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No Meat, No Show:  Yakubu’s Cash Cow

Happy reading!

There is a simmering pot of tomato gravy-glazed diced meat. The tilted lid of the pot reveals bubbles popping over cheeky green peppers. The meat is giving out its juices while the sauce is enriching the meat with its flavours. A perfect affair! The sight is sending signals down your throat, you are salivating already. All this is happening because your butcher came to work today to serve you.
A pot of Ghanaian soup or stew is never complete without any of our favourite animal protein picks; chevon, beef, mutton, chicken, pork or fish. For the largely non-vegetarian community in Ghana, it is fair to coin the slogan ‘No meat, no show,’ because meat is considered the centre of attraction on dining tables and for festivities. But, ever thought about the trade that brings ‘the show’ to your table?
The RDF Monitoring Team made our first visit to a butchery this year. Yakubu Moro, a butcher at Offinso Kokote was our host. He welcomed us with a warm smile. Set before us were huge chunks of fresh beef ready to be sold. Just like the typical Ghanaian Butcher, Yakubu works in a stall with his working bench set up before him. He had different types of specialized knives and a cutlass at reach. He rubbed the blades of his knives against each other in readiness to serve a customer who had approached his stall. His service delivery was a delight to watch.

Apart from his warmth, Yakubu gave us a lasting memory of his transparency. The team observed with curiosity a stack of creased and discoloured pieces of paper pinned atop the right corner of his stall. Papers that can be traced back to years. Papers? Why papers? Why are they pinned? We enquired. Yakubu said,

I like to be honest in my dealings so I ensure to pay all statutory levies required for my operations. At any point in time when I am asked to give an account of my observance of the law, I have my proof readily available above my head. So, I have no fears.

The papers were receipts of all the statutory levies he had paid since the commencement of his business. He was confident that though they were worn out they would still be useful proof any day.

Yakubu is a beneficiary of RDF’s Lines of Credit through Nwabiagya Rural Bank. He used his loan to purchase meat for his business. He has been in the butchery business for 30 years. He travels to Buipe in the Northern Region each week to source meat. Yakubu transports seven (7) animals (mostly cattle, sometimes goats) weekly to be prepared for his customers.

A 2016 study conducted on meat production and consumption in the Wa Municipality of Ghana showed that

“Beef was the most preferred type of meat, followed by poultry, chevon mutton and pork and guinea fowl. Majority of the consumers (78.8%) buy and consume meat daily. Most consumers (60%) in the Municipality obtained their meat from the market referred to as the butcher.”

According to the study, taste, price, availability, tradition and nutrition are the factors which most influence the consumption of meat in Ghana.

In a more recent study, in 2018, poultry was found to be the most consumed type of meat at the national level, followed by beef,  chevon and mutton according to Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA).

Background

Butchers are central to the provision of meat for consumer purchase irrespective of economic class and budget. Although statistics are not readily available on how many Ghanaians are employed in butchery, a good number of people are employed in the industry, with some of them deriving their sole source of income from it, just like Yakubu Moro. RDF asked Yakubu whether his trade was profitable.

Yes, it is profitable though profitability largely depends on a number of factors.

In the last year, various branches of the National Butchers Association have spoken in the media about some of the factors Yakubu spoke about in our meeting with him. In the latest news report of the industry in late August 2022 (ghanabusinessnews.com), butchers in Ghana have urged the government to redeem the falling cedi. The Association said the livestock industry was not able to produce enough for local consumption, hence their reliance on Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mali for their animals. The butchers trade in CFA and the falling Cedi affects the stability of prices and hence their margins.

The Future

The Business and Livelihoods in African Livestock document (2014) makes 3 salient points which every agricultural enthusiast should look out for in predicting the future of the livestock industry.

