Good morning Your Excellency; Northern Regional Minister; Minister of State in-charge of Food and Agriculture; Ambassador Colleagues; sponsors and leaders of the private sector; Chief Executive of the Northern Development Authority; Nanamaa; distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen.  I am very pleased to participate in the opening ceremony of the 8th Pre-Harvest event.  Your Excellency, the theme for this year’s event – “Agribusiness in Northern Ghana, the Future Starts Now” – could not have been better chosen. Now, more than ever, Ghana is counting on a strong performing agriculture sector to transform its economy, to foster strong social and economic progress throughout the country. Ghana has made significant progress over the last decades. Canada is proud to have been a partner in this progress.

Your Excellency, the theme for this year’s event – “Agribusiness in Northern Ghana, the Future Starts Now” – could not have been better chosen. Now, more than ever, Ghana is counting on a strong performing agriculture sector to transform its economy, to foster strong social and economic progress throughout the country. Ghana has made significant progress over the last decades. Canada is proud to have been a partner in this progress.

However, there are still gaps to be addressed: according to the latest Ghana Living Standards Survey, 6.8 million Ghanaians are living in poverty today; among these 2.4 million live in extreme poverty. These figures are particularly pertinent here in northern Ghana, where poverty rates are highest and inequalities are increasing. Since rural households are among the poorest and most vulnerable, agriculture is key to both reducing poverty and inequality.

Your Excellency, Canada recognizes the importance of the agriculture sector as an engine for Ghana’s inclusive growth. Over the last decade we have partnered with the Government of Ghana, NGOs, and multilateral institutions to support rural economic development, reduce poverty and enhance food security. Today, agriculture is without any doubt the sector that receives the largest portion of our bilateral funding in Ghana. Last year alone, Canada provided more than 100M Cedis to help support farmers and agribusinesses in Ghana.

One of the objectives of our partnership to modernize agriculture program is to enable regions and districts to provide effective agriculture extension services: to visit farmers regularly; to set up demonstration sites and adaptative trials; and, to organize study tours and field visits. As a result, in 2017, Government of Ghana public extension officers were able to prepare 2,534 demonstration sites across the country, reaching nearly 130,000 farmers, including more than 50,000 women. This program is also helping to revise the agricultural extension system to make it more market-focused and gender-sensitive. A new curriculum is now being taught in five agricultural colleges, including at the Pong-Tamale College. The young women and men that graduate from this program will be well-equipped to enter the workforce as extension officers or to start their own successful agribusinesses.

In 2017, the Research-Extension-Linkage-Committees, enabled farmers to bring 51 agricultural issues to the attention of researchers. Climate-smart solutions to these issues are now being developed and tested. And the results need to be communicated back to the farmers, through extension officers.

Canada is also working with a variety of partners to support agricultural value chains in Ghana. Through our work with the World Food Program, more than 5,000 farmers have been able to improve their average production yields, as well as their revenues derived from the sales of maize, cowpea, millet and soybeans. Canadian support has also been used to increase local agro-manufacturing capacity in Kumasi and Sunyani and to connect these manufacturers to local farmers. As a result, there is now more locally-transformed nutritious food available in Ghana and many jobs have been created.

In Upper West Region, our work with MEDA has contributed to creating a soybean value-chain for more than 21,000 women farmers. These women have increased their access to land by 72% over the last year. They have also been able to generate over 250% profit on their investments in dry-season gardens. As a result, these women are now recognised as real contributors to the economy of their communities.

Your Excellency, as these examples show, Canada’s development support is helping to transform agriculture and develop agri-business in Ghana. It is fostering economic growth that benefits everyone, leaving no one behind. But our efforts do not end there. We also have a growing trade relationship that benefits the agriculture sector.

The Canadian private sector also has an increasing interest in investing in Ghana. In the past year, two smart-agriculture business delegations from Canada have visited Ghana. These successful missions have identified several potential areas of collaboration, particularly around livestock management and climate-smart agriculture. The Trade Facilitation Office of Canada (TFOC) is also working closely with the Ghana Export Promotion Authority to, for example, help Ghanaian cocoa exporters to improve their knowledge of the Canadian market place, and the opportunities and requirements to successfully export to Canada. I hope that one of you here will become an exporter to Canada.

