and even, more fruitful.
“We are happy to be partners in this private sector initiative in deepening rice production in Ghana
“Ghana is hosting the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA) Secretariat, therefore we want to deepen cooperation to propel regional growth,” he said. Jospong is a Ghanaian company with business interest in over 14 sectors, spanning 60 subsidiaries, with operations in Africa and Asia.
Meanwhile, the President of RIFAN, Goronyo, said that Nigeria had made a remarkable progress in rice production over the previous decade after banning the importation of rice.He added that such feat surpassed Egypt’s, with a yearly production of 5.8 metric tonnes of rice
On most Saturday mornings, the shed of Yakubu Akteniba, an onion seller at Adjen Kotoku market, a 33km drive from Accra, is swamped by customers haggling over fresh produce.
But since early August, things have quietened as business has taken a nosedive due to disruption in the food supply chain across West Africa.
“We used to receive at least 20 truckloads of onions daily here,” Akteniba, who speaks for the market’s 200-member onion sellers’ association, told Al Jazeera. “The number of trucks coming here has now dropped to between two and five daily … If things don’t change, most of us will be out of business,” he said.
The source of the crisis is Niger, four countries away from Ghana, but also a member of the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
On July 26, members of the Nigerien presidential guard overthrew Mohamed Bazoum, the country’s democratically elected leader since 2021. In response, ECOWAS imposed a number of sanctions including the closure of borders surrounding Niger – and cut off trade with it.
That decision has stoked a brewing food crisis across West Africa.
Niger is the key exporter of dry onions in the region, responsible for almost two-thirds of total exports in 2021, according to market intelligence platform, Indexbox.
Figures from the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC) show that in 2021, Niger exported onions worth $23.4m, making it the world’s 31st largest exporter of onions.
In the same year, onions were the sixth-most exported product for Niger. The main destinations of onion exports from Niger were Ghana ($21.7m), Ivory Coast ($1.15m), Benin ($451,000), Togo ($84,500) and Nigeria ($35,100). All five countries have backed ECOWAS sanctions in Niger.
But the sanctions have triggered a shortage of onions and other food commodities like beans and millet – and driven up the cost in places where supply is still available.
“They [ECOWAS] have blocked the vehicles from coming,” Akteniba told Al Jazeera.
According to Akteniba, before the military takeover, a 100kg sack of onions was selling at $61 but the price has now almost doubled to $105. A 25kg sack of onions now costs $27 compared with $17 before the borders were closed.
Sacks of onions under sheds at the Adjen Kotoku market in Accra [Kent Mensah, Al Jazeera]
A beloved vegetable
The bulb-shaped vegetable is revered in West Africa, where many, including Ghanaians, use it as a staple in their cuisines. Onions are boiled, fried, caramelised or even served raw to garnish many meals.
But the cost of onions has become exorbitant as the country’s economic troubles stew; about a quarter of Ghana’s 32 million people live on less than $1 a day, according to the Ghana Statistical Service.
“I love onions but for some time now I am cutting down on the quantity in preparing meals because it is becoming too expensive,” Deborah Biney, a 40-year-old mother of two, told Al Jazeera. “Before the political situation in Niger, I was buying three big pieces of onions for $0.17 in my neighbourhood, but now I use the same amount to buy just a piece.”
Onions also have several health benefits, including improved blood sugar regulation and increasing bone density, experts say.
Patience Naa Adjeley Adjei, a nutritionist and a home economics teacher, told Al Jazeera that the nutritional value of onions could not be underestimated, saying it would be “disturbing” if households stopped using the vegetables due to the soaring prices.
Onions have a distinct flavour that adds to dishes and stimulate appetite … they are low in calories and fat but rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants,” Adjei stated. “They contain fibre, vitamin C and various beneficial compounds that may have health benefits, including anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer properties.”
Nigeria accounts for 20 percent of the onions sold in Ghana, while Burkina Faso exports about 5 percent of the onions consumed there. Ghana only produces 5 percent of the onions it consumes locally.
But 70 percent of onions, valued at about $2m weekly, have been imported from Niger, according to Food and Agriculture Minister Bryan Acheampong.
“I deem this an embarrassment and a needless drain on our scarce foreign exchange,” he said recently, at the launch of a government programme to boost Ghanaian food sufficiency.
He added that Nana Akufo-Addo’s administration is finalising an “aggressive five-year plan” to build food security and resilience by ensuring year-round production to halt the importation of essential commodities like tomatoes and onions.