  1. By 2030, the value of agriculture and agribusiness industries in sub-Saharan Africa is projected to reach US$ 1 trillion, compared to US$ 313 billion in 2010, of which a non-marginal share will come from the livestock sector.
  2. Livestock accounts for between 50 and 60 percent of the agricultural value added. It is increasingly recognized that the growth of agriculture and agribusiness, including the livestock industry, is key to reducing poverty.
  3. A large share of Africa’s poor is made up of smallholder farmers, the majority of which keep animals. Increased livestock productivity can improve the livelihoods of these producers; higher production also translates into lower food prices, to the clear benefit of the majority of households who are buyers of animal protein.

With these indicators, livestock production and butchery for that matter look promising. Agriculture is truly business.

While RDF is working with butchers to fully explore the potential of this promising industry, the organisation is concerned about the myriad of issues butchers are facing, especially regarding public health safety. Public health safety has become a matter of global concern and is highly relevant in butchery. In the last decade, some of the outbreaks that have ravaged the world have been said by experts to have originated from some animals like bats, monkeys and poultry. As part of our technical assistance programmes, we are building a community of agro-food handlers who will benefit from training to help them deliver quality to the Ghanaian market while their wellbeing is given the needed priority as well.

Despite the glaring challenges, Yakubu wears a genuine smile and it inspires us. We invite you to help us make the future billion-dollar industry better today. Yakubu cannot wait!

 

Sources: http://www.ifrj.upm.edu.my/23%20(03)%202016/(60).pdf
https: https://www.ghanabusinessnews.com/2022/08/25/butchers-urge-ghana-government-to-redeem-the-cedi/

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rdfghana September 14, 2022 0
Features

The Marketplace Nurtures Soft Skills: A Focus On Adaptability and Resilience at the Kumasi Central Market

RDF Ghana LBG is pleased to take our readers on yet another market visit. Our destination this week is the Kumasi Central Market.

The Kumasi Central Market is known as one of the biggest markets in West Africa. It is an open-air market in the city of Kumasi, the capital of the Ashanti Region in Ghana. The market is a major trading centre which is visited by up to 800,000 people daily from Ghana and the nearby countries like Benin and Togo[1].

The huge Central Market in Kumasi is a cherished workplace for more than 20,000 traders[2]. In this market, you will find two beneficiaries of RDF Ghana, Beatrice Acheampong and Patience Arthur plying their trade. Both women are clients of Nwabiagya Rural Bank (NRB), a partner financial institution of RDF that accessed a line of credit facility to lend to businesses in the agricultural value chains.

The expert manner in which her wares are displayed shows that Beatrice understands the terrain well. Beatrice is a two-time beneficiary of RDF Ghana’s lines of credit. She currently trades in vegetables and spices. To survive in the competitive and dynamic market, Beatrice demonstrates adaptability by being a ‘seasonal’ trader; she cashes-in on the most sought after food item for each season. During the Senior High School reopening periods, for instance, she capitalizes on the demand for black pepper sauce (shitor) to sell shrimps, the main ingredient for this sauce. She is a resilient and quick-witted entrepreneur who makes the most of every turning tide.

Patience Arthur is a seasoned trader selling maize, rice and beef in the market. She has benefited from four cycles of RDF’s line of credit facility through NRB. Like Beatrice, Patience adapts to capitalize on changing market conditions. In Patience’s case, she deals majorly in the sale of rice so she is almost always in business since rice is a daily meal throughout Ghana, especially in the urban areas. In spite of this, she has her own adjustments to make when it comes to pricing and the availability of rice.

According to the Ministry of Trade and Industry, in Ghana, the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) sector employs more than 80% of the workforce and accounts for  70% of the national output. Market women are playing their part in this share. In a more gender-specific report on female entrepreneurs, the 2021 Mastercard Index of Women Entrepreneurs (MIWE), has for the third time reported that Ghana is one of the top three economies in the world with the most female entrepreneurs, coming third after Botswana and Uganda respectively[4]. The research further indicated that women entrepreneurs in Africa are resilient and adaptable, a trait exhibited by Beatrice and Patience.

