Ghana plants seeds of hope
3 September 2008
In September 2007 Northern Ghana suffered from very erratic rainfall,
with severe drought followed by heavy floods. As a result large areas of farmland were
destroyed and an estimated 300,000 people were left
homeless.
A year on, the region is still experiencing poor harvests and many Ghanaians are going without food. The
current global increase in oil and food prices is only making things worse.
Now, through its support for an innovative programme that sets up seed fairs, DFID Ghana is helping to get vital supplies to the people who are being hit the hardest.
Vouchers for grain
The fairs have the twin aims of addressing immediate food needs and providing farmers with
seeds for
the next planting season. Five thousand households have been issued with vouchers,
to be exchanged at the fairs for food grains (maize, millet) and planting seeds (soya beans,
groundnuts and maize).
Importantly, the products
available at the fairs are supplied by local traders, rather than imported from outside,
which provides a boost to the local economy. DFID
Ghana also monitors food prices to ensure the value of
the
vouchers keep up with any increases.
Memuna Zakaria from East Mamprusi is a mother of four. When the floods struck, her maize rotted in the waters and her groundnuts were destroyed. To survive, she was forced to beg for food.
Like many other women in her community Memuna's only source of income is the land that she farms. The arrival of the seed fairs therefore gave cause for real excitement and Memuna was keen to get involved. She is now eager to start planting the seeds she has bought at the fair and provide food for her family well into the future.
Support that lasts
The programme that set up the seed fairs - known as FARM II - also operates a range of other activities focused on recovering livelihoods lost in the floods.
These include:
- developing dry season gardening
- improving cereal storage
- providing small loans to enable farmers to make new investments
- helping farmers to tighten up their livestock management.
Over 100 communities across this, the poorest region of Ghana, stand to benefit from these projects. As Northern Ghana gets back on its feet after the devastation of 2007 and prepares itself for challenges ahead such as rising food prices, FARM II is providing support that could make the difference between starvation and survival.
Facts and stats
- FARM II - the Food Security and Agricultural Recovery Management programme - is a joint initiative from Care International and Action Aid.
- DFID’s £1.5 million funding to FARM II will help 40,000 people to buy food and seeds for planting in Northern Ghana between May 2008 and March 2009.
- The programme was designed in response to a vulnerability assessment undertaken by the Government of Ghana and the World Food Programme.
- FARM II builds on the activities of FARM I, which was the £343,000 humanitarian assistance DFID provided immediately after the 2007 floods.
Links
- UK announces aid package to tackle rising global food prices - 22 April 2008
Care International
- How we fight poverty: Disasters
