8th Pre-Harvest Agribusiness Conference And Exhibition Launched

The 8^th edition of the Pre-Harvest Agribusiness Conference and Exhibition scheduled to take place at Tamale Sports Stadium in October 2018 was officially launched over the week at the Premier Best Western Hotel in Accra.

The Pre-Harvest Agribusiness and Exhibition initiative was birthed with the aim of bringing commodity buyers, agribusiness service providers and farmers to establish business relationships and discuss contracts, explore and exploit other growth possibilities.

Delivering the keynote address at the launch, the Honourable Minister of State for Agriculture, Rd. Nurah Gyiele said “though Ghana is seen as one of the countries in this part of the world that has successfully transitioned from a subsistence-farming society to a more commercially focused one, the performance of agriculture, generally, has been on the decline until just the past year.”

He assured Ghanaians that the Government of Ghana under the leadership of Nana Akufo Addo’s is determined to make Agriculture the engine of growth in Ghana and that statistics about the 2017 seasons gives signs of brighter future.

“Let me note here that after a difficult 2016 when we achieved a 3.0% agriculture sector growth, the sector according to the Ghana Statistical Service has made good progress as it recorded a provisional growth rate of 8.4% at the end of 2017” he said

He indicated that hosting the program in the Northern part of Ghana excited him because it can play a key role in alleviating poverty in the area. “If agriculture (farming and agribusinesses) becomes successful in northern Ghana, the problems of unemployment, low incomes and food insecurity would be largely taken care of.”

Acknowledging commitments made by AFGRI John Deere, Ecobank, Interplast and Yara Ghana towards the program, he challenged the private sector to prove that they believe “Agriculture is the future mainstay of our economy and most economies in Africa.”

In attendance were representatives from Brazil Embassy, Members of Parliament, USAID Mission Director, Sustainable Food Systems Coordinator, Presidents of Farmers Associations and a host of distinguished individuals in the sector.

The organisation and management of the Pre-Harvest Agribusiness Conference and Exhibition which is an initiative of USAID ADVANCE has been totally handed over to Agribusiness Foundation as part of plans to make the initiative sustainable

In her speech, Executive Director of Agribusiness, Alberta Nana Akyaa Akosa thanked USAID ADVANCE for their decision to hand over the management and organisation of the program to Agrihouse Foundation and assured them that everything humanly possible will be done to make it a success and also realise the goals that informed the institution of the initiative.

“As we take over this important platform, we, at Agrihouse Foundation, know that the vision is far into the future and with an everyday impact potential. We are thus mindful of the need to raise the bar and stay relevant to the needs, expectations and aspiration of all stakeholders”

She added: “without any attempt to sound boastful, I would like to assure all stakeholders, that, we have all that it takes to accomplish all its goals and we are already forging ahead to sustain the event and further build a competitive networking and marketing platform.”

The 8^th Pre-Harvest Agribusiness Conference and Exhibition will take place at the Tamale Sports Stadium from 3^rd to 5^th October under the theme: “Transforming Agricultural Production in Northern Ghana: The role of modern agro-based industries.”

Agrihouse Foundation is a non-governmental agricultural capacity building, innovation and project management organization, with a special focus on changing the perception of, and consciously shaping the conversation on agriculture through the promotion of people-impact programs, projects and initiatives, targeting students, women, farmers, farming associations, agribusinesses and the entire actors within the value chain.

The foundation is credited with many innovative Agriculture-centered innovative programs that have helped in attracting the many youth into Agriculture.