In a study on the role of market women in the informal urban economy and the factors that threaten the effective performance of their roles, the authors interviewed 360 foodstuff sellers from the Kumasi Central Market and the Racecourse Market all in Kumasi. The research found that:

 

“Market women had made significant contributions towards Ghana’s fiscal decentralisation through the payment of levies and rents. They have also created jobs, provided incomes for households, ensured food security and sufficiency, and provided a platform for generational development of entrepreneurial skills and competence.

Women like Beatrice and Patience are required to adjust to the ever-changing market conditions to remain in business. Many of these women may not be able to properly document or express how they keep afloat, but they demonstrate tenacity and resilience that enables them to observe the changing circumstances and take the needed action. Even though Baah-Ennumh and Adom-Asamoah (2012) in their research found that market women play the aforementioned key roles, their roles in the informal economy were constrained by the inadequate basic infrastructure in the markets, limited access to credit facilities and transportation difficulties . The marketplace is a case of survival of the fittest for many of these women. Beatrice and Patience are required to adjust to consumer preferences/needs, increasing prices and the scarcity of goods. They do not have the opportunity to influence the factors that determine their survival in business. Yet, they cannot quit because their livelihoods, their dependants and the sustainability of the market depend on women like them – they have a sense of responsibility to their customers and to a larger extent, their families and they cannot fail them.

RDF Ghana is addressing the constraints related to access to credit facilities to ensure that traders like Beatrice and Patience thrive. So far, RDF Ghana has invested GHS 6.82 Million in MSMEs involved in trading of food stuffs, representing 32.5% of disbursements made since 2018. Gracia Clarke, in her field study of the Kumasi Central Market, describes the market as community, employer and home. If this description is anything to go by, then life in the marketplace should be worth the time for women who have been found to enjoy making a living there. According to her,

 

Some said they had more leisure and stability in the market than at home, juggling the constant demands of children, husband, and landlord

She added that markets thrive because they mediate significant kinds of differences in access to resources.

The markets bridge these differences (in ecology, wealth, class, and ethnicity) not by erasing them but by taking advantage of them, often in ways that perpetuate or intensify them.

Year after year, RDF is building a community of stakeholders who are working in the interest of the market woman and the Ghanaian economy by availing lines of credits to its partner financial institutions who break the bulk and on lend to women doing the most in Agric like Beatrice and Patience. Welcome aboard!

Sources: https://www.britishsteel.co.uk/
https://www.academia.edu/
https://www.bcp.gov.gh
https://www.africa.businessinsider.com/
https://www.ajol.info/
https://www.academia.edu/

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rdfghana August 17, 2022 0
Features

Have The Chickens Come Home To Roost?

Happy reading!

Many people who have grown up in typical traditional Ghanaian homes are familiar with animal rearing as a part of their socialisation. Stray chickens are a daily sight in the country’s communal living where hen coops are dotted around neighbourhoods. For those who attended public Senior High Schools (SHSs) in Ghana, your house warden’s
backyard was the best place to spot any ‘unsuspecting’ chicken minding its feed and not another’s business. Stories abound of notorious students who for a lack of control of their appetites courted trouble for stealing their wardens’ fattened chicken saved for Christmas. For the neighbourhood chickens that are spared the torments of unrelenting fire, it remains true that they often come home to roost.

The idiom, the chickens come home to roost is attributed to the notion of bad deeds
coming back to haunt their originator. The expression is long established in the English language and was published as early as 1390, when Geoffrey Chaucer used it in The Parson’s Tale’. Centuries after, this idiom seems to find a place in Ghana’s poultry industry. Recent developments in Ghana show that the poultry industry may suffer a collapse, a situation all stakeholders in agriculture should worry about. According to the Poultry Farmers Association , around half of Ghana’s poultry farms have already closed since last year. Association member, Yiadom Boakye, said if no action is taken to support the sector, poultry farm numbers may further reduce to 10% of that number by the end of 2022. Poultry farms are shutting down mainly due to the high price of feed and/or the lack of it. Could this be an indication that longstanding unaddressed industry problems are coming back to bite us? A case of chickens coming home to roost?

