The 4th edition of the Ghana Agribusiness Excellence and Leadership Awards has been launched with institutional partners. The awards event launched in Accra via Zoom is themed: Sustainable Agriculture: A Catalyst for Food Security and Job Creation.
The awards ceremony is an annual event instituted by the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana with a onerous objective: recognising individuals, companies and institutions that have made significant contributions towards the growth and development of their respective business sectors, as well as their key contributions in promoting growth and sustainability of the agriculture in Ghana.
This year's edition is intended to honour individuals and organisations who are revolutionising food systems in Ghana and beyond .
In his keynote address, the Chief of Party of USAID Feed the Future Ghana Mobilizing Finance in Agriculture (MFA) Programme, Victor Antwi, is of the view that the theme for this year's event is apt; being a key focus of the Ghana MFA programme. The Ghana MFA programme is the first initiative awarded under the US Government's Global Food Security Strategy in Ghana. He further indicated that Ghana MFA programme recognises the immeasurable contributions of the agribusiness sector and hence stepping up efforts to ensure agribusinesses receive the right mix of financing required to expand their operations and maximise their contributions to food security and inclusive economic growth. Expounding on the programme, Victor Antwi stated that the Ghana MFA programme will from 2020 to 2024 unlock USD 261 million across selected value chains such as maize, soy, cowpea, cashew and other high value export crops in Ghana. The financing will enable 81,493 Small and Growing Agribusinesses to increase production and expand their businesses.
In the area of risk mitigation in agricultural financing, Victor Antwi indicated that the Ghana MFA programme is working with the Ghana Incentive-Based Risk-sharing System for Agricultural Lending (GIRSAL) programme to support financial institutions with credit guarantees to expand lending to the agricultural sector. He further emphasized the need to adopt innovative farming practices including the use of early maturing and drought tolerant varieties and tree crops such as cashew and mangoes on farm boundaries. He urged participating financial institutions, business advisory service providers, private sector actors and development practitioners to ensure their project proposals are environmentally compliant and friendly.
In a presentation, the Chief Executive Officer of the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana, Anthony Morrison, expressed his excitement about the awards event being one of a kind to appreciate and further incentivise key agribusiness industry players and institutions in Ghana. The Director of Partnership and Membership at the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana, Nlaliban Wujanji, indicated that the Covid-19 pandemic has partially halted production in some sectors of the economy except the agricultural sector, due to its significant role in food production for consumption and the resilience of value chain actors.
Award Categories
25 categories of awards will be presented including the Agricultural Personality of the Year, the Media Company of the Year, the Research and Industry Company of the Year and Woman in Agribusiness of the Year. The fourth Edition of the Ghana Agribusiness Excellence and Leadership Awards is scheduled to take place in November 2021.
For enquiries and partnership opportunities
Email: info[at]agribusinesschamber.org
News Source: Agriculture in Africa Media
Email: Ghana@agricinafrica.com
Newswire: press@agricinafrica.com
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