The Deputy Head of Mission of the European Union Delegation to Ghana, Mr. Pieter Smidt Van Gelder, has said 2,739 women and youth had benefited from the Inputs Resolving Fund, one of the projects under the EU Ghana Agricultural Programme (EUGAP), representing 66% women and 8% youth in 2021.
Speaking at the 2022 Seed and Agro Inputs Fair at Wa in the Upper West Region, Mr. Van Gelder indicated that 800 metric tonnes (mt) of certified seeds were produced in 2021, including 38mt of foundation seeds in collaboration with the Plant Protection and Regulatory Service Directorate of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA).
According to him, since 2017, 61,000 farmers had benefited from the EUGAP, and it had recorded an average increase in yield of 87%. Adding that, the EUGAP supplemented the support they received from the government initiative such as Planting for Food and Jobs.
The Deputy Head of Mission of the EU delegation to Ghana further noted that in partnering the MOFA, the EUGAP had dedicated a financial contribution of Euros 132 million, equivalent to GH¢1,088 million. This, he said, was the largest ongoing programme financed by the European Union in Ghana.
“The EUGAP seeks to increase agricultural productivity, protect natural resources, combat climate change, improve access to markets, support to access finance, and provide the most needed infrastructure such as irrigation, farms and feeder roads.”
The Municipal Coordinating Director, Madam Fati Kore, opined that seeds formed the central part of a farmer’s life and small-scale farmers had selected seeds from their crops for the next season, and their knowledge had been accumulated over generations, and nobody was in a an a better position than they were to choose seeds that were adapted to their particular conditions.
She further noted that the two-day Seed and Agro Inputs Fair would bring together farmers, seed companies, and agro-inputs dealers to acquire from each other seeds, knowledge, and network ahead of the coming planting season.
On her part, the Secretary to the Unity and Progressive Women Rice Farmers Association, Madam Fati Sansun, said the 2022 Seeds and Agro Inputs Fair had given the platform to learn new ideas, network and sell their products to other people, and believed more of such platforms would boost agribusiness in the Northern part of Ghana.