Your Excellency, the “Ghana Beyond Aid” agenda will only be achieved if women and girls are given equal opportunities to succeed. I am encouraged to know that this pre-harvest event has dedicated sessions to promoting the business interest of women and youth. And I am pleased to see some of the women farmers that Canada has supported represented here.

Your Excellency, the pre-harvest event represents an opportunity for farmers and agro-entrepreneurs to expand their businesses and to create new partnerships to promote the growth of Ghana’s agricultural sector. I hope it will create new opportunities, in particular to women entrepreneurs.

May everyone benefit from attending this event and may it help to riase incomes, create jobs and strengthen your productivity.
Thank you to all of the sponsors and to the participants. Best wishes for a successful harvest!

Thank you.

Good morning everyone

I would like to extend my gratitude to our Honorable Minister, Minister of state, and other dignitaries for their kind presence and their passion to build Agric future in Ghana.

I would also like to thank USAID for their continuous efforts to develop Agriculture sector in Ghana and bringing all the relevant stakeholders together to share and discuss their views about it. It is also a good platform to collaborate with other Agric service providers to offer the optimal solution to the farmer’s community.

I would like to assure all our speakers, dignitaries and our own farmers that We, Tata & John Deere are well aligned with their thoughts.

Our organization Tata Africa Holding (Ghana) LTD is part of distribution vertical of Tata International Ltd, India. It is operating in Ghana for over two decades. It primarily deals in distribution of Tata Vehicles and after-sales support across the country.
From 1st September 2018, Tata joined hands with John Deere in Ghana to distribute and provide after-sales support of John Deere tractors and various agriculture equipment. This is an extension of an existing partnership with JD in other parts of Africa. John Deere is one of the most reputed brands in the agriculture sector and known for its supreme quality.

We believe in offering a comprehensive solution to the market. We call it a ‘SMART campaign’ that offers the one-stop solution for farmers to cater all their agriculture needs. We are promoting mechanization to improve yields by many folds from the same land, upgrading technical and farming skills and offer financing support as well.

We are offering all our agriculture product with a maintenance package to ensure that equipment will run efficiently during its lifespan. It also provides complete peace of mind to the customer. We are offering flexible financing solution that includes rental service, long-term hire purchase, assured trade-in value and customized financing package.

We are ready to collaborate with Agric service providers and farmer associations to consolidate the requirement of small farmers and provide them economically viable solutions. We have shown our interest to Govt. to be a partner in their various program to uplift the agriculture in Ghana. We can offer the right product, financing package, up gradation of skills and robust after sales support.

Our organization is focused on the overall development of agriculture sector. We are confident that Tata- JD partnership will cater the market requirement comprehensively and associate with all the relevant Agric program in the country.

Thank you

Your Excellencies,

Honourable Ministers of State,

Distinguished Chiefs,

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen;

Yara Ghana welcomes you to the 8th Annual Pre-Harvest Agribusiness Exhibitions and Conference Event. We are honoured by your presence at this all important event, which we have been a key partner of for some years now.
Knowing how possible it is to transform agriculture in Ghana, sometimes one is sad about the state of agriculture in Ghana after 61 years of independence. Sad, not because there hasn’t been any progress, but the progress made after so many years, is not good enough. Many government programs by different governments and over decades have not produced the transformational results expected. What have been the lessons? How are they being addressed to ensure we can have the agricultural transformation we all hope for as a country? The ongoing Planting for Food & Jobs program by the Ministry of Food & Agriculture has the potential to drive that transformation with private sector. According to the Ghana Statistical Service data, the agriculture sector has grown by 8.4% in 2017 – this is the highest growth recorded in 10 years. The momentum is now and all stakeholders must contribute to a transformation of the sector.

