Two agriculture focused businesses - CR72 and Global Farming and Technology Institute Ltd, have jointly launched a Guinea Fowl Sustainability and Women Empowerment Project in Accra.

The project will see the production of purebred guinea fowl chicks to be distributed to women outgrowers who will in turn nurture them to maturity for sale to raise extra income to sustain their livelihoods.

Officials of the partner businesses announced the project when they took delivery of large quantities of day-old parent stock guinea fowl chicks at the Kotoka International Airport in Accra.

The hardy chicks from France are to be raised at the project site at Tafo near Koforidua in the Eastern Region, from where they will be artificially inseminated to produce eggs for hatching into breeding stock to be distributed to the women farmers.

An  Associate Professor at the Department of Animal Science of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Prof. Jacob Alhassan Hamidu, who is board chairman of CR72, one of the partnering companies, explained that given the vulnerable nature of crop farming particularly in northern Ghana during the dry season, the need for sustainable livelihoods is very critical.

He said most of these farmers are women, and empowering them with extra income-generating activities is even more critical as the sustenance of many lives are dependent on them.

Why source Guinea fowls from France?

Prof Hamidu explained that while guinea fowls are a delicacy in Ghana and local breeds abound in many communities, there are marked differences that make the purebreds or cultivated varieties which are derived from selective breeding more economically viable.

“These parent stock that we have are good and have the meat qualities to be raised as guinea fowl broilers. Our own here are smaller and are good as well for layers but we need some improved breed.”

He said ideally, the local breeds should have been improved over time, but “since we have not done the selection over time, we need to depend on these that have taken years to improve. So these are good for broiler purposes, in 12 weeks they are ready, unlike the ones that we have locally which take a long time and are also smaller. So if you hear anybody say we are importing guinea fowls from abroad, that is not exactly the story.

“These are going into breeder farms where they will grow and lay eggs. The eggs will go into a hatchery, they will hatch and then we will take them to the field to grow them as broilers, then the meat that we say is a delicacy becomes abundant in Ghana.”

Prof Hamidu described the initiative as an important project that calls for the support of all, explaining also that the project will accommodate university students in agriculture to do internships to train and go back to school. “They will be supported with a stipend and accommodation and when they go back to the lecture halls, you will realise that it is not all about book, book, book but they are in the field and learning.”

Sustainable incomes and women empowerment

Stressing on the need for an alternative business for livelihood sustainability particularly for women, a director of the partner companies, Kwame Kodua, said a lot of women are already into chicken or guinea fowl production, however, given that the productivity level of the local breeds is low, the improved breed will offer them better reliance and returns.

“The intention is to redistribute hardy young chicks to women poultry or guinea fowl farmers to raise them till maturity. Upon maturity, CR72 and Global Farming Institute will go and take the guinea fowls to our processing plants to slaughter and pay the women off so they can take another batch, instead of allowing the women to struggle to look for market themselves. So the women receive their pay for the work they have done and so have sustainable livelihoods or income, while they are still maintaining their crop farming activities and therefore are always in business.

“This is not about how much money the partner companies are going to make. It is about getting the vulnerable farmers sustainable incomes. The delicacy meat that you are looking for in the market also becomes available always and all the parties remain in business, and the women are thereby empowered.”