By Philip Tengzu
Bisikan, (UW/R), Dec. 28, GNA – The Soybean Compact at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research-Savanna Agricultural Research Institute (CSIR-SARI) is spearheading a transformative change in the soybean value chain across northern Ghana, to enhance agricultural productivity across Africa.
The initiative which is under the African Development Bank (AfDB)-funded Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) project, aligns with the overarching goal of delivering proven agricultural technologies to over 40 million smallholder farmers and doubling the productivity of crops, livestock, and fish by 2025.
In Ghana, CSIR-SARI, the national partner of the TAAT Soybean Compact, is strengthening the capacity of stakeholders in the soybean value chain through a series of hands-on training sessions.
Those efforts recently culminated in Farmer Field Days, held in the Wa East District, engaging over 1,800 participants including smallholder farmers, extension agents, and aggregators from various communities including Bisikan, Bulenga, Manwe, Kpaglahi, Tuasa, Kokoyiri, and Goripie.
The training sessions covered critical aspects of soybean production, including site selection, land preparation, seed variety selection, seed treatment, seeding rates, fertilizer and inoculant application, as well as pest and disease management.
Participants were also educated in proper harvesting techniques and post-harvest handling practices including threshing and storage, to minimise post-harvest losses.
At the Farmer Field Day at Bisikan, Mr Godwin Opoku, an Assistant Research Scientist at CSIR-SARI’s Wa Station, introduced the farmers to climate-smart soybean varieties such as Favor, Jenguma, Afayak, and Soung Pungun.
He also highlighted the importance of using rhizobium inoculants like Nodumax and SARIFIX, demonstrating their application through hands-on training.
Mr Opoku emphasised that the use of inoculants during planting could increase soybean yields by 30 to 40 per cent and encouraged farmers to adopt improved farming practices and cultivate CSIR-SARI-developed varieties to maximise productivity.
Dr Charles Nelimor, the Focal Person for the Soybean Compact at CSIR-SARI, underscored the value of the “learning by doing” approach in the adoption of new agricultural technologies.
He urged participants to apply the knowledge gained to achieve sustainable production outcomes.
The farmers and aggregators expressed optimism about the impact of the training sessions on their farming activities.
Mr Ali Balibaga, an aggregator from the Bisikan community, sharing his experience during an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA), said 500 of his farmers benefitted from the training.
He said: “This will significantly boost production levels, helping us meet the demand for soybeans from our target companies.”
Madam Eva Adomah Kyereboah, another aggregator from the Kpaglahi community, praised the initiative, stating that over 600 of her farmers, predominantly women and youth, participated in the training.
As part of the TAAT project implementation, CSIR-SARI has facilitated the increased production of various classes of soybean seeds and supported capacity building along the soybean value chain.
This effort aims to empower Ghanaian stakeholders and enterprises to adopt best practices in the production and marketing of soybean, contributing to the broader goal of sustainable agricultural transformation in the region.
GNA