Netherlands supports Ghana to improve vegetable production
The Netherlands has partnered Ghana to improve vegetable production and reduce import under the Ghana Vegetable Sector Commercialisation programme (GhanaVeg).
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The initiative is aimed at improving the sector to suit the global standard and produce more vegetables for export in order to generate foreign exchange for the country.
This was disclosed at the launch of GhanaVeg by the Netherlands Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Hans Docter last Tuesday, in Accra.
According to Mr Docter, the Netherlands has a lot to offer Ghana in the area of technology, which will benefit vegetable production in the private sector.
“The domestic market alone is growing at more than 10 percent and the potential value for export vegetables is estimated at US$ 250 million and Ghana is still importing US$85 million worth of onions that could be produced in the country,” he said.
GHANAVEG
The programme which will end in 2017, has received four million Euros in funding from Netherlands.
It is aimed at attracting companies in the entire sector including supply, processing and logistics, and encouraging more investments and trade in Ghana’s vegetable sector from the European Union at large.
With focus on food safety, which is the core of GhanaVeg , the programme will include vegetable farmers to ensure the use of clean water and pesticides where necessary.
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The GhanaVeg programme is implemented by the Centre for Development Innovation (CDI) of Wageningen UR with support from the International Fertilizer Development Centre (IFDC) and the Netherlands African Business Council (NABC)
With this support, GhanaVeg can support innovative projects with a grant up to fifty thousand Euros, as an independent selection committee has been instituted to assess the tended proposals.