Ghana’s cocoa extension service to farmers critical to sustainable production

Interest groups in Ghana’s cocoa trade are directing attention to cocoa extension service delivery to farmers for the country to sustain production and be globally competitive.

The Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD) in 2010 instituted a new extension system for cocoa farmers under a public-private partnership with the aim of removing duplication of efforts by partners.

The initiative was also to reduce the cost of extension delivery to the over 800 thousand cocoa farming families.

According to the COCOBOD, the 250 cocoa extension staff under the partnership have reached close to 100 thousand farmers since the inception of the PPP arrangement.

But the system has yet to achieve the full cooperation of partner companies and institutions to yield the requisite impact at the farmer’ level.

“We have a challenge with the cocoa extension public-private partnership,” stated Dr. Francis Oppong, an Executive Director at COCOBOD, who has expressed worry that a couple of private partners have indicated their intention to stay out of the arrangement.

“We are addressing that but we need to have a clear cut policy on this so that whichever organization comes on board this platform will operate under certain conditions,” he said.

Dr. Oppong has announced that a committee established by the COCOBOD to devise the Cocoa Sector Policy on Extension has completed its work. He is hoping the policy adoption will deepen engagements with extension services.

Extension staff work with cocoa farmers on the field to ensure they cultivate healthy and productive cocoa trees.

Their work has become even more critical as global clients demand that cocoa delivered on the market are produced under socially and environmentally acceptable manner.

“There is a certain dynamics going on in the cocoa sector where companies sourcing cocoa are asking for certified sustainable cocoa. What it means is that farmers need to be trained in good production practices; farmers need to be supported to develop internal control systems that allow them to report o n the production practices,” noted Isaac Gyamfi, Managing Director, Solidaridad West Africa.

There is therefore the need for a paradigm shift that will lead to acquisition of new skills, ideas and methods to improve delivery of extensions services to farmers.

The World Cocoa Foundation, COCOBOD, USAID and Solidaridad have completed a capacity building programme for close to 400 mid and senior level staff of the Cocobod’s Cocoa Swollen Shoot Virus Disease Control Unit (CSSVD-CU), focusing on fair-trade standards in cocoa certification and new techniques in communications and facilitation skills.

The Ghana Cocoa Platform, which serves as the main forum to build consensus among players in the cocoa sector on all industry issues, has extension and productivity as one of the thematic areas for dialoguing.

“Cocobod and all sector stakeholders are not unaware of the need to get farmers not only to do the right production practices but also to innovate their production systems,” says Isaac Gyamfi.

Whilst competitors in South-East Asia are producing up to 2,000kg per hectare of cocoa, Ghana and other West African producers are in the range of 400kg.

Mr. Gyamfi therefore notes the importance of helping farmers to access inputs, especially fertilizers, agro pesticides and credit.

Solidaridad is currently working with various private sector partners to pilot the establishment of Cocoa Rural Service Delivery Centers in Ghana.

The innovative agricultural extension model allows farmers to access marketing and input services at one location within the production district.

According to Mr. Gyamfi, the centers will roll out nationwide once the pilot phase has been validated.

Ghana wants to sustain its annual production target of between 800,000 and 900,000 tonnes through sustainable input supply systems and also sustain farmers’ income.

Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh