Eighteen farmers from Pepesa in the Prestea Huni-Valley Municipality have received aid from the Gold Fields Ghana Foundation (GFGF) to establish an oil palm nursery production company called “Ecopalms GH”.
The company, made up of fifteen women and three men, have so far raised 24,000 high quality oil palm seedlings, out of which 23,000 would be purchased by the Foundation and distributed to 500 farmers over a period of three years.
The farmers are, however, expected to look for their own buyers for the remaining 1,000 oil palm seedlings because the Foundation would not buy forever.
Unveiling the programme in Pepesa, Mr Abdel-Razak Yakubu, Executive Secretary of GFGF, recalled that Ecopalms GH was set up to raise seedlings when they introduced oil palm cultivation in their host communities.
He said, “We use to travel to Kade in the Eastern Region to procure seedlings for farmers. The prolonged journey impacted the quality of the seedlings and our expense; hence we decided to develop our own seedlings locally.
Mr Yakubu noted that the people of Pepesa gave them a parcel of land, and they put the 18 community members together to form the company known as Ecopalms GH.
According to the executive secretary, the Business Resource Division in the Prestea Huni-Valley Municipality guided the farmers through the set-up process of the company, and they have met the required standards.
“What is interesting about the programme is that GFGF invested about GH¢180,000 into it. The entire project lasted for eight months and after that the Foundation bought one seedling for GH¢12, so they are making GH¢280,000,” he explained.
Mr Yakubu added “We are even buying the seedlings at a reduced price because the Foundation supported the establishment of the nursery and then paid for the seeds and everything. These seedlings can fetch GH¢27 for one”
He also mentioned that “GFGF is helping its host communities to understand that with these great opportunities available, they don’t have to resort to illegal mining activities, which is very risky.”
He announced that having completed the oil palm project successfully, the Foundation would soon commence work on a coconut production project.
Dr. Isaac Danso, Principal Research Scientist, Director at Council for Scientific and Industrial Research-Oil Palm Research Institute (CSIR-OPRI), said Oil palm is the second most important cash crop in Ghana, but production currently stands at 350,000 metric tonnes per year, leaving a deficit of 50,000 metric tonnes.
He said to address the deficit, the government set up the Tree Crop Development Authority to regulate and clarify industry players.
“One challenge we face is the prevalence of adulterated oil palm seedlings, but Ecopalms GH sourced their planting materials from CSIR, a certified institution that specialized in true-to-type hybrid oil palm production” Dr Danso indicated
He stressed that with the right planting materials and good practices, Ecopalms GH would increase productivity and help bridge the gap between supply and demand.
Dr Danso gave the assurance that they would form partnership with Ecopalms GH and possibly sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to make their technologies accessible to them.
Mr Solomon Quaicoe, Director, Ecopalms GH, thanked the GFGF for their generous support and partnership, and promised to work harder and cater for farmers nationwide.