The Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA) and Russian firm Golden Forest Limited have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to support the development and transformation of Ghana’s shea industry through investment, research, reforestation and value addition initiatives.
The agreement, signed in Accra on Friday, is expected to strengthen Ghana’s shea value chain, increase processing capacity, support women collectors and improve the country’s competitiveness in the global shea market.
Dr Andy Osei Okrah, Chief Executive Officer of TCDA, signed on behalf of the Authority, while Mr Timur Bakusev, Chief Executive Officer of Golden Forest, signed for the company.
The signing ceremony was witnessed by Dr Natalia Muzhennikova, Counsellor at the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Ghana.
Under the partnership, the two institutions will collaborate on the rehabilitation and restoration of shea parklands, investment in processing infrastructure, scientific research and support for women cooperatives engaged in shea production and processing.
Dr Okrah said the partnership came at a strategic time as Ghana sought to reposition itself from a raw material exporter to a competitive player in value addition and industrial processing within the global shea market.
He noted that the global shea market was currently valued at approximately 2.75 billion dollars and projected to exceed 5.5 billion dollars in the coming years, but much of the value continued to be captured outside Africa through international processing and manufacturing.
“This reality presents both a challenge and an opportunity, an opportunity for Ghana to reposition itself not just as a supplier of raw materials but as a competitive player in value addition and industrial processing,” he said.
Dr Okrah said the shea industry remained a critical source of livelihood for many rural women in northern Ghana, despite challenges including low collection rates, climate change impacts, bushfires, land degradation and limited access to finance.
He said TCDA had introduced reforms to streamline the sector, including registration and licensing of value chain actors, export permit regulations, quality control systems and a minimum pricing formula to protect industry players.
“The partnership represents a significant step toward our collective efforts to transform the shea value chain that delivers greater value to all actors, especially the rural women who form the backbone of the industry,” he stated.
Dr Muzhennikova said Russia remained committed to supporting mutually beneficial economic cooperation with African countries through technology transfer, education and agricultural development.
“We are speaking about people, we are speaking about education, we are speaking about the transfer of technologies and we are speaking about the development of the agriculture sector,” she said.
She announced that the third Russia-Africa Summit would be held in Moscow in October this year and would focus on the economic development of African countries and opportunities for cooperation with the Russian Federation.
Mr Bakusev described Ghana as a key partner for his company and pledged Golden Forest’s commitment to developing the shea industry at all levels.
“Today we signed an agreement that will focus our efforts of Golden Forest and TCDA on restoring the shea tree park, supporting women’s collection, and fostering scientific cooperation to enhance shea yield and quality,” he said.
He added that the company intended to support higher education opportunities for young Ghanaians in tree crop processing and agriculture-related fields at leading Russian agricultural universities.
The Tree Crops Development Authority is a statutory body established under the Tree Crops Development Authority Act, 2019 (Act 1010) to regulate and develop Ghana’s tree crops sector.
The Authority is responsible for licensing, regulation, production development and marketing of key tree crops including cashew, shea, mango, coconut, rubber and oil palm.
