The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), through the Feed the Future (FTF) Ghana Policy LINK Activity, is to offer year-long assistance to Charity Akortia, the 2023 National Best Farmer, and Edith Akosah Wheatland, the 2023 National Best Female Farmer.
Additionally, 18 other female award winners at the 2023 National Farmers’ Day at the national, regional, and district levels will also receive support.
This was in a statement issued by the FTF Ghana Policy LINK Activity and copied to the Ghana News Agency in Tamale.
The statement said, ‘This initiative builds upon the successful assistance extended to the first cohort of 20 outstanding women in agriculture acknowledged at the 2022 Farmers’ Day programme.’
It said following last year’s collaboration with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA), Policy LINK and its partners would offer a comprehensive leadership, advocacy, agribusiness development training package, and study tour to the second cohort of national, regional, and dis
trict women in agriculture.
It said the training package would be curated in line with this year’s theme of ‘Delivering Smart Solutions for Sustainable Food Security and Resilience’ and be tailored to the capacity needs of the awardees.
It added that Policy LINK would facilitate their active participation in key agriculture stakeholder engagements throughout 2024.
The statement said ‘The first cohort of women awardees received a five-day leadership, advocacy, and agribusiness training and study tour led by USAID/Ghana through the FTF Ghana Policy LINK Activity, in collaboration with MoFA, FTF Ghana Mobilising Finance in Agriculture Activity (MFA) and Absa Bank Ghana Limited.
It said Policy LINK also facilitated their participation in agriculture policy and stakeholder events for exposure and networking while providing day-to-day mentorship and technical support through its gender point of contact.
It said ‘Throughout 2023, the women demonstrated remarkable determination by implementing lessons learned to
enhance their agribusinesses and leadership roles. They leveraged their influence to advance women’s involvement and participation in the agriculture policy space, aiming to champion their fellow women’s inclusion and active engagement within Ghana’s agricultural policy processes while amplifying their contributions to the sector’s growth and food security.’
It added that ‘One of the significant outcomes of these efforts was the formation of the Ghana Association of Female Agricultural and Fish Farming Award Winners (GAFAFAW). This association, a collective decision by the women awardees, was established with funds raised by the women and stands as a testament to their commitment.’
The statement expressed the FTF Ghana Policy LINK Activity’s commitment to helping selected women awardees at the National Farmers’ Day event for the next three years to achieve greater inclusion.
It added that ‘Through this initiative, Policy LINK aims to facilitate and support these women leaders in agriculture to hone and lev
erage their leadership toward advancing women’s involvement and participation in the agriculture policy space to improve conditions in the sector for various vulnerable groups including youth and persons with disabilities.’
The FTF Ghana Policy LINK Activity is a five-year Activity that supports the Government of Ghana in strengthening policy development, adoption, and implementation to inspire sustainable, agriculture-led economic growth, strengthen the resilience of people and systems, and create a well-nourished population, especially women and children.
Source: Ghana News Agency