Grains for Growth
Target Impact
The program has partnered with 12 small and medium- sized enterprises (SMEs) in northern Ghana, some high-profile off-takers, and other supply chain actors to create 103,000 work opportunities across the maize, rice, millet, fonio, and sorghum supply chains., with 60 percent of these jobs for women and youth. The program also supports the inclusion of 20,000 smallholder farmers through optimized sourcing and service delivery structures, while aiming to significantly increase farmer incomes.
Status: Active
Country
Ghana
Period
2021-2025
Industries
Agriculture
Commitment
$6 Million USD
Impact to Date
20,924
20,924 smallholder farmers have been supported
105,093
105,093 on-farm jobs have been supported.
70,725
Of those, 70,725 are Youth in Work.
2
Two premium off-takers (Nestle and Guinness) have been onboarded.
1200
Regenerative agriculture has been piloted with 1,200 smallholder farmers
++
Increased revenues and crop yields for SMEs.
Partnership Focus
Provide close support to 12 selected SMES to improve capacity to supply to premium off-takers.
Provide support to smallholder farmers in adopting Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs), accessing high-quality inputs and mechanization solutions (farm-level and primary processing). Including the introduction of climate-smart and regenerative agriculture approaches to improve soil health and farm resilience.
Develop digitalization approaches to support SHF engagement, advisory services, market information, and access to financing solutions.
Support SMEs to develop and scale their businesses through advisory support and facilitating market linkages with premium buyers.
Access to affordable financing.
In Partnership With
Grains production in Northern Ghana is largely characterized by informal supply chains, where actors have limited access to affordable financing solutions, mechanized farming, and quality agro-inputs. These constraints have a negative impact on the quality and volume of grain production, the ability of SMEs to attract and maintain premium-paying buyers, which results in limited commercial investments. With increasing local consumption demands for grains in Ghana, a rising import dependency, and local raw-material sourcing interests, there is significant opportunity to support the development and commercialization of the grains sector in northern Ghana to facilitate economic growth and job creation. The Mastercard Foundation partnered with IDH in 2021 to contribute to the development of the grains sector – particularly the maize, rice, millet, fonio, and sorghum supply chains, support the inclusion of smallholder farmers and create jobs with a central focus on women and youth empowerment.