East-West Seed Foundation opens University of Ghana Learning Farm to provide hands-on agricultural training
The East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer Foundation has opened a learning farm at the University of Ghana in Accra to provide students and local farmers with practical training in vegetable production and give partners an opportunity to observe its work.
The East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer Foundation has inaugurated a learning farm at the University of Ghana in Accra, offering students and regional farmers hands-on training in vegetable cultivation. The inauguration occurred on Tuesday, 20 October, with the facility designed to facilitate internships and enable learners to apply theoretical knowledge acquired in the classroom.
The foundation's Country Director, Jemima Djah, stated that the farm serves as a practical training ground for university students, allowing them to gain experience in crop management. Despite Accra's location outside the organization's primary regions, the farm enables easier access to its activities for partners based in the capital city.
Accra's learning farm showcases vegetable production methods and business plans, helping visitors understand the costs and potential returns associated with various crops. The training program initially focuses on crop selection, guiding farmers on factors such as local growing conditions, potential pests and diseases, and market opportunities.
Subsequent training modules cover land preparation, seedling production, transplanting, mulching, water conservation, and pest management. Djah highlighted the benefits of mulching in conserving soil moisture, suppressing weeds, and reducing production costs, while also discussing non-pesticide methods for pest control.
The facility is part of a four-year project supported by the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, currently in its second year. The project trains smallholder vegetable farmers across the Bono, Bono East, Ahafo, Ashanti, and Upper East regions. Since launching its training initiatives in 2023, the foundation has educated over 30,000 farmers and intends to establish another learning farm in the Upper East Region.
Djah encouraged aspiring farmers to view vegetable production as a lucrative business opportunity, emphasizing the project's goal to demonstrate farming as a profitable venture.
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