About 6,480 farmers from six districts in the Northern Region have been provided with free certified seed starter packs at a seed and technology fair held at Sang in the Mion District.

The fair, held on the theme ‘Getting Certified Seeds to Smallholder Farmers’, saw starter packs including maize, rice and soybean certified improved seeds with appropriate fertilizers and inoculum for soy bean presented to the farmers to increase their yields.

The seed and technology fair, an initiative of the Catholic Relief Service (CRS), in collaboration with the International Fertilizer Development Centre (IFDC), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Agriculture Technology Transfer (ATT) project and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) is) is to scale up the ATT project in 12 communities in each of the six districts.

The beneficiary districts are Saboba, Tolon, Mion, Chereponi, West Mamprusi and West Gonja districts.

Speaking at the fair, the Country Representative of CRS, Kris H. Ozar, said the aim of the project was to create awareness about the need for farmers to use certified seed and adapt to new farming methods and practices.

He said the initiative, apart from scaling up the use of certified seeds by farmers is also to help increase the incomes of farmers and address the issue of hunger and malnutrition in rural communities.

He reiterated the commitment of the organization in supporting the smallholder farmers to improve their farming activities to increase yields.

The Deputy Chief of Party IFDC/ATT,   Dr. Tara Wood, said the ATT project apart from supporting the seed sector of the country to come out with improved certified seeds for farmers to plant to increase their yields is also helping to address the issue of soil fertility to enable farmers produce health food crops for consumption.

He urged the farmers to adapt new technologies to improve their activities to prevent government form investing in the importation of food crops to feed the nation.

The Northern Regional Director of Agriculture, William Boakye- Acheampong, for his part, commended the ATT project for the support, which, he said, has resulted in the construction of a modern seed laboratory for the Seed Inspectorate Division of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to ensure that farmers have access to quality certified seeds for planting.

He urged the farmers to also take advantage of the government’s subsidize fertilizer programme to increase their production.

He said, MOFA through the USAID project has received numerous trainings programmes from the USIAD projects to enhance agriculture productivity in the country.

He stressed that the project has also provided a number of motor bikes to motivate the activities of MoFA to improve its work towards achieving sustainable development.

Some of the farmers at the fair expressed their appreciation to the CRS, the USAID ATT project for the support and said it would go a long way to enhance their farming activities and improve their incomes.

They pledged to adapt to the new certified seeds should there be an improvement in this years farming activities.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) funded Agricultural Development and Value Chain Enhancement (ADVANCE) has held capacity training for some selected farmers and agricultural extension agencies on the monitoring and scouting of the Fall Army Worm (FAW) in Tamale of the Northern.

The USAID Feed the Future Agricultural Development and Value Chain Enhancement (ADVANCE) project and the Farmer to Farmer Program aimed at educating the beneficiaries on measures to take after detecting the invasion of the worm on their farms that affected agricultural production in last farming season.

The training was part of a series of activities earmarked by USAID ADVANCE in cooperation with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) and Plant Protection and Regulatory Services Directorate (PPRSD) to establish and maintain a national army worm monitoring and alerting system, starting in May 2017.

The participants were therefore also updated on the FAW situation in Western Africa, how to set up and maintain traps with pheromone, scout maize fields for FAW infestation, apply appropriate insecticides using FAW action thresholds and their rotation to avoid development of resistance.

The fall army worm (Spodopterafrugiperda) originated from Central and South America and was first identified in West Africa in January 2016. The pest is the larval form of the fall armyworm moth, and has indiscriminate appetite for consuming more than 100 different plant species, including cereals like maize as well as leafy crops.

The recent invasion of the armyworm in Ghana gives cause for concerns because it also devours plants’ reproductive parts and could eat through the maize cob, resulting in significant crop loss.

In July of 2016, the fall armyworm surfaced in northern Ghana and BrongAhafo Region, and thereby infested maize farms in the area that poses a major threat to food security and agricultural trade in Ghana as a whole.

The USAID ACDI/VOCA Farmer to Farmer Volunteer Professor Emeritus of the Oregon State University, Dan Mc’Grath, stressed the need for the farmers to collaborate with the extension agents to identify the worms and combat them to prevent post harvest loses.

He noted that the over spraying of the farm lands with uncertified chemicals also affect production hence the need for the farmers to use the certified chemicals and fertilizers to increase yields.

He urged the farmers to begin scouting of army worm infestation when the maize plants are small till the harvesting season to ensure value for money.