Food security
Niger’s military government has refused to release Bazoum and has served notice it wants to remain in power for at least three years before transitioning back to civilian leadership, even in the face of a possible military intervention by ECOWAS.
Experts have warned that if the impasse persists, it could result in dire humanitarian consequences and a food security crisis in the region.
A study undertaken by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) this April showed that acute food insecurity is on track to reach a 10-year high in West and Central Africa this year as humanitarian assistance is severely hindered by insecurity in conflict-affected areas of Burkina Faso and Mali.
The spread of activities by armed groups in the Sahel is also hindering the food supply chain in the region, the onion sellers’ association said.
“One major issue is attacks on our trucks by terrorists, especially in the Niger area. The coup itself is not affecting the supply of onions and other foods like beans and millet that much, but the state of insecurity,” Peter Appiah Mensah, who owns trucks that cart onions, beans and millets from Niger to Ghana, said
Speaking to Al Jazeera, Ziad Hamoui, co-chair of the Food Trade Coalition for Africa, said the economic sanctions by the regional bloc on the uranium-rich country, especially the border closure come at a cost.
He called on regional leaders to soften their stance.
“I think it’s still important to maintain the regional trade flows,” said Hamoui, who doubles as president of the Ghanaian chapter of Borderless Alliance, a regional trade advocacy group. “First of all, you can’t really stop trade by blocking the borders. So, closing the borders on one hand, does not solve the issue.
“On the other hand, there need to be policies where countries can be held accountable … we need to have mechanisms in place that allow countries to talk together in cases of complaints and challenges,” he added.
Some of the onion trucks are also stuck behind borders in Burkina Faso, also military ruled and which has allied itself with Mali, to support Niger. In Ghana, vegetable traders are worried that the vegetables might rot and their value depreciate by the time the borders are reopened.
Maybe, this is a wake-up call for our government to invest more in growing our own onions here in Ghana,” Akteniba told Al Jazeera. “The only problem is that our onions are very small due to the weather but those coming from Niger are bigger. We need to find a solution to this situation
Agrihouse Foundation and Nebraska based GhaNeb LLC, has confirmed that, the Deputy Minister (Crop), of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Hon. Yaw Frimpong Addo, will be leading the Ghana delegation, to attend it 1st Nebraska-Ghana Trade and investment event, and also participate in one of the major agricultural event in the world, the Husker Harvest Days.
Twenty-two Government and Private Businesses, are participating in the 5-day program, which is expected to create long term Business Linkages and Trade opportunities where economic, practical measures and investment strategies will be discussed and explored, in the interest of both parties.
Supporting the organization of the event include the Nebraska Department of Economic Development, Grand Island Chamber of Commerce, Sandhill Global, RWH Energy, EZ Politix and Certified Piedmontese.
Already confirmed to attend this program being, organized by GhaNeb LLC and Agrihouse Foundation, are representatives from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, AMG Fertilizers, Collinmon Investment, Fidelity Bank, SAPIP, Cudjoe Abimash Farms, A.N. O. Enterprise and Interplast.
The rest are AgriPower, Elsiyne Enterprise, Ghana Federation of Livestock Inter-Professional (GHAFLIP), Enepa, Nature- Feast Farms LLC and T & C Farms.
Giving background to the event, the Executive Director of Agrihouse Foundation, Ms. Alberta Nana Akyaa Akosa, said the event, expected to be an annual one, would help Ghana and Nebraska to build on, and further strengthen business ties, which began in 2022, when Senators Julie Slama, Andrew Le Grone and Ken Schilz were in Ghana.
During their stay in Ghana, Agrihouse Foundation facilitated a Government and Private business stakeholders’ meeting in both Greater Accra and the Northern Region, as well as farm tours.
The program, will equally present the opportunity for the Ghana Delegation to meet leaders in the Agriculture world and will also offer them, a valuable occasion to tap into a wide range of opportunities to gain new knowledge, exploit investment options and widen their networks for sustainable business collaborations and expansions.
Activities for the 5-day event include, a Welcome Networking Reception, Breakout Tours, Roundtable meetings and B2B Matchmaking sessions.
The delegation will also have the opportunity to visit farms, processing facilities, and implement dealers.
Former State Senator Schilz and Mr. Kofi Amoabin, both of Nebraska based GhaNeb LLC, mentioned their excitement, about working with Agrihouse Foundation, to facilitate opportunities, between Ghana and Nebraska.
We are confident, that, this first edition will yield great results.
