Background
Agriculture plays a predominant role in Ghana’s economy and development. According to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in Ghana, in 2015, the sector contributed for 44.7% of total employment and 20.2% of GDP. However, over the years, the sector has been facing growing challenges resulting from the erosion of agricultural land, desertification of soils, and declining soil fertility, while being under the pressure to increase yields to meet growing food supply needs. Having to meet these demands in such circumstances has driven Ghanaians working in agriculture to significantly increase their use of agrochemicals, which has been having alarming impacts on the environment. Indeed, the intensive use of pesticides in particular has been deteriorating and contaminating vegetables, soils, fish bodies, and other natural resources, while representing severe risks for farmers’ health. The lack of environmental monitoring and awareness on the matter leaves farmers unaware of the consequences of these harmful practices.
Our Objectives
The primary goal of the SABA Project is to promote the adoption of more sustainable agricultural practices to smallholders in Ghana, by raising awareness on the risks of intensive chemical use, and by introducing them to alternative solutions such as permaculture and agroforestry. By doing so, we aim at improving their living conditions thanks to increased incomes, resulting from the enhanced productivity and competitiveness fostered by more sustainable agricultural practices, and reduced health risks, following lowered chemical use.
Additionally, we intend to promote a more sustainable management of the natural resources used for farming, namely soils and water, to help secure the long-term use of these resources. Finally, by encouraging sustainability, the project aims at increasing the resilience of these farmers to climate change issues, mostly coming from the desertification of the region.
Where?
The Brong Ahafo region, Ghana
Brong Ahafo is a region located in Central-Western Ghana. It covers an area of 39,557 square kilometers and is the second largest region in the country. It has a population of 2,310,983 inhabitants, of which 66.4% rely on agriculture for their living.
About the Project
What is the SABA Project?
Through the SABA Project, we intend to help mitigate the issue of agrochemicals overuse by raising awareness among smallholders on the negative impacts of these chemicals, while introducing them to sustainable farming practices that would both reduce the environmental footprint of farming and improve farmers’ livelihoods.
When and How?
The SABA Project will be implemented on the field during two weeks in March, 2019. The first week will be dedicated to visits to farms of the Brong Ahafo region, in order to evaluate the situation and discuss the issue with smallholders. During the second week, the focus will be on the organization of two workshops, where farmers will be introduced to the issue of agrochemical overuse and alternative farming practices.
Creating a Network for Sustainable Farming Practices
By inviting various stakeholders at the workshops (NGOs, private sector, government representatives, academia), we intend to bridge the informational gap between farmers and those who have the solutions for change. Gathering stakeholders will be a way to create a network for sustainable agriculture and foster Brong Ahafo's transition to ecological agriculture.
Outcomes
In the short-run after our intervention, we expect farmers to become more aware of the side effects of chemical inputs, and of the significance of the issue. By promoting a more sustainable agriculture, we also expect to influence farmers’ behavior and consequently encourage them to change their working habits and adopt more environmentally-friendly practices. In the long-run, raising awareness on the detrimental side effects of external chemical inputs and inciting Ghanaian smallholders to adopt more sustainable farming practices, could drastically reduce environmental deterioration, and consequently improve the livelihoods of farmers through increased soil and output quality, enhanced competitiveness and decreased health risks among other benefits.
SABA and the Sustainable Development Goals
The SABA Project’s objectives fall within the global development agenda characterized by the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. Indeed, The SABA Project initiative aims to participate in the achievement of the following global goals:
Encouraging smallholders from the Brong Ahafo region, Ghana, to adopt more sustainable farming practices that respect the environment and which lead to improvements in productivity and competitiveness, will play a key role in mitigating poverty in the long-term.
Introducing farmers to sustainable farming practices that allow to increase and diversify production while conserving soil quality and fertility, will contribute to diminishing hunger and malnutrition among rural households.
Raising awareness among smallholders on the negative side-effects of agrochemicals on their health and encouraging them to adopt more sustainable alternatives, will contribute to improvements in their health and well-being.
Large risks of water contamination are incurred when using agrochemicals such as pesticides and herbicides. Informing farmers on the dangers of intensive chemical use and encouraging them to adopt sustainable external inputs, will therefore help ensure that water remains uncontaminated and clean.
Agricultural work is no longer decent when it causes farmers to suffer from severe health issues. Because the contact with agrochemicals is often the major cause of smallholders’ health problems, by encouraging the adoption of farming methods that do not involve the use of chemicals, the SABA Project will contribute to achieving the decent work goal within the agricultural sector. In addition, as mentioned, these sustainable alternatives will also foster economic growth by improving productivity and competitiveness.
By ensuring that smallholders from the Brong Ahafo region all have equal access to information regarding the negative side-effects of agrochemicals and the existence of more sustainable farming methods, the SABA Project will contribute to reducing inequalities related to information access. By participating in the increase in rural populations’ income, it will also enable a reduction of inequalities between urban and rural areas.
One of SABA Project’s primary objectives is to encourage smallholders to adopt sustainable alternatives that are respectful of the environment. By bringing to light, through these methods, how critical it has become to care about the needs of future generations, the SABA Project will help render production and consumption more responsible.
Building awareness on the negative consequences of intensive chemical use and encouraging farmers to turn to a more sustainable agriculture, will limit environmental deterioration and strengthen smallholders’ resilience to climate change.