The average maize yield per hectare for Ghana is at 2.05t/ha. With Yara fertilizers and Yara Crop Nutrition solutions, we have been able to show on farmer demonstration fields managed by the farmer, maize yields of 6t/ha plus. We have had many demonstration fields (on farmer’s own fields) around the country on different crops, some in collaboration with USAID ADVANCE project, Ministry of Food & Agriculture (MoFA), Crop Research Institute (CRI), Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana (CRIG), Savanna Agricultural Research Institute (SARI) etc, where results show that it is possible to substantially increase the national production and make the farmer more profitable without necessarily increasing the farmland areas.
The Yara fertilizers and crop nutrition solutions indeed are able to deliver high productivity and profitability for the farmer, which is essential for agriculture value chain partnerships to be sustainable, creating opportunities and business for other partners in the entire agriculture value chain such as Input suppliers, farmers, marketers, manufacturers, traders, consumers, etc. The transformation we talk about is possible. From the cost benefit analysis on the many demonstration fields, the farmer can indeed be made more profitable.

Yara has a long term commitment to Ghana, and is keen on strengthening its operations in Ghana to be a hub to some West Africa countries. Northern Ghana would be an interesting hub for businesses to neighbouring Burkina Faso and northern parts of Togo for instance, creating jobs to transform the agriculture value chain in Northern Ghana. Is Ghana indeed positioning itself to be a successful hub to the sub-region? We have had the potential for decades. The transformation must start now!!

I challenge Ghana, and especially players in the agricultural value chain not to re-invent the wheel. It is possible if we can build the right partnerships and support at all levels towards transforming the agricultural sector.
I urge all present to take an active part in the programs lined up over the next days. Have the mind set to use this opportunity to create something beneficial for the transformation of agriculture in this beautiful region. Build value chain partnerships that create value and growth in the sector.

The Northern regions have been the nation’s food basket for years. Yet about USD2billion is spent on food imports annually into Ghana. We cannot continue to fail Ghana. We cannot fail this region. The transformation is possible.
Once again, I welcome you to this 8th Annual Pre-Harvest Agribusiness Exhibitions and Conference Event.
Yara, Knowledge Grows.

God bless our homeland Ghana.

Your Excellency Vice President of the Republic of Ghana – Dr Mahamadu Bawumia
Honourable Minister of State at the Presidency in-charge of Food & Agriculture – Dr Gyeile Nurah
Honourable Northern Regional Minister – Mr Salifu Saeed
Chief Executive of the Northern Development Authority – Alhaji Abdel-Majeed Haroun
Your Excellency the Canadian High Commissioner – Ms Heather Cameron
Your Excellency the Netherlands Ambassador – Mr Ron Strikker
USAID Global Administrator – Mr Mark Green
Our eminent Chiefs and Traditional Authorities
Regional Directors, Municipal Chief Executives and officials from Ministries, Departments and Agencies
Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen
All protocol observed

It is my pleasure to participate in the 8th Annual Pre-Harvest Conference and Exhibition in Tamale, my first since I came to Ghana a year ago.

Let me start by thanking the past organizers, USAID and the current organizers, Agrihouse and the steering committee, for institutionalizing this event on the calendar of stakeholders in the food security, agriculture and agribusiness sectors.

Indeed, the World Food Programme is pleased that such events continue to link actors across the food value chain. We are particularly interested in its benefits to smallholder farmers who produce majority of the food but remain among the most food-insecure livelihood groups in Ghana.

When the world adopted the Sustainable Development Goals in 2015, WFP globally decided to strategically focus its support to national governments on SDG 2 – Zero Hunger and 17 – Partnerships.

Consequently, WFP nominated the former President, His Excellency John Kufuor and his foundation, to facilitate the development of the Zero Hunger Strategic Review on Ghana. The Review was launched by His Excellency the President Nana Akufo-Addo in May this year.

The Review identifies the triple burden of malnutrition, reduction of post-harvest losses, improvement of linkages between smallholder farmers and markets, enhancement of food safety in value chains, and mapping of food-insecure populations, as key gaps which need to be addressed for Ghana to achieve zero hunger by 2030.

