I’ve received several requests from fellow young persons with regards which commodity value chains to explore in Ghana when deciding to embark on their agribusiness entrepreneurial journeys.
I’ve received several requests from fellow young persons with regards which commodity value chains to explore in Ghana when deciding to embark on their agribusiness entrepreneurial journeys.
In this post I’ve provided a brief overview of six value chains with potential for expansion, rural poverty reduction, and job creation. The brief covers cassava (gari), maize, irrigated maize, pineapple, sorghum, and soybean. These commodities are based on interventions tested and proven by several agricultural development projects implemented in Ghana.
The cassava gari chain is very profitable and has high potential for employment creation in rural areas, in particular for women in processing and young men in outgrower schemes. However, the initial investment barrier is high for women groups; private investors do not have incentives to do environmental impact mitigation investments; market prices are characterized by a strong cyclical component (cycle of 4-5 years) which has an impact on creditworthiness of investors.
Maize accounts for 50 to 60% of total cereal production in Ghana. Overall, the production and trade is profitable, but more risky in northern Ghana that has only one cropping season per year, because of erratic rains and limited seasonal price fluctuations (limited price increases to remunerate storage after harvest, because southern Ghana has two harvests).
Click here to read the full article published on agricinghana blog.