{"id":120278,"date":"2015-05-29T09:16:34","date_gmt":"2015-05-29T09:16:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/4cd.e16.myftpupload.com\/?p=120278"},"modified":"2015-05-29T09:16:34","modified_gmt":"2015-05-29T09:16:34","slug":"acetgates-foundation-recommend-ways-to-boost-ghanas-agric-sector","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/citifmonline.com\/2015\/05\/acetgates-foundation-recommend-ways-to-boost-ghanas-agric-sector\/","title":{"rendered":"ACET\/Gates Foundation recommend ways to boost Ghana\u2019s agric sector"},"content":{"rendered":"
A new study by the African Center for Economic Transformation (ACET)\u00a0has given recommendations on\u00a0how Ghana can raise the standard of living of rural farmers, meet the nation\u2019s food needs, and transform the economy through new approaches to farming, processing, and marketing cassava, cocoa, poultry, and rice.<\/p>\n
The report, ‘Promoting Sustainable Rural Transformation’, was launched in Accra on Thursday by Dr. Yakubu Alhassan, Deputy Minister for Agriculture.<\/p>\n
In 2000, 80 percent of the chicken consumed in Ghana was produced in Ghana but by 2010, the number dropped to only 10 percent.<\/p>\n
As the country pushes for consumption of made-in-Ghana products, this report shows the constraints to production and how to overcome them.<\/p>\n
To boost poultry production, for instance, the report highlights that used fridges can be modified to hatch eggs.<\/p>\n
\u201cAgriculture remains the natural pathway for Ghana\u2019s transformation,\u201d the Deputy Minister emphasized in his opening.<\/p>\n
The study brings insights into how to make that happen, especially through agro-processing. Presenting the report to stakeholders, Dr. Julius Gatune, a senior Policy Advisor at ACET and the principal author of the report, said: \u201cTake cassava. Most of the local production is geared towards varieties that make good fufu. As a Kenyan expatriate, I too have come to appreciate the value of fufu, but local industries are in desperate need of varieties that make good beer and starch too. That\u2019s an opportunity for expansion of production.\u201d<\/p>\n