In a significant step toward strengthening agricultural livelihoods, the German Development Cooperation, in partnership with Saving Grains 301 GmbH, has officially handed over a new community warehouse to serve the farming communities of Shebo, in the Northern Region.

The warehouse will provide safe grain storage, facilitate aggregation and quality management, and serve as a future marketplace where farmers, traders and buyers can connect, trade and access improved market opportunities.

This facility is one of the key achievements of the Fund for the Promotion of Innovation in Agriculture (i4Ag).

Funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, Saving Grains 301 GmbH, and members of the local farming communities, the Fund for the Promotion of Innovation in Agriculture (i4Ag) project addressed one of the most significant challenges affecting Ghana's grain sector: post-harvest losses, which can account for up to 40% of harvested grain.

Over the past two years, the i4Ag project introduced an integrated package of innovations, including hermetic storage bags, digital quality monitoring and traceability systems, improved storage infrastructure, innovative biomass-based grain drying solutions and business models that create new economic opportunities for village entrepreneurs while improving market access for smallholder farmers.

Together, these innovations contributed to safer food, more efficient grain storage, and improved market opportunities.

I4Ag's current results demonstrate the effectiveness of this integrated approach. More than 16,000 smallholder farmers, including over 8,000 women, were trained in improved post-harvest management practices. Around 90% of trained farmers adopted at least one promoted innovation, while 80% reported reduced post-harvest losses.

The project also supported the establishment of 27 farmer groups, many led by women and young people, strengthening collective marketing, knowledge exchange and access to financial services.

Working closely with Saving Grains 301 GmbH, i4Ag also demonstrated the viability of market-based solutions for post-harvest management.

More than 18,000 farmers registered on the Saving Grains platform, over 1,000 metric tonnes of grain were traded during the last twelve months, more than 6,000 hermetic storage bags were introduced to the Ghanaian market and post-harvest losses within the Saving Grains business model were reduced by 17.5%.

Speaking on behalf of the Sector Coordinator for the Sustainable Economic Development at GIZ Ghana, Mr. Issah Nadjo highlighted the impact of local collaboration to the successful implementation of the i4Ag project.

“Partnerships with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, Farm North Ghana, KNUST University, SESI Technologies and other national stakeholders also enabled innovative technologies to be validated under Ghanaian conditions while strengthening local ownership and creating the foundations for their continued use after project completion”, he said.

In her remarks, Ms. Rogatta Antwi-Baadu, the Greater Accra Regional Director, Department of Agriculture expressed that“as the project comes to an end, its legacy extends beyond the innovations introduced.

Through strengthened partnerships, enhanced capacities and lasting infrastructure such as the Shebo community warehouse, the project has made a lasting contribution to reducing post-harvest losses, improving food security and creating new economic opportunities for smallholder farmers and rural entrepreneurs across Ghana.”

The closing week of the "Reducing Post-Harvest Losses and Utilizing Agricultural Residues" initiative brought together key stakeholders and main beneficiaries to celebrate two years of successful collaboration and discuss how the project's achievements can be sustained and expanded.

Activities began on June 30 in Shebo with the official inauguration of the community warehouse, attended by more than 50 representatives from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA), the World Food Programme (WFP), the District Department of Agriculture, local chiefs and farming communities.

The project closing week concluded in Accra with representatives from MoFA, GIZ, Saving Grains 301 GmbH, academia, financial institutions, private sector actors, farmer organisations and development partners.

The workshop provided an opportunity to reflect on the project's achievements, present key evaluation findings and jointly identify priorities for scaling successful innovations beyond the project's lifetime.

About the project

The project "Reducing Post-Harvest Losses and Utilising Agricultural Residues" is funded and commissioned by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

It is part of the Fund for the Promotion of Innovation in Agriculture (i4Ag) and implemented by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH in partnership with Saving Grains 301 GmbH and national implementation partners in Ghana.

About GIZ Ghana

GIZ has over 50 years of experience in a wide variety of areas, including economic development and employment, energy and the environment, and peace and security. We work with businesses, civil society actors, and research institutions, fostering successful interaction between development policy and other policy fields and areas of activity.

The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) is our main commissioning party. Currently, GIZ promotes sustainable development in Ghana via about 40 programmes and projects.

Our activities cover three priority areas: energy and climate; sustainable economic development training and employment and peaceful and inclusive societies. Additionally, our portfolio extends to other areas such as pharmaceutical, health and agriculture.

Another focus of GIZ’s work is linking business interests with development policy goals. Together with our partners, we create sustainable solutions that make a difference for Ghana, Germany and Europe. For more information, visit www.giz.de/ghana.