We have positioned ourselves, to support strengthen businesses and relationships, that will be established from here. The Statement concluded.
As part of its efforts to help build an alliance to protect forests, improve the livelihoods of farmers and forest communities, promote their human rights, and help them mitigate and adapt to the climate crisis across the globe, the Rainforest Alliance has praised some cocoa buying companies in Ghana for paying the mandatory 70 dollars per MT of cocoa as a sustainability differential package to the farmers.
The 2020 Certification Program is a global standard for monitoring and increasing responsible cocoa, Tea and coffee production. The program helps to improve their internal processes and helps them attain full traceability, improve personal safety, storage procedures on and off the farm, community hygiene, and protect the environment.
To achieve this mission, the Rainforest Alliance partner with diverse allies around the world to drive positive change across global supply chains and in many of the most critically important natural landscapes.
The announcement
The Council Chairman for Cocoa Abrabopa Association (CAA), Ismaila Pomasi, announced at a regional durbar at Anyinam in the Eastern Region that the CAA is paying a total of GHC 9.2 million in premium packages to their farmers across their 39 cocoa operational areas in Ghana.
He explained to the gathering that the Sustainability Differential (SD) is an additional mandatory cash earned by farmers on their produce for the 2022/2023 crop season to motivate them to adhere to sustainable farming practices promoted by the Rainforest Alliance.
He mentioned that 8,000 cocoa farmers from their 39 cocoa operational areas benefited from the cash package, with each farmer receiving an additional GHC 52.50 per bag of certified cocoa sold to the CAA.
The Council Chairman indicated that all the beneficiary farmers were paid via mobile money and did not have to travel to the association office or any bank.
“We at Abrabopa have also embarked on other sustainability programs such as afforestation, accessible soil, the Sustainable Environment Project, child labor monitoring projects, and living income projects, he said.
Another LBC, Federated Commodities Limited (FEDCO), is also implementing the RA standard. During the recent annual premium ceremony, the managing director of Federated Commodities Limited, Maria Adamu-Zibo, also announced the payment of GHC16 million in cocoa premium earnings to their cocoa farmers across the country for the 2022/2023 cocoa season.
The Managing Director indicated that her company will pay GHC 50 to GHC 64 on each bag of cocoa sold by farmers, which has been made possible through several partnerships, especially the Rainforest Alliance 2020 Certification Program.
“The youth need to see farming as a business opportunity where they can choose to farm or engage in auxiliary services such as labor support, input supply, alternative cocoa farming methods, organic cocoa, cocoa processing, and transformation,” she stated.
Success
Country Director for Rainforest Alliance Ghana and Nigeria, Kwame Osei, speaking at the event organized by FEDCO, expressed his excitement for FEDCO and other companies commitment to demonstrating that it can be done and that it is important for it to be done.
“Most of the farmers live in extreme poverty with fewer alternative income-generating activities, and we believe that this is an additional income to motivate our farmers” he added. He explained that the premium is to encourage the farmers to work hard towards increasing production and also adopt best farming practices. RA requires a minimum Sustainability Differential (SD) of $70 per MT of cocoa.
“This is the cash per MT paid to the individual farmer. The SD is the additional payment producers receive in recognition of the choice they have made to farm to the Rainforest Alliance Standard.
“How they choose to use that payment is up to them. They can reinvest in the farm, use it for family needs, or cover other costs they may have. We believe this is critical to creating a sustainable system where producers make their own choices. This will encourage farmers to produce better crops, adapt to climate change, increase productivity, and reduce costs.
“We will continue to ensure that the 2020 Certification Program changes the lives of farmers in cocoa-growing communities across Ghana” he said.
The Director of Special Services for COCOBOD, Charles Amenyaglo, said that the regulator will continue to create an enabling environment for a vibrant cocoa industry in Ghana and admonished companies to desist from activities that hinder farmers from reaping their desired benefits from the 2020 Certification Program.
“I believe that such activities do not only deprive farmers of the benefits of their premium but also undermine the efforts of COCOBOD” he said.
Appreciation
The farmers were grateful to Abrabopa and FEDCO for fulfilling their promise and making the payment process very fixable.
“We can feel a new wind of change blowing in the cocoa value chain, and it’s going to bring massive improvements in our lives and the sector.
“We are excited about the fact that the companies are paying the premium packages; this will serve as a catalyst to ensure improved welfare as well as increasing government and private sector responsiveness for a sustained cocoa sector” the farmers said.
