Take Best Practices to Farmers in Rural Ghana

Kojo, a 66-year-old farmer and father of six children from Nyamebekyere obtained a higher yield this year on his maize farm by following the agronomic practices taught to Profile Farmers by the Agricultural and Entrepreneurial Development (AED) Program being implemented by Self Help International to equip rural farmers with best practices in agriculture.

However, he lost some of the yield because he had no access to a tarpaulin to dry and protect his produce from the heavy rains experienced in his community last year.

“I followed the teachings of the AED and planted the maize according to their specifications. When the maize was harvested, they assisted me with a tractor to cart my produce home. They also assisted me with a maize Sheller to shell my maize. However, the main problem was that the rains continued to fall and I could not dry my produce well because I did not have access to a tarpaulin. I lost some of my yield because they became moist as a result of exposure to rain; some of the maize got blackened and some even germinated.”

Kojo harvested six bags of maize from his farm which is about half an acre. This is in contrast to the three bags of maize he used to harvest from a one-acre farm using traditional farming practices.

“I am still happy with my yield and I have really benefited from being a Profile Farmer but I could have had more maize if I had a tarpaulin to dry my produce. In addition, if my plot had been up to an acre, I could have produced more maize”, he says.

Kojo is one of five Profile Farmers that were nurtured by the AED to serve as models for demonstrating the impact of modern agricultural technologies on crop yields. The farms of Profile Farmers are to serve as demonstration farms for other farmers. In addition, they are supposed to help other farmers adopt agricultural innovations through peer to peer learning.

To this end, Kojo says he has since been passing on the knowledge he has gained as a Profile Farmer to other farmers.

“I always follow the specifications of the AED and I am even teaching some of my fellow farmers to follow these rules. When I visit their farms and see that they broadcast their seeds instead of planting them in straight lines, I advise them on the benefits of planting maize seeds in straight lines and urge them to adopt it. I am currently coaching three farmers to adopt these best practices in agriculture.”

“I believe if more farmers adopt the teachings of the AED, my community will eventually prosper because it would lead to higher yields. It is my desire that more farmers in my community adopt and adhere to these farming practices.”

Giving his feedback on the new technologies he used on his farm, Kojo said there were occasions when the Hand Push Planter skipped some of the holes so certain planting spaces on his farm were not planted. Furthermore, some of the seeds were not virile since they failed to germinate.

He asked for a review of the routine application of fertilizer after 60 days since the height of the maize plants during that period makes fertilizer application cumbersome.  He also asked for a review of the 70 cm by 30cm planting distance for the variety of maize to 70cm by 70cm to avoid the plants getting too close to each other and forming early canopy.

 Kojo said transportation to and from their farms is a major problem. “If we farmers can be assisted to acquire a motor tricycle it will ease our transportation problems and also enable us to explore distant farmlands for crop cultivation.”

“The AED also needs to acquire more Hand Push Planters to prevent farmers from waiting long periods to use the planter,” he said.    

Eighty-three children at the Seseko District Assembly Kindergarten and Primary School in the Ashanti Region of Ghana now have access to porridge for breakfast at school after the Agricultural and Entrepreneurial Development (AED) Program of Self Help International (SHI) provided the community with Quality Protein Maize seeds to establish a school farm.

The Francis Mueller & Virginia Lageshulte Agriculture and Entrepreneur Development Center run by the AED Program taught members of the Seseko community how to use the Manual Hand-Push Planter and planted the farm alongside them. In addition, they were provided with fertilizer, weedicides and pesticides. The community in turn provided labor.

For two years now, proceeds from the farm have been used to run a local school feeding program where porridge is prepared at the school every morning for all the school children; from kindergarten to class six, to take as breakfast.

Commenting on why the community found it necessary to seek the services of the AED Program to provide meals for the school children in the morning, Samuel, 35, Assistant Headmaster of the school, said most of the students do not take breakfast at home before coming to school. "Furthermore, there are no food vendors around so food is not sold at the school which is located in a farming community." 

Samuel said while the school is on the government's school feeding program, the program provides food only at lunch time hence the need to find an alternative way of providing breakfast for the school children. He commended the AED Program for their assistance to the school saying “the school feeding program has made a positive impact on enrolment levels as well as the ability of the students to stay active in class and learn.”

Commenting on the quantity of maize needed to feed the entire school, he said,“We normally need more than one bag of maize to provide breakfast daily for all the students at the school during the school term.”

Meanwhile, efforts are underway by the Providing Good Nutrition (PGN) Program of SHI to formally start a School Feeding Program at the school. Under a PGN supported feeding program, the school will be provided with cups, spoons, sugar and a caterer to prepare the breakfast which is currently being prepared by the older girls at the school. During a visit by the PGN team and other SHI staff to assess the situation at the school in May this year, Mr. Antwi welcomed the idea of PGN taking over the school feeding program at the school.

He said other pressing problems encountered by the students are lack of school sandals, school bags, school uniforms and books. In addition, the school building is in a deplorable state which makes it difficult to teach whenever it rains since learning is disrupted by the rains.

Justice who is the Community Crop and Livestock Specialist of the AED Program said they were approached by the school two years ago for assistance to establish a school farm to support a school feeding program for the school children to ensure that they have access to breakfast daily.

Taking into consideration the nutritional needs of the school children, they immediately  went to the rescue of the school and supported the community to cultivate a maize farm to feed the children.

The school farm, which is less than an acre, produced 300 kilograms, which is approximately three maxi bags of maize last year