MoFA-FSRP Scheme Positively Transforms Poultry Sector

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To revitalize the broiler industry, the Ministry of Food & Agriculture (MoFA) has launched the first phase of the Poultry Intensification Scheme under the West Africa Food System Resilience Programme (FSRP).

As part of this initiative, selected commercial anchor poultry farmers in the Ashanti Region have received approximately 130,000 day-old chicks. This marks the first delivery under the scheme, which will soon extend to the Bono, Eastern, Greater Accra, Central, and Volta Regions, contributing to MoFA-FSRP’s mission to rejuvenate Ghana’s poultry industry.

FSRP Project Coordinator Osei Owusu Agyeman explained to B&FT that the scheme aims to significantly disrupt the poultry value chain and other project areas positively. The project’s long-term objective is to enhance the domestic poultry sector’s competitiveness and value addition, reducing reliance on imports.

“The FSRP focuses on three main themes: sustainability, ownership, and public-private engagement. These themes are crucial for strengthening domestic production and achieving long-term goals,” Agyeman stated.

FSRP’s Animal Production Directorate Focal Person, Dr. Abdul Razak Okine, highlighted the sector’s current challenges. “Currently, the sector meets only five percent of consumption needs, heavily relying on imported poultry products,” he noted. This underscores the need for the local industry to scale up to achieve self-sufficiency in broiler production. “MoFA is equipped to provide the necessary technical expertise for the project’s success,” he added.

Benefits

The MoFA-FSRP scheme operates in phases, funded by the World Bank. Each beneficiary receives input credit, including approximately 160,000 day-old chicks, 180,000 kilograms of feed, and vaccines in the initial allocations.

Beneficiary farmers will also receive training in modern best practices and climate-smart technologies within the poultry industry. “Additionally, they will have access to matching grants to procure equipment for post-production processing and cold storage. The scheme aims to produce about two million broiler birds annually, supported by a US$12.5 million World Bank facility,” Agyeman disclosed.

Eligibility Criteria

The program has selected twenty-two commercial anchor farmers nationwide to produce, process, and market two million birds annually over the next three years. To participate, applicants must have been involved in poultry production, processing, and marketing for at least the past five years and be registered with the Registrar General or other statutory bodies. They must also have linkages with smallholder farmers and be listed in the databases of their District Directorate of Agriculture.

Prospective participants must include at least 10 percent women and 10 percent youth in both upstream and downstream value chain activities and comply with regulatory requirements from bodies like the Environmental Protection Agency, Ghana Fire Service, the Food & Drugs Authority, Ghana Standards Authority, and the World Bank.

The scheme aligns with the PFJ 2.0 initiative, targeting poultry self-sufficiency with an output of 400,000 metric tonnes per year by 2028.

About FSRP

The West Africa Food System Resilience Programme (FSRP) is a World Bank-funded initiative promoted by ECOWAS for participating countries. It aims to strengthen food system risk management, improve the sustainability of the agricultural productive base, and harmonize agricultural markets in the West African sub-region. Participating countries include Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Chad, Sierra Leone, Togo, and Chad. In Ghana, the FSRP, implemented by the Ministry of Food & Agriculture, focuses on the intensified production, marketing, and consumption of wholesome rice, maize, broiler poultry, soybeans (for poultry feed), and tomatoes.