Research shows that in Ghana, poultry consumption is dominated by chicken meat.
This is followed by other poultry options like guinea fowls, ducks, turkeys and ostriches. A 2021 study of profit efficiency of layer production in Ghana further corroborates this, stating that in 2018, the livestock sector in Ghana was primarily dominated by poultry production which contributed 37% of total domestic meat production. The medium-scale and small-scale enterprises (MSMEs) highly influence these statistics with their 80% control of the sector .

Though feed supply appears the most pressing issue now, the industry is fraught with
other challenges like disease outbreaks and the heavy importation of pre-cut frozen
chicken which is cheaper for the consumer than the local chicken. Local poultry
processors in Ghana lack the infrastructure and equipment to compete with the ever-
rising rate of chicken importation. Through the rough patch, RDF Ghana is supporting the poultry sector with funds and technical assistance (TA), yielding some results to sustain livelihoods.

RDF Monitoring Visits – A Bird’s Eye View of the Poultry Sector

RDF’s monitoring visits to poultry farms in the Western North and Ashanti regions in
May and June 2022 discovered some of the aforementioned problems highlighted in the media. We visited Zakari Abdulai at Barekese in the Ashanti Region who farms for a
living. He owns a poultry farm which sits on a two-acre land. He has had 6,000 birds in
total until recently when he sold 2,000 birds. At the time of visiting, he was expecting a
new delivery of 2,000 Day-old Chicks (DOCs). Zakari reports an egg laying rate of 80%
matching a gain of 180 crates daily. However, his business is burdened by the high cost
of feed, especially maize.

“It is cost-saving to buy maize in bulk when it is in season but because of the lack of funds, we are unable to buy in bulk,” he said.

Zakari is a beneficiary of RDF’s line of credit made available to Nwabiagya Rural Bank. Through this facility, he has been able to buy more feed for his birds to keep his
business running. Zakari is relentless in growing his four-year-old business; he is
supplementing his feed purchase with the cultivation of a maize farm neighbouring his poultry farm.

Another RDF beneficiary, also under Nwabiagya Rural Bank, is Gyamfi Boateng whose wife started the business in 2004. In his bid to support his wife, Gyamfi, a retired teacher, manages his wife’s poultry business. In his own words, “I do this for my wife and myself.” It is interesting to learn that just like Zakari, Gyamfi invested his loan in
poultry feed. Even though he sells over 100 crates of eggs in three days, the cost he
has to bear in feeding his birds makes business stressful. Gyamfi, who is also the Chairman of the Poultry Farmers Association in his locality (Offinso South Municipality), almost downcast, suggested that dropping out of the industry may be a better idea for him in his present state as a pensioner. He confirmed that a good number of farmers were dropping out and selling their farms. The group, which initially had 40 members, now reports only 20 active members with 14 members only showing up at their last meeting.

The situation on feed availability and price is not different in Bibiani at John Ackah’s. On the brighter side though, John has benefited from an RDF-sponsored poultry management programme. He indicated that the technical assistance (TA) was beneficial to him such that he had implemented some of the new knowledge from the programme. The Monitoring Team saw firsthand his footbath which he said he did not have until after the TA intervention. The poultry management training programme has
grown beyond a fixed period of professional support. John now has consistent
engagements with the facilitators of the training. Following the rapport established with the programme facilitators, John has enjoyed free service in testing the quality of his poultry feed.

Have the chickens come home to roost?

RDF has invested a little over GHS3.3 Million in Ghana’s Poultry industry, constituting
15.7% of all disbursements made to agriculture since 2018. Even though the
organization is here for the long haul, it will take more than our efforts to make the
poultry industry rebound. Have the chickens come home to roost? Are we bearing the
brunt of the longstanding challenges like illegal grains export? In the wake of global
conversations on food sufficiency, it is time for Ghana to revamp grains production for a robust poultry sector. The matter about the importation of frozen chicken must also be
addressed for the benefit of Ghanaian poultry farmers. A resolution of the outstanding
problems in the sector will be a feather in the cap for the Government of Ghana. Our
visits found that averagely, farmers spent 70% of their production cost on feed. If these problems persist, what will happen to Zakari’s dream? Will Gyamfi be right about abandoning poultry farming, a worthwhile pastime in his retirement? Perhaps John Ackah’s joy after the RDF intervention programmes may be short-lived. RDF is not relenting in supporting Ghana’s poultry sector with access to finance and technical assistance. What can you do to help?

