Report on market-led hand-holding exercise by CSIR-Food Research Institute for fifteen farmer based organizations in the West Mamprusi and Savelugu-Nanton districts: phase two early (T2)

Abstract

The market-led hand-holding exercise was carried out to establish business linkages between 15 FBOs in the West Mamprusi and Savelugu-Nanton Districts and other stakeholders in the value chain of commodities produced by the farmers. It is an apprenticeship approach to practical training which was carried out for the promotion and adoption of technology taught to the farmers during the Stage 1 and Stage 2-Part 1 MiDA training. The CSIR-FRI carried out the Hand-holding exercise for 11 FBOsin the West Mamprusi and 4 FBOs in the Savelugu-Nanton Districts in the Northern Intervention Zone. The hand-holding exercise was carried out to directly establish horizontal and vertical linkages for the procurement/sale of agricultural inputs, warehousing, quality control, credit and organizational planning among the stakeholders. To facilitate the establishment of business linkages among actors, stakeholders made up of tractor service providers, agro-input suppliers, agro-equipment fabricators, participating financial institutions, marketers and bulkers were brought together with farmers in the FBOs in a forum for discussion and to promote growth on 14th September 2010. Information gathered was used to categorize and cluster the 15 Farmer Based Organizations (FBOs) for practical field demonstration on Good Agricultural Practices. The areas that were covered included the following: Appropriate site selection, Adequate land preparation, Use of improved seeds, The practice of germination testing, Planting distances, Good nutrients, soil and water management practices, Post planting measures such as weed and insect and disease pest control, Maturity indicators, Efficient harvesting techniques, Post harvest management including cleaning, sorting, drying, milling and storage. It is envisaged that the contacts established and the practical knowledge acquired by the FBOs will enable them to effectively commercialize their farming operations and also help the input suppliers, etc access new opportunities and markets offered by the improvement of the farming operations of the farmers in West Mamprusi and Savelugu-Nanton Districts