Empowering Ghanaian Farmers: Leveraging Indigenous Crops for Climate Resilience

At Farmerline, we are proud to be part of a groundbreaking initiative together with the Baltic International Centre for Economic Policy Studies (BICEPS), Latvian Permaculture Society, and the Savannah Agricultural Research Institute(SARI) in Ghana: “Building Digital Education of Indigenous/Heritage Crops for the Resilience of African Food Systems in the Climate Crisis.” Together with our partners, we are working to build more resilient agricultural systems in Ghana, marrying traditional knowledge with cutting-edge digital tools to mitigate the effects of climate change.

A Collaborative Path to Resilience

Ghana’s agricultural sector is deeply affected by climate variability, posing challenges to food security and livelihoods. This initiative brings to life a vision of strengthening the role of indigenous crops—plants deeply rooted in the local culture and naturally resilient to harsh climate conditions. By creating a digital knowledge platform, we help provide farmers with essential insights on cultivating and sustaining crops such as sesame, pigeon pea, fonio, etc. This model draws on Latvian expertise in heritage crop preservation and adapts it to suit Ghana’s unique landscape.

Engaging Communities with Hands-On Workshops

To make learning accessible and meaningful, 14 community-based workshops have been conducted across the Northern Region, including districts like Gushegu, Savelugu, Saboba, and Yendi. These workshops engaged 658 farmers, of whom 230 were men and 428 were women. The strong representation of women underscores our commitment to inclusive participation, ensuring equal access to life-changing agricultural knowledge.

Key Focus Areas Included: Diversifying Indigenous Crops: Farmers learned about the practical and economic benefits of indigenous crops. These plants have significant nutritional value and also offer critical climate resilience, helping secure livelihoods in changing conditions.

• Regenerative Agriculture Practices: Training emphasized regenerative techniques to boost soil health, improve productivity, and promote long-term sustainability.
• Seed-saving technology: Farmers were also introduced to practical ways of saving good seeds of native crops to preserve them for future generations.

Driving Innovation through Mobile Technology

At Farmerline, we believe that innovation and technology are powerful tools to democratize knowledge. Our Mergdata platform has been harnessed to disseminate 10 lectures on indigenous crops and the seed-saving movement in Latvia in four local languages. Voice messaging ensures that even farmers in the most remote areas can access vital information, extending the reach of workshop lessons to up to 10,000 farmers across the region.

The links to messages disseminated to farmers are available here;

a) the storymap: https://www.mantots.permakultura.lv/en/isuma-par-seklu-lolosanu

b) 10 lectures of the Module 1: https://www.mantots.permakultura.lv/en/10-lekcijas-seklu-lolosana

Paving the Way for Sustainable Food Systems

By combining heritage wisdom, community-led learning, and modern digital solutions, we aim to equip Ghanaian farmers with the tools and knowledge to adapt to climate challenges. Our shared mission is to foster resilient food systems, creating lasting change for farmers, families, and communities throughout the region.

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