Sources: https://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/chickens-come-home-to-roost.html
https://www.rvo.nl/sites/default/files/2019/12/Update-poultry-report-ghana-2019.pdf
https://www.rvo.nl/sites/default/files/2019/12/Update-poultry-report-ghana-2019.pdf
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666188821000162
https://www.rvo.nl/sites/default/files/2019/12/Update-poultry-report-ghana-2019.pdf
https://www.myjoyonline.com/ghanas-poultry-industry-is-on-the-verge-of-collapse-poultry-farmers/

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rdfghana August 3, 2022 0
Features

Female Coffee Processors in Ghana: There’s a whole lot of Coffee at Farida’s!

Happy reading!

If you knew very little about coffee, perhaps you would know one thing, thanks to the
internationally acclaimed Ghanaian-led band of the late nineteen sixties, Osibisa; that
there’s an awful lot of coffee in Brazil! And there’s a whole lot of truth in that, for a
country which produces about a third of the world’s coffee. We reminisce not only about the good rhythms of the past, but we lead you into learning about the strings of growth Farida is pulling in coffee processing in Ghana.

Hajia Farida Moro is an agro-processor at Abuakwa-Tabre in the Ashanti Region. She
processes mainly coffee, with add-on yields like soya beans, rice and wheat which she processes into tom brown, a popular African multigrain cereal powder. Hajia Farida is a beneficiary of RDF’s line of credit made available to the agriculture and renewable energy sectors. At about the age of 25, Hajia was groomed into this business by an older woman and 19 years on, she has never looked back.

Come smell some freshly roasted coffee beans

Emmanuel Kodwo Sackey, the Head of Operations, Programmes and Partnerships at RDF Ghana and the rest of the visiting team, could not help but have a feel of these brown granules and take in deep breaths of the savour of some freshly roasted beans.

Hajia purchases about 10 tons of coffee beans weekly during the harvest season which starts from December to March. She sources most of her coffee beans from Kwahu-Bepong in the Eastern Region. After buying the beans, She roasts, grinds and bags them for sale.

Speaking on the production process, Hajia said,

At first, we used the manual process where we had to spend hours roasting the beans in pans. Now, I have been able to acquire some processing machines to make us more productive.

Mechanization has increased the volume of beans she processes by 300% to meet the
ever-increasing demand. According to Hajia Farida, during the first half of the year, the
demand for coffee is very high as farmers and farm labourers find coffee, a refreshing
energy booster during the farm preparation period.

Access to Finance

“The biggest challenge of this business is access to finance because if you do not have
enough money, you cannot buy the volumes you need to be profitable. In my case, access to the RDF loan provided by Sefwiman Rural Bank has given my business the
boost I needed.”

The beauty of her work is her tenacity in business which has seen her grow to have her
own ‘mini-factory.’

Senanu Tord of the Voice of America in a news report in May 2022 reveals that

More than half of Ghana’s 15 new roasting companies belong to women who pay more for the beans from local farmers than exporters do.

It is worth noting that the export of green coffee beans dwindled because of the growth of local roasters in Ghana, most of which are owned by women. This wave was so intense that there was a period of zero export of green coffee beans because the local industry took over the processing of green coffee beans.

Essentially, the report tells about how women in agriculture are taking the lead in coffee production following the introduction of modified seedlings and new farm practices.

The report further indicates that trade in coffee makes up the largest part of tropical
beverages even more than cocoa and tea. The Government of Ghana says its goal is to
grow coffee to outgrow cocoa production or at least match cocoa’s income generation.
Against this backdrop, one can only anticipate the success that lies ahead for Hajia and
many other women in coffee processing once the business climate is supportive of their
efforts.

