Ghana’s agricultural challenges: CSIR-CRI positioned to lead in technological innovations to address them

By Florence Afriyie Mensah

Fumesua (Ash), Feb. 4, GNA – The Crops Research Institute (CRI) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is poised to lead in technological innovations to address challenges facing the countries agriculture and food production.

The CRI is also capable of developing and releasing resilient crop varieties that would help contribute to mitigate global challenges of climate change.

Professor Maxwell Asante Darko, Director of CSIR-CRI, who stated this, said the Institute as a leading research organization, was committed to harness its expertise to address challenges of food production not only in Ghana, but on the African continent.

He was speaking at his induction as the substantive Director of the Institute at a ceremony at Fumesua in the Ejisu Municipality.

Citing Ghana’s food import bill of over $2 billion per annum, predominantly spent on rice, tomatoes, sugar, and poultry, Professor Asante Darko called for an urgent need for stakeholders to work hard to reverse this trend.

He indicated that through the leadership of past Directors, the CSIR- CRI had developed and released over 150 crop varieties, with best agronomic practices for all its mandate crops, provided integrated pest management strategies, as well as technologies for the rapid multiplication of planting materials.

The Institute had also been involved in extensive training of farmers and other stakeholders, as well as academic and practical training of students at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

According to him, despite this progress, much remained to be done under very challenging circumstances.

The CSIR-CRI faced significant challenges, such as inadequate funding for research and development, limited government and private sector research and development investment, deteriorating infrastructure, high electricity costs, high staff attrition rates, and limited recruitment by the government.

Again, inadequate utilization of CSIR-CRI technologies by clients, low visibility and awareness of CSIR-CRI technologies, and the emergence of advanced technologies (artificial intelligence, drones), replacing traditional methods, are all challenges facing the Institute.

Prof Asante Darko pledged to position CSIR-CRI as a premier center of excellence in African agricultural research.

He would as the Director, lead strategic improvements for enhanced research and development delivery, ensure increased mobilization of resources, enhance corporate image, visibility, and technology dissemination.

The Director pledged to strengthen relationships with stakeholders and heighten staff well-being and institutional systems.

He used the occasion to call on the government to urgently operationalize the National Research Fund (Act 1056), which was passed by Parliament in 2020.

Prof Asante Darko recommended that the government routinely commissioned CSIR and the universities to solve problems related to its agricultural policy.

GNA