The Northern Regional Director of PPRS, Mr Akai Christopher, noted that the region is ready to fight the worms but logistical constraint is hampering activities.

He therefore appealed for funds to execute the projects to fight the worms to ensure increase yields of the farmers’ productions.

He stressed that the plant for food project cannot be achieved if the army worms are not cleared from the farms and therefore need for effective control of the pest in production and harvesting.
“We will liaise with the Extension agents to educate the farmers on the measures to put in place anytime they detect the worms on their fields” he added.

The Technical Director of ADVANCE, Allan Pineda, said ADVANCE is committed towards increasing food security, reducing stunting and poverty in the Northern Ghana.

“To increase productivity, we work with smallholder farmers through trainings on demo sites and perform activities to make agric inputs more available, and many others,” he added.

The yields of smallholder farmers’ beneficiaries of the project, he stressed, is about 85% higher than that of the national average in maize which  double in rice and 83% more in soybean for about 118,000 beneficiaries.

He said the ADVANCE organised Farm Clinics to address pest and disease related problems with local experts.

According to him the invasion of the worm on the farms in Ghana led to the search for entomologist with experience in Fall Army worm (FAW) and ants to educate farmers and extension agents on best agricultural practices.

The absence of strong regulations on the importation and use of agro-chemicals poses a threat to human life and food security, CropLife Africa Middle East (AME), a regional federation representing the plant science industry and a network of national associations in 30 countries in Africa and the Middle East, has said.

According to CropLife, inadequate knowledge about products, inefficient import controls leading to the entry of illegal products and poor quality agricultural inputs into agriculture markets, could undermine efforts at mitigating against risk of pesticide.

Speaking at its West and Central Africa annual hub and regulatory workshop, held in Accra, William Kottey, President of CropLife Ghana, said, “the situation has led and will continue to lead to threats to human health and the environment, among many other dangers.”

Held under the theme: “Promoting the Spray Service Providers (SSPs) concept as a component of pesticide risk mitigation,” the workshop sought to find ways to increase education and farmers’ knowledge on the rightful use of pesticides, as well as to promote its use.

William Kottey explained that the situation has contributed to farmers not achieving the expected yield and, more importantly, loss of income.

He added that governmen’st newly introduced ‘Planting for Food and Jobs campaign’ is in line with the association’s vision and called for closer collaboration of all stakeholders.

Mr. Kottey further pledged his outfit’s support for the initiative, saying: “CropLife Ghana would, at this point, want to associate itself with the recently introduced ‘Planting for Food and Jobs campaign’ by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.  The aim to improve productivity of Ghanaian farmers once they have better access to quality agricultural inputs.”

Mr. Klottey stated that members of CropLife are into supply of various inputs along the agriculture value chain, which the government could use to promote the development of the sector.

The Deputy Minister of Agriculture, George Oduro, in his keynote address, called on the private sector to collaborate with the ministry to provide regular training for extension officers and farmers.

The minister hinted that his outfit is in discussion with the Ministry of Finance to abolish the 5% import tax on agricultural inputs.

“I must add that it is in our interest that this tax is waived to enable your companies import more inputs for the benefit of the farmers and the ‘Planting for Food and Jobs Programme initiated by the government in 2017.”

CropLife Africa, Middle East, is a member of CropLife International, an international nonprofit organisation established in 2002. It is legally independent but also maintains a strong link with the global crop life network.

As at the end of 2016 the association consisted of ten company members, 24 national associations and one professional organisation engaged in the promotion of biotechnology solutions in African.

Reducing barriers to women’s economic empowerment is the fastest way to accelerate economic growth, especially in the Ghanaian context where a large number of women are engaged in key activities like agriculture, Heather Cameron, Canadian High Commissioner to Ghana, has observed.

She said, addressing the constraints to women’s economic empowerment is necessary for lasting, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, adding that it is therefore imperative to tackle the challenges undermining the capabilities of women in agriculture,  such as access to inputs and extension services in order to transform them from ‘low-paid informal labourers to successful farm and business owners.’

“Despite women making up more than half of the agricultural labour force, only 2% of female headed households currently receive extension services. There is a huge opportunity to increase the number of female agricultural extension agents and reach more women. This is simply smart economics, with many positive multiplier effects on the economy,” she stated.

Madam Cameron noted the Canadian government’s case study in the country alludes to the fact with that the right type of interventions, significant progress can be made in the agriculture sector.