Value addition and the spiraling effect

A good partnership makes a good business better. With the help of RDF’s partner,
Sefwiman Rural Bank, Hajia is formalising her business. The bank is assisting her with
the Food and Drugs Authority certification process. This step will enable her to start branding her products for the market, a strategy RDF is looking to offer technical assistance for, to allow Hajia access a wider market, increase and sustain interest in her products.

Hajia has no formal training in her business, however, one would be impressed with her
ingenuity. Perhaps our sweetest memory of Hajia is the inviting aroma of her tom brown mix. It is simply inescapable! She blends milled rice, wheat and soya beans and adds
value to it by including milk and sugar to make it a complete quick cereal meal.

In the face of rising prices and unavailability of poultry feed, it is worth noting that Hajia has been supporting the poultry industry with the sale of processed soya beans. Also, Hajia supplies processed coffee beans to companies that require coffee to make
various kinds of beverages and confectionaries.

Where agriculture and aspirations embrace

Hajia Farida Moro envisions this business to grow into a big factory where she can
employ more people to trade value to the Ghanaian and the international community.
She has actually begun the process of acquiring land to bring this vision to life. With the
support of her caring husband, there is no limit to what Hajia can do. Currently, she has
five (5) employees including two (2) females. This business is creating a chain of
development in the Ashanti Region; one of her employees is a young Senior High
School graduate who is saving up money earned from the business in preparation
toward his teacher training education. One vision, one woman, many beneficiaries.

RDF has got the Ghanaian agro-woman’s back

RDF is looking to facilitate the branding of Hajia’s goods for the local and international
market. The organisation understands that branding is a core function in today’s
competitive market place and is also essential in nurturing trust and longevity thus our
readiness to invest in the process.

The monitoring visit brought to the fore some other key needs calling for technical
assistance. These observations have to do with structural expansion, product storage and ensuring the occupational health and safety of Hajia Farida and her staff. Hajia also revealed that erratic power supply in her locality hindered business. While RDF explores energy solutions to assist Farida, we are open to engage with state agencies on how to make the business environment supportive of businesses like that of Farida’s.

Next time you travel through the Ashanti Region, turn on Osibisa’s coffee song and
dance your way to Abuakwa-Tabre because there sure is a whole lot of coffee at
Farida’s. RDF Ghana is looking to engage and support more women like Hajia Farida
Moro. Are you one?

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rdfghana July 13, 2022 0
Features

The Vast Potential in Crop Farming – Daniel Kwasi Tawiah Shows the Way

Happy reading!

Daniel Kwasi Tawiah’s journey in agriculture is a living example of the expression, ‘passion fuels dream.’ For Daniel, the classroom was not the best place for him to fully express his potential. Seeming quite embarrassed about it, he recalls, “I was not smart in school and always returned home with poor grades.”

However, his eyes lit up when he began to speak about his love for agriculture. “I learned early that school was not for me. It was just not working for me so after Junior Secondary School (now Junior High School), I decided to go into farming which I already found exciting!”

It all started in 1992 and Daniel has not looked back since then. After the decision to venture into agribusiness, he now owns a two-acre pepper farm, a three-acre garden egg farm, an eight-acre rice farm, a twelve-acre cocoa farm, a pen which houses 15 sheep and an agro-chemical shop which he set up for his wife to manage. Daniel’s not done yet. Intrinsic to his burgeoning strategy in farming, he has constructed a pigsty to begin a piggery. This man means business.

From seed in the soil to cash in the pocket

Describing how business works for him, from planting to harvesting, Daniel says since
he sought to make a living out farming, he decided to venture into two fast-yielding
crops; pepper and garden eggs. He said the decision has been rewarding, revealing
that, “Pepper takes about three (3) to four (4) months to be ready for harvesting, and the good part is that you can continue to harvest for one year after the first harvest.”

During harvest seasons, he harvests seven (7) to eight (8) bags of pepper weekly,
selling each bag at an average GHS120. Additionally, he harvests 30 bags of garden
eggs weekly and sells them at GHS80 per bag. The harvest time for garden eggs is also
three (3) months after planting.

