New Food Security Project to Boost Climate Resilience for 842,000 Cocoa and Other Tree Crop Farmers in Ghana
R
otterdam, the Netherlands, 23 June 2023 – The Global Center on Adaptation (GCA) announced today it is working with the World Bank, the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD), and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture of Ghana to deploy digital technologies through the US$200 million Ghana Tree Crop Diversification Project financed by the World Bank to enhance climate resilience for over 842,000 cocoa and other tree crop farmers.
Agriculture contributes to 54 percent of Ghana’s GDP, and accounts for over 40 percent of export earnings, while at the same time providing over 90 percent of the food needs of the country. Tree crops, including cocoa, oil palm, coffee, and rubber, are of particular importance in the sector. The Ghana Tree Crop Diversification Project aims to address systemic weaknesses in Ghana’s agriculture sector to improve farmers’ income, reverse the current trend of deforestation, and contribute to eliminating child labor with investments in field-level interventions in priority agro-ecological areas, improving the governance, management and efficiency of farmer-based organizations, and strengthening the capacity of key institutions overseeing the sector.
Under its flagship Africa Adaptation Acceleration Program (AAAP), GCA will support the design and delivery of e-extensions for youth and women, to close the gaps in access to basic data and information, including on projected climate risks and opportunities. These interventions will ultimately increase cocoa, cashew, coconut and rubber yields, and reduce future risks to climate threats.
“Agriculture engages more than half – or 52 percent – of the labor force in Ghana,” said Professor Patrick Verkooijen, CEO of the Global Center on Adaptation. “Financing solutions that leverage digital climate adaptation solutions for women and youth in the farming sector is critical to securing jobs, driving economic prosperity, and building resilience against the climate breakdown.”
In the project, GCA will work with partners to carry out the following activities:
- Conduct climate risk analyses and adaptation options for tree crop value chains to facilitate the design of digital advisory services
- Co-design an investment valuation for the implementation of digital adaptation solutions and e-extension of cocoa and tree crop value chains in the project
- Build the capacity of stakeholders in the agricultural sector of Ghana to implement climate-smart e-extension in the project areas by developing curricula and training materials
Agriculture and food security is a key pillar under the AAAP, which was launched in 2021 and has already mainstreamed adaptation solutions into over $5.4 billion of investments in climate adaptation in Africa. These investments are vital for financing adaptation solutions in countries that are most exposed to the threats of climate change.