She said: “We’ve mobilized over 23,000 female farmers in Upper West Region to grow soybean –and have seen their yields increase by 380% per acre since the start of the project. Programming in maize has increased yields by 250% per acre and groundnuts by 500% per acre. We’ve seen incomes rise and hunger and nutrition gaps fall.”

The Canadian Envoy made these remarks in a speech read for her at the national launch of government’s flagship ‘Planting for Food and Jobs’ campaign at Goaso in the Brong Ahafo Region.  The initiative is aimed at ‘revolutionizing’ agriculture to increase productivity and create about 750,000 jobs.

She commended the government for the visionary step to help transform the economy through agriculture, saying “Canada has long understood the significant role that agriculture plays in Ghana. In fact, it is one of the important things we have in common: knowing this, for over two decades, Canada has been an unwavering supporter of Ghanaian farmers.”

“We share the government of Ghana’s vision of agriculture as an engine for economic growth in the country, for ensuring domestic food security and for meeting nutrition needs. We also want Ghanaian farmers to be growing domestic food for the population, while creating jobs and increasing revenues,” the Canadian High Commissioner added.

To this end, the Canadian has already voted 125 million Canadian dollars to support the implementation of the ‘Planting for Food and Jobs’ campaign.

Côte d’Ivoire’s membership in ATI is seen as an integral part of the government’s strategy to attract more investments and to diversify the economy through increased trade and investment opportunities

The African Trade Insurance Agency (ATI) has announced  that Côte d’Ivoire has joined a growing list of African countries who are members of the institution.

ATI is a multilateral investment insurer whose specialised investment and commercial risk insurance products are expected to help attract up to USD2 billion worth of inward investments and trade into the country, and to potentially help lower its sovereign borrowing costs by up to 1% annually.

The pan-African institution now insures investments equal to approximately 0.6 to 1.4 percent of GDP annually in a majority of its member states and includes support of strategic deals such as cover on African Development Bank’s USD159 million loan to fund Ethiopian Airline’s fleet expansion. Côte d’Ivoire’s membership in ATI is seen as an integral part of the government’s strategy to attract more investments and to diversify the economy through increased trade and investment opportunities.

“Our country membership in ATI will contribute to creating the economic conditions that will enable us to reach emerging country status by 2020,” commented Mr Adama Kone, Minister of Economic and Finance of Côte d’Ivoire.

Côte d’Ivoire becomes the third country to join ATI in the last six months following Ethiopia and Zimbabwe, which became members in late 2016. Rapid membership growth, particularly in significant African economies, is core to ATI’s medium-term plan to broaden its reach and impact and to better distribute risk across more countries in Africa.

ATI’s membership push is supported by the African Development Bank (AfDB), which to date has provided a combined USD30 million in soft loans for the membership subscription of Ethiopia, Côte d’Ivoire and Zimbabwe as well as an increase in the capital subscription of Benin. Reflecting its catalytic role in African economies, ATI expects to leverage Côte d’Ivoire’s initial share capital investment by up to 60 times in terms of supported investments into the country on an annual basis, as ATI does in other member states..

In the next two years, ATI will continue to target other ECOWAS and large African economies for membership. Increased membership by these countries elevates ATI’s impact in Africa’s economic development, where the company increasingly participates in priority projects targeting sectors such as energy, water, road and rail construction and rehabilitation, building construction, agriculture and telecommunications.

ATI provides medium to long term credit risk mitigation products to support investors, banks, businesses, governments and government agencies in Africa. For banks for instance, ATI offers protection against non-payment risks that allow lenders to expand their loan portfolios. For governments, ATI’s products can be used as a substitute for guarantees, which helps sovereigns to lower their debt ceiling.

“ATI’s entry into the Ivorian market is a real leverage for us to attract more foreign investments and to boost trade both regionally and internationally,” notes Mr. Guy M’Bengue, CEO of Côte d’Ivoire’s Export Promotion Agency (APEX-CI) and a Board member of the Private Sector Employer’s Association (CGECI).

“Our focus this year and beyond continues to be membership growth, particularly in West Africa. We see this region as an important part of our pan African mandate and Côte d’Ivoire is poised to be an important West African market for ATI’s products. In partnership with other international players, ATI is now in a position to support strategic projects in West African member states in order to benefit the region,” notes George Otieno, ATI’s Chief Executive Officer.