This project seeks to promote the use and revival of indigenous seeds in Northern Ghana for crops that are both nutritious and adaptable to climate change.

Background

In Northern Ghana, many rural economies and food security depend upon smallholder farming. This dependence is, however, threatened by climate change. With changing weather patterns, farmers are no longer able to predict the patterns of the rainy season. Furthermore, floods and droughts have led to soil degradation and desertification, further intensified by deforestation.

Farming with indigenous seeds can combat many of these challenges. As they are native to the land, genetically, they have been moulded by the chemical and physical interactions in the soil and with the surrounding environment for an extended amount of time. Thus, indigenous seeds are much more adaptive to the local climate than foreign varieties; they are drought resistant and have a quick maturation rate.

Further benefits of using indigenous seeds include:

• Meets nutrition needs
• Farmers can reproduce the seeds themselves
• Do not need to use chemical fertilizers to grow, which are harmful to the surrounding environment and one’s health

What we do

We have partnered with the African Biodiversity Network (ABN) to promote indigenous seed use in five communities: Tindang, Yilikpani, Langa, Yiziagu, & Yiworgu. They were selected as they are in a district highly vulnerable to climate change.

Focus Areas

1. To increase seed variety in targeted areas
2. To revive traditional knowledge and systematically document it
3. Strengthen community advocacy and lobbying to influence policy on smallholder agriculture

 Strategies

• Training for farmers on cataloguing, database development, seed revival and storage, & agro-ecological practices
• Establishment of community seed banks
• Seed fairs
• Farmer-to-farmer exchange visits
• Peer-learning & community dialogue
• Capacity building advocacy & lobbying
• Documentation and subsequent dissemination

Partnerships

• African Biodiversity Network
• Brot für die Welt
• Savanah Radio
• Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA)
• Community Leaders