• Reference: P-GH-AA0-027
• Approval date: 13/07/2005
• Start date: 31/05/2006
• Appraisal Date: 22/02/2005
• Status: OngoingOnGo
• Implementing Agency: MINISTRY OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE
• Location: COUNTRY-WIDE

11.1 The project will be implemented over five years in four regions. It will have four components, namely

(i) Production and Productivity Enhancement;

(ii) Export Marketing Promotion and Infrastructure Improvement;

(iii) Capacity Building; and

(iv) Project Coordination and Management.

11.2 Production and Productivity Enhancement: The envisaged outputs of component I are:

(i) Four established and equipped demonstration farms;

(ii) Increased volume of MD2 pineapple suckers and quality seeds of other horticultural crops available to farmers.

(iii) Increased availability of improved planting materials for farmers in the Ayensu area. The outcome of this output is increased production of cassava with high starch content to meet the demand at the Ayensu Cassava Processing factory, which will in turn lead to increased incomes for cassava small scale farmers. These outputs will contribute to the improvement of quality and productivity of produce, which will emanate from improved technology of high quality and high yielding planting materials.

11.3 Export Market Promotion and Infrastructure Development: The main outputs of this component will include

(i) established living database on market information and consumer preferences, and documented marketing strategies for the selected horticultural crops;

(ii) 410 km of year-round accessible feeder road network;

(iii) established cold chain in each of the four regions under the project. All these outputs will contribute to the promotion of export markets of horticultural crops and of cassava starch from the Ayensu Starch Factory as well as to increased incomes of producers and associated actors in the industry. All of these activities will complement those of the ongoing Trade and Investment Program for a Competitive Export Economy (TIPCEE), financed by USAID, as well as the World Bank financed Horticultural Export Industry Initiative.

11.4 Capacity Building: The two major outputs expected from component II are

(i) Trained horticultural producers and exporters, cassava farmers; farm workers, extension personnel, seed inspectors, and other private entrepreneurs;

(ii) Strengthened horticultural farmers' and exporters' Association. From these outputs there will be increased production as more farmers use improved planting materials and reduced post-harvest losses, once they have received the required knowledge using effective method of dissemination of technology at the established demonstration farms, all of which will in turn result in higher levels of quality produce for exports and cassava for the Ayensu processing factory. Activities under this component will include sensitisation of farmers, farm workers, processors, community based organizations (CBOs), out of which 40% will be women.

11.5 Project Coordination and Management: A Project Coordination and Management Unit (PCMU) already exists established under the Horticultural Export Industry Initiative (HEII) and financed by the World Bank. The team comprises, a full time coordinator, whose only task is to manage the project, and includes three other technical specialists, in the fields of

(i) research, innovation, food safety;

(ii) infrastructure;

(iii) horticultural planting materials and seeds. In addition to this team, the Government will assign to the project, a Monitoring and Evaluation officer to work closely with the current HEII technical team, who will remain in the Programme Planning Monitoring and Evaluation Directorate of MOFA (PPMED) to strengthen project management. Support staff will be provided by AgSSIP. The PCMU will supervise the selection and screening of individuals who will participate in the various training programs and will also supervise the work of all consultants recruited under the project.

The objective of the project is to increase the capacity of the country in export promotion and marketing, to increase household incomes of cassava farmers and of horticultural crops producers and exporters.

9.1 The project, designed with the active involvement of stakeholders in the country, will contribute to increasing the production and exports of horticultural products as well as of cassava. The project will address specific constraints which currently limit the development of this growth sector and will increase its potential to achieve higher productivity and added value by improving the performance of its supply chains and its competitiveness on export markets.

9.2 By training extension workers, representatives of CBOs and leaders of associations who, in turn, will train farmers and exporters for increased value addition at the farm level, the project will contribute to one of the fundamental goals of Regional Member Countries of increasingly adding value to agriculture products. This will ensure higher returns to small scale operators who are usually the poor segments of the population, and comprise mainly women. Support under the Production and Productivity Enhancement Component will contribute towards the export of increased amounts of high quality produce which will generate increased foreign exchange to Ghana. Activities under the Export Marketing Promotion and Infrastructure Improvement component will create awareness among exporters and buyers from importing countries. It will also increase trade with countries in the ECOWAS region. With improved human and institutional capacity, the project will help to mitigate some of the major constraints to the industry. This will strategically position Ghana to effectively find a niche and compete in the global horticultural market.

9.3 The project is in line with Government objectives of increasing exports to increase foreign exchange generation, and raising household incomes. Interventions in horticultural produce will directly benefit women who make up the largest segment of the poor, because women are highly involved in horticultural production. Furthermore, the proposal to lay emphasis on poverty reduction is consistent with the ADB Group strategy for the agricultural sector in Ghana as indicated in the Country Strategy Paper.

12.1 The overall project benefits would accrue from horticultural quality improvement, improvements in quality control, timely issuance of export certificates, and savings in terms of transportation cost.

12.2 The project's main focus group comprises the participating farmers and exporters. The project will also benefit all horticultural growers and exporters through the upgrading of market information and intelligence capacity, improvement in infrastructure facilities like feeder roads, cold pack rooms, refrigerated vehicles, opening windows for marketing in regional and European markets, strengthening of quality control and certification facilities and services. It would also provide the environment where private investors would be encouraged to undertake such investments. The Net financial benefits, would generate an FIRR of 25%, while the EIRR is estimated at 24%.

12.3 The economic benefits of the project will be derived from an increase in exported volumes, through increased production and reduced number of rejected consignments as well as increase in value per unit volume due to improvement in product quality.

12.4 The project is expected to create a conducive environment for small and medium farmers to channel their produce toward more profitable exports in the Regional and European markets. It would also help large farmers/exporters to consolidate their market positions by raising sufficient volume from the small farmers and out growers in order to meet demand requirements, reduce their marketing costs and establish strong client relationships with buyers in importing countries.

AGBOMA Patrick Chukuka - OSAN2

Finance source	Amount
ADF	UAC 17,000,000
Government	UAC 1,840,000
Total	UAC 18,840,000