The implementation of the SSF Guidelines should be based on human-rights principles and standards, factoring in local conditions. In June 2014, the 31st session of the Committee on Fisheries (COFI) of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) endorsed the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in...

The ahotor oven represents an improvement on the widely used chorkor smoker, and is an energy- and time-efficient fish smoking technology. My recent tours in some coastal communities in the Central, Western and Volta Regions of Ghana exposed me to a daily reality of fishmongers in the region. As part of...

We cannot talk about food sovereignty without mentioning the role of mass markets on which the majority of people depend on their income and food. These markets have demonstrated their relevance during the COVID-19 era by strengthening rural-urban linkages. Mass markets have been the main avenue through which rural people...

Inland fisheries based on lakes and rivers are difficult to assess and data on catch and effort, often from subsistence fisheries, is lacking. Predictive models based on simple and multiple linear regressions enable estimates of fish yield that can be used in planning for management and development in the absence...

In Ghana, increased population pressure and the need to cultivate greater land area have resulted in reduced fallow periods. As a consequence, the restoration of soil fertility is insufficient to allow recovery of secondary forest and rejuvenation of exhausted soils. Fallows are of ecological, economic and social importance to rural...

High-quality cassava flour (HQCF) is an attractive alternative to cassava starch that can form the starting point for a cassava based industry. HQCF production is less capital intensive and requires lower levels of inputs for success, compared to cassava starch. HQCF can be used as an alternative to starch and...

In Ghana, processing of cassava was limited to traditional food products such as gari, kokonte, agbelima and tapioca, and minimal amounts of low-grade starch and starch biscuits. Cassava farmers can improve their livelihoods by expanding the range of market opportunities available for cassava-based products and promoting the use of cassava...

High-Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) is an attractive alternative to cassava starch that can form the starting point for a cassava-based industry. HQCF production is less capital intensive and requires lower levels of inputs for success, compared to cassava starch. HQCF can be used as an alternative to starch and other...

Rice is economically very important in Ghana and West Africa. The lack of improved rice varieties, particularly upland varieties, is recognized as a constraint. The main purpose of the work reported here was to test and evaluate new drought-and weed-tolerant rice varieties. Farmers use participatory techniques and formal replicated yield...

Most soils in Ghana are too acidic, limiting the nutrient uptake of plants. The following video presents one easy way to measure a soil’s pH value using pH indicator strips. Knowing your soil's pH value helps to take action to improve your soil quality.

Fruit flies are a common pest damaging fruits and vegetables. The video in this practice explains how to build a safe, simple and cost effective fruit fly trap with a plastic bottle, a pheromone and an insecticide. This practice describes step by step how to build a trap to control...

Pruning is the selective removal of unproductive shoots and branches. There are several reasons why to prune a mango tree. The practice allows for light and air to be admitted into the canopy of a tree, it enhances flowering to achieve high quality fruits and it improves effective control of...

Since its introduction, the papaya mealy bug (Paracoccus marginatus) causes serious damages to papaya plantations in Ghana. Conventional control with pesticides was unsuccessful because the mealy bug has become resistant to them. A promising solution that proved to be successful is the biological control of mealy bugs using small parasitic...

Access to affordable small fish is key to achieving zero hunger and improved nutrition in Ghana’s poor urban households, a new study shows. Small fish are indeed the backbone of Ghana’s animal protein supply in the poor urban neighbourhoods of Accra (such as Nima, Chorkor, Ga Mashie and James Town) and...

Compost has many advantages. It is a well‑balanced fertilizer, it improves long term soil fertility and it helps to suppress soil borne diseases. The following video shows a good way of how to make compost in Ghana.

Due to inaccurate methods of harvesting, farmers tend to destroy the quality of mangoes and obtain reduced yields of the fruit, which results in a loss of income for farmers. Through selective harvesting techniques, mangoes are harvested in three stages from the trees based on their maturity level. Also, proper...

Abuse and misuse of insecticides is common in Africa. Although the use of pesticides in Africa represents less than 5 percent of the global total, misuse is disproportionately high. The use of insecticides is determined largely by export crops, such as cotton and cocoa. Trends are therefore dependent on world...

Cassava (Manihot Esculenta Crantz) is the third most important source of calories in the tropics, after rice and maize. Millions of people depend on cassava in Africa, Asia and Latin America. It is grown by poor farmers, many of them women, often on marginal land. For those people and their...

Hay-making is the most important method of preserving forage in many countries, including tropical ones. Silage-making is highly developed in temperate countries, especially in Europe, and goes with intensification. In tropical countries, plant growth coincides with the rainy season, which sometimes makes hay-making difficult. The objective of this technology is...

The project has validated a participatory breeding approach for developing superior, mosaic disease-resistant cassava, demonstrating that it can provide a means by which farmers, plant breeders and plant pathologists could work together in an effective and inclusive manner. It also provided an environment whereby farmers made a significant and consistent...