World Bank pledges USD 30M to boost Ghana’s irrigation systems
GHANA – The World Bank has announced plans to provide $30 million to close the funding gap in Ghana’s Food Systems Resilience Programme (FSRP), aimed at enhancing irrigation farming and agricultural productivity.
This commitment was revealed during a visit to the Kpong Irrigation Scheme and the Kpong Left Bank Irrigation System by Mr. Ousmane Diagana, Regional Vice President for Western and Central Africa at the World Bank.
“There’s a USD 30 million funding gap to see the full completion of this project. We’re a long-standing partner for Ghana in every area… and we will be happy of course to consider adding financing if necessary. So, this is absolutely possible,” said Mr. Diagana.
Although Ghana has an estimated 1.9 million hectares of irrigable land, only about 1.6 percent is currently equipped with irrigation, significantly below the West and Central Africa regional average of 13.9 percent.
This underdevelopment poses challenges to the country’s agricultural and food security.
Mr. Diagana emphasized agriculture’s crucial role in job creation and income generation. “No country can develop without investing in its agriculture,” he stated, urging the Ghanaian government to prioritize sustainable investments in smart agricultural practices to reduce dependence on imported staples like rice, maize, and vegetables.
The ongoing projects in Asutuare and Kpong have already yielded impressive results, with productivity reaching six tonnes per hectare.
Mr. Diagana noted that “the best experience suggests that if you do this type of investment and you can be close to seven tonnes per hectare, then you’re really making good use of the time, resources, and the likelihood to have the project really achieve its impact will be extremely high.”
Mr. Osei Owusu Agyeman, Project Coordinator for FSRP, highlighted the program’s success in combining mobility and sustainable interventions to equip vulnerable households, farmers, and communities to face uncertainties in food production and distribution.
He remarked, “Investing in agriculture is an investment in the community for food security and jobs.”
The program has already modernized key irrigation schemes in Ghana with USD 22.5 million in funding from the World Bank.
Ms. Priscilla Adom Tawiah, Secretary of the Investors Cooperative at the Kpong Left Bank site, praised the project’s impact, particularly on youth and women in agriculture.
“We’ve brought a lot of economic development to the people,” she said. She also appealed for improved access to affordable funding, suggesting that a dedicated matching grant could “transform the whole of the left bank and become an agribusiness tourist site for the country and beyond.”
Ghana’s fruits and vegetables market is projected to grow from USD 0.95 billion in 2024 to USD 1.27 billion by 2029, driven by a rising middle-income population and increasing awareness of healthy eating.
The lifting of export restrictions by the European Union has also positioned Ghana for significant growth in vegetable exports, with major markets including the United Kingdom, United States, Netherlands, and the United Arab Emirates.
World Bank pledges USD 30M to boost Ghana’s irrigation systems
GHANA – The World Bank has announced plans to provide $30 million to close the funding gap in Ghana’s Food Systems Resilience Programme (FSRP), aimed at enhancing irrigation farming and agricultural productivity.
This commitment was revealed during a visit to the Kpong Irrigation Scheme and the Kpong Left Bank Irrigation System by Mr. Ousmane Diagana, Regional Vice President for Western and Central Africa at the World Bank.
“There’s a USD 30 million funding gap to see the full completion of this project. We’re a long-standing partner for Ghana in every area… and we will be happy of course to consider adding financing if necessary. So, this is absolutely possible,” said Mr. Diagana.
Although Ghana has an estimated 1.9 million hectares of irrigable land, only about 1.6 percent is currently equipped with irrigation, significantly below the West and Central Africa regional average of 13.9 percent.
This underdevelopment poses challenges to the country’s agricultural and food security.
Mr. Diagana emphasized agriculture’s crucial role in job creation and income generation. “No country can develop without investing in its agriculture,” he stated, urging the Ghanaian government to prioritize sustainable investments in smart agricultural practices to reduce dependence on imported staples like rice, maize, and vegetables.
The ongoing projects in Asutuare and Kpong have already yielded impressive results, with productivity reaching six tonnes per hectare.
Mr. Diagana noted that “the best experience suggests that if you do this type of investment and you can be close to seven tonnes per hectare, then you’re really making good use of the time, resources, and the likelihood to have the project really achieve its impact will be extremely high.”
Mr. Osei Owusu Agyeman, Project Coordinator for FSRP, highlighted the program’s success in combining mobility and sustainable interventions to equip vulnerable households, farmers, and communities to face uncertainties in food production and distribution.
He remarked, “Investing in agriculture is an investment in the community for food security and jobs.”
The program has already modernized key irrigation schemes in Ghana with USD 22.5 million in funding from the World Bank.
Ms. Priscilla Adom Tawiah, Secretary of the Investors Cooperative at the Kpong Left Bank site, praised the project’s impact, particularly on youth and women in agriculture.
“We’ve brought a lot of economic development to the people,” she said. She also appealed for improved access to affordable funding, suggesting that a dedicated matching grant could “transform the whole of the left bank and become an agribusiness tourist site for the country and beyond.”
Ghana’s fruits and vegetables market is projected to grow from USD 0.95 billion in 2024 to USD 1.27 billion by 2029, driven by a rising middle-income population and increasing awareness of healthy eating.
The lifting of export restrictions by the European Union has also positioned Ghana for significant growth in vegetable exports, with major markets including the United Kingdom, United States, Netherlands, and the United Arab Emirates.