Opportunities in agriculture
In a 2016 published report on the case of Ghana in Youth inclusiveness in agricultural transformation, the Author, Yannicke Goris asserts that,

The agricultural sector is seen as having the most potential of catalyzing economic growth and employment for young people, especially given the growing demand for food and raw materials. Yet, throughout Sub-Saharan Africa – and Ghana is no exception – young people do not regard agriculture as a viable job option.

Daniel is one of the few Ghanaians blazing the trail in agriculture. Apart from his undying passion for his trade, a unique trait Daniel possesses is his versatility in agriculture. He is living proof that one can earn their income solely from agriculture once they fully explore the commercial avenues.
RDF’s influence in the sector

RDF Ghana is proud to be a part of Daniel’s journey. Daniel is a beneficiary of RDF’s line of credit disbursed to Rural and Community Banks for the development of
agriculture and rural development. He has benefitted from three (3) loan cycles
including the Asset Finance Facility, from Sefwiman Rural Bank (a Partner Financial
Institution of RDF) to enable him to purchase a Kia truck to facilitate the movement of
his goods.

As is characteristic of any business, there are challenges that need to be overcome.
Daniel shared some of his challenges with RDF.

The land tenure system has not been too favourable to Daniel. Thus he keeps moving
from one place to the other to plant, grow and harvest. He is currently seeking a piece
of land he can own for the long term.

Also, Daniel pointed out a need for education on disease control, a request RDF is
strongly considering for his benefit and the benefit of other farmers within his
community. Last year, RDF in partnership with Kwame Nkrumah University of Science
and Technology (KNUST) organised an Integrated Soil and Fertility Management
(ISFM) programme to deliver training and support services to a total of 448 cocoa and
other crop farmers in the Western, Western-North, and Central Regions. As a result of consistent engagements with farmers like Daniel and agribusiness players in general, Daniel should soon be benefitting from these pieces of training and services aimed at boosting the quality and volumes of agricultural produce.

The future is here
Daniel Tawiah is making it happen! He is feeding his family and communities, employing people and making agriculture thrive. He owns two houses and employs three people. You can do it too. Let’s start with a backyard garden, shall we? The results will certainly be exciting to see. RDF asks, “Are you the next Daniel?”

Cheers to a sustainable future and more employment in agriculture!

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rdfghana June 29, 2022 0
Features

Making Funds Accessible for Foodstuffs Trading – The Bibiani Market Story

Happy reading!

It is a regular market day in the Bibiani Market. Traders are displaying their wares while making the most of their voices – from harmonious strains to discordant ones – and gestures are not left out of efforts to grab one’s attention. It is not unusual to meet the gaze of a trader whose eyes plead for your attention towards her goods; it could be a wink, a warm smile, or the ‘I am ready to engage you’ kind of countenance. In the marketplace, every effort counts.

For the prospective buyer, your likely assessment of the scenery is that business may be effortless for these traders who proudly display plump tomatoes, ‘fully-muscled’ garden eggs, bulky onions and colourful habanero peppers. Indeed, the colours in the marketplace are eye-pleasing! It is worth mentioning that there are untold stories behind all the colours, dins and bustle in the market. Here is a story about some of these traders; a story of some amazing women utilizing loan facilities procured from one of RDF’s partner financial institutions, Sefwiman Rural Bank.

Meet Mary
Mary Atoboga is a trader in the Bibiani Market. She retails beans, maize, rice and spices. Mary has been in this business for the past 20 years. She says the business is profitable as she is able to make a gross profit of about GHS800 per week. She owns four storerooms in the market. Apart from selling in the market, Mary supplies grains to some selected schools running the Government of Ghana’s School Feeding programme. What could go wrong for Mary?

