$200m Tree crop diversification project launched

The government, in partnership with the World Bank, has launched the Ghana Tree Crop Diversification Project (TCDP) in Accra. The six-year project would be funded with a $200 million credit from the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank Group.

It involves the production, processing and trading in six high-value tree crops such as cashew, shea, mango, coconut, rubber and oil palm.

The initiative is to be managed by the Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA) and the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), under the supervision of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA).

The project, which was launched in Accra yesterday, was on the theme: “Sowing the seeds of the future: Unlocking Ghana’s tree crop potential for inclusive and sustainable transformation.”

Beneficiaries

The project would directly benefit cocoa, cashew, coconut and rubber farmers, and improve productivity and incomes of some 52,775 farmers and households.

About 40 per cent of beneficiaries would be women located across 11 districts in six regions — Western North, Eastern, Savannah, Bono, Bono East, and Eastern.  

Additionally, the project would support between five and 10 farmers with input supplies and 10 nurseries.

An estimated 185 small and medium-sized enterprises involved in processing cocoa, cashews and coconuts would also benefit.

In all, the project is expected to create around 20,000 jobs, out of which 60 per cent would be youth. 

Significance

The Minister of Food and Agriculture (MoFA), Dr Bryan Acheampong, said the tree crop sector was vital to agriculture and the economy, generating income for over 1.6 million farming households.

The sector, he said, offered significant opportunities for economic diversification, job creation, poverty reduction, food security, foreign exchange earnings and substantial contribution to gross domestic product (GDP).

Despite having ample arable land for cocoa production, the minister said the country was faced with threats of deforestation, climate change and other environmental issues.

“If current trends continue, many cocoa-farming households will suffer, including a drop in the country’s foreign exchange revenues,” he said.

Strategy

To enhance tree crop development, Dr Acheampong said the government was promoting a dual strategy focusing on cocoa and other tree crops.

For the cocoa sector, he said the Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) had implemented its second Cocoa Sector Development Strategy (CSDS-II) for 2017-2027.

“This new strategy addresses the shortcomings of the first strategy, which primarily aimed to increase productivity but failed to adequately tackle cocoa swollen shoot virus disease (CSSVD), and also lacked management information systems.

“CSDS-II focuses on modernising the industry to improve competitiveness and resilience, with interventions aimed at enhancing productivity, efficiency, innovation and quality management, along with traceability and certification,” the minister said.

Mr Acheampong further said that in 2019, the government established the TCDA, which launched a five-year development strategy in 2022, targeting six priority crops — cashew, shea, mango, coconut, rubber and oil palm. 

Support

The Minister of Finance, Dr Mohammed Amin Adam, said the government would support the initiative by providing the necessary funding and policy direction.

“In addition, we will continue to work closely with MoFA, the Ministry of Trade and Industry and other relevant agencies to ensure that this project is fully integrated into our national development agenda,” he said.

The Chief Executive Officer of the TCDA, William Agyapong Quaittoo, said as a regulatory authority, it had developed a five-year strategy and implementation plan (2022-2027) to address emerging challenges.

The Country Director of the World Bank, Robert Taliercio O’Brien, said the bank’s long-standing commitment to Ghana’s development, particularly in the agricultural sector, aligned perfectly with the objectives of the GTCDP.

“By diversifying the country’s tree crop value chains, we are not only boosting productivity, but also creating new opportunities for rural communities, fostering resilience against climate change and strengthening Ghana’s position in the global market,” he said.

He gave an assurance that the World Bank was committed to ensuring that the project delivered long-term shared benefits for the country.