The School of Agriculture in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), has organized a seminar aimed at establishing a clear definition of farmers' markets in Ghana and exploring the various forms they take across the country.
The event, themed “Mapping of Farmers’ Markets in Ghana Project,” brought together participants from the Central Regional Coordinating Council, the Central Region Apex Farmers Association (CRAFA), as well as farmers and consumers within the Central Region.
In his welcome address, the Dean of the School of Agriculture, Prof. Henry De-Graft Acquah, expressed his delight in the collaboration between UCC, CRAFA and FAO. He commended the stakeholders for organising such a significant seminar aimed at ensuring the sustainability of the Farmers Market initiative, which commenced in October 2021.
Coordinator of UCC project team, Dr. Selorm Akaba, delivered a presentation on “Mapping of Farmers Markets in Ghana.” He indicated that Ghana was a founding member of the World Farmers Market Coalition, which was supported by the UN-FAO Food Coalition in 2020. He further noted that the first Farmers Market was a collaborative effort involving researchers and practitioners from UCC, the Central Regional Coordinating Council, CRAFA, and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), including the Central Regional Department of Agriculture.
A group photo of participants in the seminar
Dr. Akaba outlined the benefits of the Farmers Market, stating that it will “ensure a high level of trust between farmers and consumers and reduce traceability cost in the value chain.” He acknowledged that the Farmers Market also faced challenges, such as high labour costs and scarcity of resources. “That is why there is a need to come together to pull resources into this project,” he added. He further explained that the objective was to “test the Methodology and Study Models of Farmers market in Ghana.”
Ms Valentina Sommacal, Rural Institutions and Services Expert at the FAO, commended Ghana and UCC for taking the lead on this initiative in Africa. She also reaffirmed FAO’s commitment to the programme.
The Pro Vice-Chancellor, Prof. Denis Worlanyo Aheto, assured participants of the University’s full support for the project.
“The university is strongly behind this project initiative. Initiatives like this have a high potential to train farmers and therefore need to be applauded,” he stated.
During a breakout session, participants were divided into four groups and assigned the task of developing definitions for farmers' markets and identifying the different forms they take across the country. One of the definitions that emerged from the group discussions described a farmers’ market as "a group of farmers selling to consumers in a specific area, which does not necessarily have to be a physical location."
Source: Documentation and Information Section - UCC