A soil scientist at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Prof. Vincent Logah is among the 2023 African Plant Nutrition Outreach Fellowship Award recipients.

The award of USD 5,000 was given to Prof. Logah and another scientist from Tanzania working within innovative soil fertility outreach programmes for Africa. This award is part of an on-going initiative co-sponsored by the African Plant Nutrition Institute (APNI), Mohammed VI Polytechnic University (UM6P), and OCP Group.

Most of the smallholder farmers in Ghana are yet to benefit from recent research findings and new initiatives by agricultural scientists in Ghana.

In most instances, farmers do not use the right type of fertilizers, which are also either under- or over applied using unsuitable methods.

This award will help Prof. Logah target educational and outreach activities to train farmers on the 4Rs of nutrient stewardship and to introduce them to the outcome of new research initiatives in nutrient management in Ghana. It also involves collaboration between key stakeholders to translate research into practice.

The main objective is to increase nutrient use efficiency and productivity of smallholder farms in the breadbasket regions of Ghana through tailor-made outreach and hands-on training programmes.

Prof. Logah will also develop customized training modules and manuals for farmers on good nutrient stewardship and new research findings, deliver hands-on training for the targeted farmers using the modules and manuals developed.

The work will contribute to increased productivity of agro ecosystems in Ghana. This will also ensure nutrient use efficiency and environmental sustainability, partly serving as a pilot activity for implementation of recent fertilizer research in Ghana.

More so, the capacity of key stakeholders in the agricultural value chain will be built to facilitate replication and dissemination of the strategies and technologies taught.