It is worth noting that these gaps are reflected in the Government’s Planting for Food and Jobs, One District One Warehouse, One District One Factory and One Village One Dam initiatives and have largely informed current WFP programmes, as well as the future direction as formulated in our Country Strategic Plan for 2019-2023.

Your Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, kindly join me in thanking the Government of Canada for its exceptional partnership and consistent flexible multi-year funding which has allowed WFP in Ghana to embark on a new chapter of innovative integrated food security and nutrition programming, with the private sector at the centre.

This innovative programme is centred around two Ghanaian-owned industrial agro-processors in Kumasi and Sunyani. They have received funding and technical expertise to enable them produce specialized fortified nutritious foods of international standards. These foods are available on the Ghanaian market, helping to prevent malnutrition, particularly stunting among children. Ten thousand smallholder farmers in the Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Ashanti and Brong-Ahafo regions, have been identified to be linked to these agro-processors as a market for their produce. Some of the lead farmers are participating in this event.

It is my ardent hope that the 8th Pre-harvest Agribusiness Event will truly highlight agro-economic opportunities for farmers, agribusiness, input dealers, investors, financial institutions, government and non-governmental institutions, policy-makers, municipal and district chief executives, and others.

Your Excellencies, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, WFP is keen on working with all stakeholders for the transformation of agriculture, agribusiness and food security into a more inclusive, equitable, climate-smart and nutrition-sensitive sector, oriented to improve the lives of rural poor food-insecure people.

Thank you for your kind attention.

Mr. Chairman,
Your Excellency, Alhaji (Dr) Mahamudu Bawumia, Vice-President of the Republic of Ghana,
The Honourable Minister of State at the Ministry of Food and Agriculture,
Distinguished Guests,
The Media,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today is indeed a remarkable day in the lives of farmers of our dear nation and it is very significant that it is taking place in the region that has since time beyond our memories dedicated itself to feeding Ghana as a nation.

The Northern Region is proud to host such an august occasion for the eighth time in a roll and warmly welcomes His Excellency, the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, all dignitaries and the entire citizens of Tamale to the 8th Pre-harvest AgriBusiness Exhibition and conference.

Mr. Chairman, Agriculture is said to be the bedrock of every nation’s economic development. In view of this agriculture should be prioritized regardless of the cost.

This is account for Nana Akufo Addo’s led government to implement the Planting for Food and Jobs which eventually gave birth to another innovative initiative known as Planting for Jobs and investment programme.
The Pre-Harvest Conference and Exhibition is therefore a strategic event that should be supported and encourage to become a prominent tool for driving Agribusiness in Ghana to its rightful place. The presence of no less a person than His Excellency the Vice President of this great nation clearly confirms how critical we deem the sector and how as a government we are supportive of such initiatives.

Mr. Chairman, with thousands of stakeholders here today in the form of farmers, buyers, processors, transporters, input dealers, equipment dealers, financial institutions, telecom companies and policy makers, it is critical that the opportunity provided here is not missed.

There is no better time than now to interact and create the necessary contacts for future dealings because this is a sector that thrives on collaboration.

This is year’s theme “Agribusiness in Northern Ghana, the Future Starts Now”, is not only fascinating but timely. Timely in the sense that it has coincided with the leadership that has the vision to free the people of Ghana from the shackles of poverty through Agriculture.

For a nation to make the needed progress in the area of Agribusiness, there should be an effective link between government and the private sector since none can do it alone.

Mr. Chairman, from us in the Northern Region, Agriculture means everything to us. In view of this, we are committed to any initiative that puts smiles on the faces of farmers and their families.
We will urge our young ones to go into farming and apply scientific knowledge through education in the production of food. This will ensure that we have enough food for our people and it will also reduce the rate of importation of food and its impact on the economy.

Once again, on behalf of the Chiefs and people of Northern Region I welcome you all to this important exhibition.
I wish you a fruitful event.

Thank you and May God bless us all.