The Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA) has provided 10 tricycles, 12 motorbikes and protective equipment to shea pickers, collectors and associations across Northern Ghana to ease transportation and operational challenges confronting the sector.
The intervention, targeted largely at women who dominate the shea value chain, is expected to improve the collection and transportation of shea nuts, enhance working conditions and ultimately boost incomes for thousands of rural households.
The items were handed over on Tuesday at the Northern Regional Coordinating Council (NRCC) Residency in Tamale to beneficiaries from the Northern, Upper East, Upper West, Savannah and North East Regions.
The logistics form part of the TCDA’s flagship Agriculture Inputs Distribution to Tree Crops Farmers programme.
They include 500 pairs each of Wellington boots, hand gloves, headlamps, raincoats and reflective jackets, in addition to the tricycles and motorbikes.
Chief Executive Officer of the TCDA, Dr Andy Osei Okrah, said the intervention was designed around the practical difficulties confronting shea pickers and collectors, particularly those who travel long distances and operate in difficult terrain.
He said the provision of transport logistics would make it easier to move shea nuts from collection communities to aggregation points, while the protective equipment would improve the safety of collectors.
Dr Okrah said improving collection and transportation was also critical to maintaining the quality of shea kernels supplied to the market.
He urged beneficiary associations to manage the items as productive assets, stressing the need for proper record-keeping, accountability and regular maintenance.
The TCDA, he said, would monitor the use of the logistics to ensure that they served their intended purpose and generated maximum benefits for beneficiaries and the wider shea industry.
Speaking on behalf of the Northern Regional Minister, Ali Adolf John, the Regional Economic Development Planning Officer, Isaac Mengo, said the intervention came at a critical time for a sector that provides income and employment to large numbers of rural communities.
He said the shea industry was particularly important to women, who play a dominant role in harvesting, processing and trading.
Mr Mengo, however, noted that grassroots actors continued to face challenges including inadequate tools, transportation difficulties, limited access to fair markets and inadequate pricing information.
He said the TCDA’s intervention would help reduce some of those constraints and improve the productivity and earnings of collectors.
He urged beneficiaries to treat the items as long-term productive assets rather than short-term assistance.
The beneficiaries welcomed the intervention, saying the logistics would reduce the burden of transporting shea nuts, improve their working conditions and increase their productivity and incomes.
They pledged to maintain the equipment and ensure that it was used to strengthen their associations and improve livelihoods within their communities.
The TCDA says the intervention forms part of its broader effort to build a more organised, efficient and sustainable tree-crops sector while creating greater economic opportunities for actors at the grassroots.
Source: www.kumasimail.com