Mary Atobogah at her stall

Mary is a beneficiary of RDF’s line of credit facility made available to selected Rural and Community Banks (RCBs) committed to supporting the agriculture and renewable energy sectors. She has accessed the facility three times in three years to support her business including accessing the Asset Finance Facility to enable her to purchase a tricycle to improve the transportation of her goods. With the support provided, Mary is thriving and eager to move on to the next level in her business. Currently, she provides employment to three other women, helping solve the yawning problem of unemployment. She scores a point on providing income opportunities for women, in line with SDG Goal 5 which promotes gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls. The story has not always been so for Mary. Like many other businesses, trading foodstuffs requires funds to keep it running.

Agriculture and trade – the pair that engender sustainability

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD),

“Trade plays a crucial role in providing livelihoods for farmers and people employed along the food supply chain. It also contributes to reducing food insecurity across the globe and provides greater choice in consumer goods.”

Statistics indicate that trade in foodstuffs has grown strongly over the last two decades, reaching almost 7% in real terms annually between 2001 and 2019. Even though the COVID-19 pandemic led to trade disruptions worldwide, the agricultural and food sector is reported to have demonstrated more resilience than other sectors of the economy. Despite all the successes chalked and the limitless potential of foodstuffs trading, traders continue to face constraints that trickle down to consumers, threatening the stability of the industry.

In Mary’s account of her challenges, she lamented that the cost of food, particularly, maize was shooting up almost every day.

Generally, it is difficult to purchase maize these days because the price keeps soaring. Without sufficient funds, it is impossible to buy grains because the wholesalers no longer give us the goods on credit,” she said

She added that apart from skyrocketing prices, marketing and market linkages are challenges affecting her trade.

To mitigate these challenges, RDF Ghana LBG has since 2018 made funds available to help people like Mary to remain in business. RDF is committed to funding agriculture/agribusiness to enable us to put our theory of change into practice.

RDF’s theory of change states that,

if financial institutions have access to loans and credit guarantees for on-lending; then MSMEs in agriculture and renewable energy will have increased access to working capital and term loans; resulting in the growth of MSMEs engaged in agriculture and renewable energy; leading to increased incomes and creation of new jobs with better opportunities for women.

The story of the market woman is important because she is an indispensable agent in getting food, a basic need for human survival, from the farm to our kitchen. In an article by Maggie O’Neill titled ‘In Ghana, Women and Market Queens dominate the economy,’ The author notes that,

While the women running hectic marketplaces like this (Makola Market) do not hold official political power, their collective force is what drives the consumer economy of Ghana. Because of this, the government eagerly stays on good terms with the market women.

An Agricultural sector review conducted in Ghana in 2020 indicates that agriculture contributes 19.7% of Ghana’s current Gross Domestic Product (GDP), accounts for over 30% of export earnings and serves as a major source of inputs to our manufacturing industry. According to David Tanoh-Aduhene and Eric Osei Assibey in a 2020 study on the socio-economic impact of COVID-19 on Ghana’s economy, the sector employs an estimated 60% of the Ghanaian population. It is also the largest sector that provides income for most households, especially rural residents of the country. Also, research indicates that Small and Medium Entreprises (SMEs) contribute more than 50 percent of Ghana’s total (GDP). These statistics make one see how people like Mary are important in the discourse on Ghana’s economic growth.
Consistent collaborative efforts will make the sector thrive
While organisations like RDF Ghana exist to ensure that Ghana makes the most of agriculture, it is imperative that government consistently creates an enabling environment by formulating and actively implementing policies that are favourable towards the agribusiness ecosystem and the agricultural sector in general. This is critical for families like that of Rebecca Anyimah, who like Mary, trades in grains, spices and other food products at the Bibiani Market. She is the breadwinner of a home of seven children and a husband who is currently out of job.

Rebecca Anyimah at her stall

Back to the question of what could go wrong for Mary? Without a check on prices, women like Mary and Rebecca may suffer unduly to stay in business. The burden will be passed on to the consumer who has to pay extra for their daily food. Regardless of the current bottlenecks, RDF Ghana is working with rural and community banks in Ghana to cushion the financial challenges of actors in the agricultural value chain.

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rdfghana June 14, 2022 0