India and Ghana Sign Agricultural Cooperation MoU
India and Ghana have strengthened bilateral cooperation through the signing of a five-year Memorandum of Understanding between the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), New Delhi, and the Crops Research Institute (CSIR-CRI), Accra, Ghana. The signing ceremony was attended by Dr. S. Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister of India, and H.E. Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Ghana, representing their respective nations.
The MoU establishes a comprehensive framework for cooperation in joint agricultural research, scientific and technological exchange, capacity building, and the application and commercialization of agricultural technologies. Ghana-based Arima Farms Ltd. has been formally recognized as the commercial partner to CSIR-CRI for specific research and commercialization activities under this agreement.
The first phase of cooperation will specifically focus on vegetable crop research, with particular emphasis on tomato research and development. ICAR will support the scaling up of proven agricultural technologies and introduce suitable high-yielding tomato lines and varieties to strengthen domestic tomato production in Ghana. The partnership will also concentrate on processing and value addition of cassava, yam, and other tuber crops with the objective of strengthening agricultural value chains.
Additional cooperation areas include post-harvest management, featuring technical support and capacity building in cold storage, refrigerated transportation, sorting, grading, and processing technologies aimed at addressing post-harvest losses. The agreement provides for exchange of scientists and technologists, germplasm and breeding materials, scientific information, methodologies, and technical knowledge, alongside development and implementation of collaborative research projects.
The collaboration will be overseen through a Joint Working Group comprising representatives of ICAR and CSIR-CRI, which will review progress and guide implementation through periodic meetings in New Delhi and Accra. This partnership is expected to strengthen the linkage between agricultural research, technology development, capacity building, and commercial application, facilitating the adoption of relevant agricultural technologies and contributing to sustainable agricultural development and improved livelihoods in Ghana.