A local agricultural advocacy organisation, Agrihouse Foundation through its flagship project, Women in Food and Agric Leadership Training Forum (WOFAGRIC), has launched the 2024 Gold In Soil Awards at a short ceremony in Accra.

The awards, which will take place from July 9 to 10 in the Bono region are expected to honour and celebrate hard-working women farmers who have excelled in various fields of agriculture nationwide.

The WOFAGRIC is one of Agrihouse’s main projects which is specifically designed to support women in agriculture.

Under the programme, beneficiaries share ideas and receive training, mentorship, and financial support to expand their businesses.

The Gold in Soil Awards seeks to promote, strengthen, and motivate women achievers in agribusiness at the community, district, and regional levels.

This year will be exciting as additional categories have been introduced.

The introduction of two new award categories, the Supportive Agri-Man Award and Agri-Input Sales Woman of the Year Award is to recognise the contributions of both men and women in agriculture.

The new categories will appreciate the diverse contributions of the winners in the agricultural sector.

The Supportive Agri-Man category recognises men who continuously support rural women producers, women-led agribusinesses, and agro-processors within their communities. This acknowledgement reflects the crucial role that supportive male figures play in empowering women in agriculture.

"With our visits to the farming communities, we realised that some men are really paving the way for these women farmers to succeed, so this year we are seeking to award the hard work and support of these men, through the supportive Agri Man Award" he remarked.

The Agri-Input Sales Woman of the Year category will also seek to honour young women who have significantly impacted their communities by ensuring farmers have access to essential agricultural inputs and have played a vital role in enhancing farm activities and transforming livelihoods in their respective areas.

Speaking during the launch, the Founder and CEO of Agrihouse Foundation, Alberta Akyaa Akosa enumerated the successes of the Gold in the Soil Awards. She said for the past five years the awards have recognized and supported over 8,000 women farmers across various regions in Ghana, including the Volta, Ashanti, Upper East, Upper West, and Eastern Regions.

She noted that the decision to organise the programme in the Bono Region is to reaffirm its dedication to empowering women in agricultural areas.

The awards ceremony spans seventeen categories, each designed to honour and showcase the achievements of women in various facets of agriculture.

These categories include the Super Woman Farmer Award, Passion for Farm Award, Outstanding Woman in Extension Services Award, Royal Agro Award, Diamond in the Rough Award, Feed to Food Award, and Change Champion Award.

Others include the She Innovates Award, Climate-Smart Women Project Award, Lady of The Region Export Award, Star Woman Agripreneur Award, She-Operates Award, Development Partner Award, Princess Carla Award, and the ultimate Gold in the Soil Awards.

On her part, the Country Manager of Yara Ghana, Theresa Randolf commended the Agrihouse for its extensive advocacy in agriculture.

She said since the inception of Yara Ghana in 2007, the company has played a leading role in crop nutrition solutions to strengthen the quality of input supply and related services along the agricultural value chain in Ghana.

She explained that the company is focused on providing Ghanaian farmers with crop nutrition solutions that meet the specific nutritional needs of various crops and offer agronomic knowledge and digital technologies that help farmers improve yields and crop quality in an environmentally responsible and suitable manner.