Fonio VCA - Sustainable fonio value chain development in Ghana

Abstract

<p><i>Policy Brief 2 is dedicated to the value chain development of Fonio in Ghana.</i></p><p>Fonio has gained attention in recent years as a nutritious and sustainable crop that could help address food security and nutritional challenges in West Africa and beyond. It offers an alternative to more common cereal grains like sorghum, millet, wheat, rice, and maize and can thrive well on marginal lands. Despite the great benefits associated with the crop it is under exploited and considered an underutilized crop species especially in Africa. A study by the EWA-BELT project funded by EU horizon 2020 has analysed the fonio value chain in Ghana and has made recommendations for the boosting of the value chain in Ghana which are presented in this policy brief. The key messages include;</p><ul><li>The factors limiting fonio value chain development include lack of modern farming equipment's, inadequate farming and market information, and less interaction among the chain actors.</li><li>Birds attach is one major limiting factor of fonio production.</li><li>Processing of fonio is labour intensive</li><li>Poor product quality has been observed in fonio VC.</li><li>All nodes of the fonio VC are profitable.</li><li>The introduction of cost-effective, labour-friendly mechanisation services at the various stages of the value chain, along with access to the credit facility, improved seed, and enhanced knowledge on good agronomic practices, will significantly boost the chain.</li></ul><p>It is recommended that marketing and promotion campaigns must be carried out to create awareness of the potential of the fonio value chain. Collective marketing and contract production is recommended as a remedy to the marketing challenges of the fonio value chain at the aggregation and trading nodes. Capacity building at the production and processing nodes is strongly recommended. Increase funding to fonio research is highly recommended for the development of new and improved varieties and new recipes.</p&gt