The Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA) has distributed 60,000 elite rubber seedlings and farm inputs to 135 farmers to boost rubber production.
The distribution, under the TCDA Free Elite Seedlings Distribution Programme for the 2026 planting season, is the first batch of 160,000 elite rubber seedlings scheduled for distribution this year.
Dr Andy Osei Okrah, Chief Executive Officer of the TCDA, said this at the official handover ceremony in Accra.
The beneficiaries received termiticides, herbicides and Wellington boots to support the establishment and maintenance of new rubber plantations.
Dr Okrah said the Authority had scheduled the initial distribution to coincide with the onset of the planting season to enable farmers to plant within the optimum agronomic period.
He said the TCDA planned to distribute more than three million elite rubber seedlings to farmers in the Western, Central and Eastern regions to establish new plantations, rehabilitate ageing farms, increase national production and improve farmers’ incomes.
Dr Okrah said the initiative was expected to help ensure a sustainable supply of raw materials for local processing industries.
“Every elite seedling we place in the hands of our farmers today represents a direct investment in rural livelihoods, reliable raw materials for local manufacturing, aggressive value addition, and sustainable job creation,” he said.
Dr Okrah said the Authority had directed development partners, government agencies, non-governmental organisations and private entities distributing planting materials for regulated tree crops to procure them only from TCDA-certified suppliers.
“This directive… is non-negotiable and will be rigorously enforced to protect our value chains from substandard, uncertified genetics,” he said.
Dr Okrah said the TCDA was also pursuing partnerships with private sector investors to reclaim degraded lands through sustainable rubber plantations while promoting downstream manufacturing.
“Our ambition is to create an enabling investment climate for localized manufacturing of high-value finished goods, including vehicle tyres, medical gloves, and industrial components,” he said.
The TCDA was established under the Tree Crops Development Authority Act, 2019 (Act 1010), and became operational through Legislative Instrument (L.I.) 2471 in 2023.
The Authority regulates, develops and promotes the production, processing and trading of cashew, coconut, oil palm, rubber, mango and shea.
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