Accra, Ghana
December 6, 2022
EWS-KT Program Manager Femke de Jong receives the registration document from Abena Ntrakwah-Mensah and Courtney Heather Awotwi of Accra law firm Ntrakwah & Co.
East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer Foundation is excited to announce the launch of programming in Ghana. With this expansion, EWS-KT is poised to introduce smallholder farmers to improved agricultural techniques and technologies to raise their yields and incomes. EWS-KT’s work to strengthen the vegetable value chain will also benefit local consumers by increasing the supply of locally grown, safe-to-eat vegetables. This milestone builds on EWS-KT’s five-year strategy and ambition to train 1 million farmers by 2025.
After recruiting a local team, EWS-KT will scope in the Bono East, Bono, and Ahafo regions to establish a learning site, which will function as a training center for new staff and sector professionals while showing farmers the immense potential of improved techniques. Training of farmers will commence in March 2023, with the goal of training 2,500 farmers by the end of the year.
“In addition to our solid field presence in Nigeria, Tanzania, and Uganda, we are seeing promising results—particularly for women and youth—through our mobile tech platforms, data analytics, and radio programming. We are seeking to apply these learnings to areas in need of economic development. There are many latent opportunities for smallholder farmers and the growth of the vegetable sector in Ghana,” said Stuart Morris, Director of EWS-KT.
Morris explained further, “Ghana boasts diverse climatic zones amply suited to agriculture, and vegetable production is widespread across the country. These advantages should enable farmers to supply vegetables year-round and meet consumer demand through local production; however, most of the vegetables for sale in Ghana are imported.”
While many Ghanaian farmers put tremendous effort and care into their fields, they nevertheless experience low yields and quality issues. Through demonstration plots, in-field training, field days, and digital outreach, EWS-KT will share profitable and sustainable approaches for growing vegetables and showcase evidence-based, improved production techniques. With new skills and knowledge, Ghanaian smallholder vegetable farmers will have the keys to attain higher yields, better-quality produce, and increased incomes.
EWS-KT operations in Ghana will be headed by Zakari Musah. Zakari has over seven years of experience as an agronomist for organizations such as Tikola Ghana Limited and Obapack, where he worked on projects supporting vegetable farmers. He holds a bachelor’s degree in agricultural and horticultural plant breeding from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and a diploma in agronomy from the GhanaVeg program.
“I view knowledge transfer as both a responsibility and an opportunity: a responsibility to surmount the myriad challenges within the vegetable business environment in Ghana, and an opportunity to be a change agent and to have an impact for Ghanaian farmers and communities.”
– Zakari Musah, Knowledge Transfer Manager for Ghana
“Zakari brings with him years of solid, practical expertise. His deep knowledge and understanding of the vegetable sector is a great asset for EWS-KT Ghana and for our global foundation as a whole,” said Elijah Mwashayenyi, Head of EWS-KT in Africa.
For more information on our operations in Ghana, please contact us.
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