Author: Sefakor

Yaw Frimpong Addo, the Deputy Minister for Food and Agriculture, has highlighted the need for increased budgetary allocation to the agriculture sector in order to achieve its goals. Mr. Addo also called for additional donor funding to support the ministry in executing its objectives, emphasizing that there is still much work to be done in the agriculture sector. He made this statement during a learning event designed to share insights from the implementation of the USAID-AGRA PIATA programme. “There’s so much to do at the ministry that the budgetary allocations alone cannot let us achieve whatever objectives we set. That…

The Chief Executive of Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), Joseph Boahen Aidoo, has reiterated his appeal to the European Union (EU) to reconsider the pricing element of cocoa in its legislation. He argues that the current legislation is inadequate to sustain the industry and improve the income of cocoa farmers. Mr. Aidoo expressed this opinion during a meeting with a four-member delegation from the EU, to discuss various topics, including sustainability, traceability, and child labor in the cocoa sector. The EU is the world’s largest importer of cocoa, accounting for 60% of global imports. Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Cameroon are major…

Genevieve Nutsu Avornyotsey, a young female graduate farmer from Kpando Municipality, has requested the government to support young farmers by providing them with combine harvesters and other necessary equipment to reduce the challenges they face in farming. In addition to this, as the CEO of First Agro Limited, Mrs. Nutsu Avornyotsey has suggested that the government consider offering a monthly salary to hardworking farmers to help them cope with the current economic challenges in the country. During an interview with JoyNews, Mrs. Nutsu Avornyotsey expressed that she has faced difficulties in obtaining assistance for the progress of her farming project,…

A two-week exercise by the Ghana Cocoa Board’s (COCOBOD) Anti-smuggling Task Force in collaboration with the security agencies, has led to the retrieval of more than 1,500 bags of cocoa being smuggled to neighbouring countries. The Director of Special Services at COCOBOD, Mr. Charles Amenyaglo, disclosed that the exercise took place between the first two weeks of March adding that it was through a an insentivise system for collaborators created by COCOBOD to fight the illegal activity in the industry. He disclosed that the beans were transported from the Western North and Volta regions while arrests were made in the…

Absa Bank Ghana and Mastercard Foundation through its Fintech-Agritech Support Programme some weeks ago hosted applicants who pitched for grant aimed at growing the Agritech and Fintech industries. For the past three years, Absa Bank and the Mastercard Foundation have continued a formidable partnership, to create an impact in key sectors of Ghana’s economy, including SMEs, Fintechs, Agritechs and other complementary sectors. The initiative is under the sponsorship of the Absa Mastercard Foundation partnership, designed to support young startups that are innovating and creating new things to enhance the growth of Ghana’s economy. The programme provides a unique opportunity for…

A new report on Ghana’s agricultural sector has triggered reactions among concerned Ghanaians and others on the need to redefine the food security agenda on the African continent. There are several calls among the reactions to the report saying governments should collaborate with the private sector to invest in agro-processing rather than usually campaigning more for production when the likelihood that these food products will end up in the trash is very high. The new report by the Danish Embassy in Ghana said the post-harvest loss in the country amounts to a whopping $1.9 billion per annum, a sad development…

Climate change is one of the biggest environmental challenges of our time, and one of the most critical factors in mitigating its impact is forest protection. Forests play a crucial role in regulating the Earth’s climate by absorbing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere and storing it in trees and soil. However, deforestation and forest degradation are major contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions, making forest protection a vital strategy in the fight against climate change. Deforestation and forest degradation account for around 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions, making it the second-largest source after the energy sector. The destruction…

Cashew cultivation in Ghana started in the 1960s with sporadic plantings in the Central and Greater Accra Regions and later spread to the Bono, Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions. Cashew is the leading non-traditional export revenue earner in the country. Undoubtedly, the cashew value chain brings a wide range of opportunities from production, through processing to the export of raw nuts. Cashew grows in eleven out of the sixteen regions of Ghana, although it is mostly found in the Bono and the Northern Regions. About 350,000 farmers are directly engaged in cashew cultivation, generating a chain of ancillary…

Findings of a new research into Ghana’s agriculture industry has revealed the country loses $560 million worth of yam to post-harvest losses yearly. The report, released by the Danish Embassy in Ghana has shown that the value of food losses and waste in Ghana is estimated at $1.9 billion per annum and yam is leading the chart with $560 million per annum. According to the report, post-harvest losses of tomato, yam, mango, citrus and chilies accounted for the huge figure that could go a long way fuel the much needed development in agriculture sector. Speaking to participants of a seminar…

The Ambassador of Denmark to Ghana, Tom Nørring has called for an investment in cold storage facilities in Ghana to address post-harvest losses. He made the call on the sideline of a report which disclosed that about 50% of crops harvested in the country end up in bins annually. Mr. Tom Nørring while speaking to stakeholders during a food security seminar put together by the Danish Embassy in Ghana revealed that Ghana loses over 16 million dollars to post-harvest losses for some selected food crops. Shockingly, the report detailed that this figure is representing findings from Ashaiman, in the Greater…