A close relationship between researchers, small scale farmers and government is critical to build the bioeconomy in Africa, says DIVAGRI researcher Richard Yaw Owusu.
Richard Owusu is one of four DIVAGRI project participants who was chosen to represent the project at the BioEconomy Conference Workshop in Nairobi, Kenya on the 24 October 2024. Mr Owusu works for the Crop Research Institute, a division of the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research in Ghana.
“Biotechnologies need to be developed that are adapted to the needs of farmers, government needs to subsidise these technologies for farmers in some way and extension officers need to train the farmers to use them,” says Mr Owusu. “Without this whole chain of support it will be very difficult for small scale farmers to be integrated into the bioeconomy.”
Mr Owusu has a Master’s Degree in Plant Breeding and Biotechnology and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture. He has over 17 years’ experience in field management, research and commercial seed production.
Other important financial support structures include a government tax incentive for bio-based industries or alternatively tax-free status. Access to simple agricultural machinery and equipment would be another way of supporting the transition to the bioeconomy for small scale farmers as well as access to grants or low interest rate loans.
The role of government extension officers is vital too, especially with regards to the training and capacity development of the small-scale farmer wishing to transition to the biobased circular economy in the next 20 years.
In Ghana there was currently inadequate support for small scale farmers. They had limited infrastructure and technology and could not afford the cost of improved technology. They could not easily access finance and lacked awareness and knowledge about why it was important to adopt a biobased circular economy approach to agriculture.
Moreover, some parts of Ghana suffered from serious environmental pollution with bush-burning and the misuse of pesticides being some of the prime causes of this pollution. Furthermore, deforestation and land degradation were also a problem caused largely by illegal mining and sand-winning.
A lack of irrigation facilities further hampered the development of small-scale farming in Ghana with almost all small-scale farmers being dependent on rainfall to water their crops. “None of these problems are insurmountable,” says Mr Owusu who himself is a farmer in his private capacity. “We need to promote public awareness and education through demonstrations of biobased technology in the farming community, build partnerships to access international financial support, build dams and roads and provide irrigation facilities”.
There have already been many success stories in the DIVAGRI project. In the Ejura out-station in the Ashanti Region of Ghana where Mr Owusu works, they are practicing intercropping with Pigeonpea and Maize. The Pigeonpea is a leguminous plant which fixes atmospheric nitrogen into the soil to improve it fertility.
The reason for the intercropping is to help promote soil health, make use of limited land, promote weed management technics and reduce inorganic fertilizer use. The Pigeonpea grains are rich in protein and high other important nutrients. The grain is used as food, and the leaves are used as animal feed when pruned.
Maize is a versatile cereal produced and consumed extensively in Ghana. The grains are used as food while the fodder as animal feed or can be used to produce biochar for soil amendment. The integration of Pigeonpea into the Maize production system serve as an efficient means of nutrient-rich biomass for sustaining soil fertility to facilitate maize production. Soil fertility management is essential if a farmer wants to maximize yield.
Moreover, they are experimenting with Black Solider Fly (BSF). The larvae of the black soldier fly show huge potential for the use in alternative organic waste management and the production of fish growth and other livestock which decrease the dependency on the conventional feed sources.
Adult Black soldier fly is attracted using decomposing organic waste. BSF mate and lay eggs. The eggs hatch after four days and larvae is produced. Black soldier fly larvae are harvested and stored as feed.
This technology converts organic waste into valuable protein which reduces environmental pollution and therefore contributes greatly to a sustainable agriculture system.
The larvae of the BSF provide essential nutrients, which promotes smarter and healthier for fish and other livestock growth. The larvae produce frass which can be used as organic fertilizer (compost) for soil enhancement.
Integration of BSF larvae into the fish feed industry represents a promising solution to improve the profitability and sustainability of fish farming. It has a potential for job creation and also nutritional value for the aquaculture and agriculture in general.