GHANA – The High Commission of Canada in Ghana has committed US$43,000 (about GH¢2.5 million) towards efforts to enhance the progress of Ghanaian women in agribusiness.

According to a statement from the Canadian High Commission, the support is in line with its Feminist International Assistance Policy (FIAP), which seeks to empower women to eradicate poverty and build a more peaceful, more inclusive and more prosperous world.

“Working with Ghana’s Women in Agriculture Development (WIAD) Directorate of MOFA as well as with decentralized departments of agriculture throughout the country, the support will foster women’s competitiveness in providing good quality value-added products to local and foreign customers,” the statement read in part.

A report by Ghana Web indicated that the funds will be particularly used in the implementation of a program by the Ghanaian government to support to Women Farmer-Based Organizations (WFBOs) that are engaged in post-production agricultural operations in Ghana.

The pilot program according to the report by Ghana Web is being implemented by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) in partnership with the Ministry of Local Governance and Rural Development (MLGRD).

The initiative will contribute to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Ghana Government’s Investment for Food and Jobs (IFJ) objectives.

Activities to be supported include, purchasing and installation of agro-processing equipment, along with capacity building on operation and maintenance of the machinery.

The women empowerment program will also include coaching by TBI on marketing techniques to ensure appropriate market linkages.

The MoFA has already signed an Agreement with GRATIS, an agency under the Ministry of Trade and Industries, to fabricate the machinery required by the beneficiary WFBOs, and to deliver and install them for use by the women groups.

Upon successful implementation, Ghana hopes that the intervention would result in an improved ability of WFBOs to efficiently add value to their products and to reduce their post-harvest losses.

The pilot initiative is also expected to improve the incomes of WFBOs members as well as the economic status of their households.

The pilot, which has already been launched, will support 48 competitively-selected WFBOs from the 16 regions of Ghana. 32 applications have already been approved.

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