Ghana, French Agency Sign Rubber Plantation Agreement

Ghana and the French Development Agency or AFD Wednesday signed a 5.9 million-euro agreement to support an out-grower rubber plantation project in the country.

The money would be used to finance the second phase of a 2,800-hectare rubber plantation project. It would offer a credit line for about 500 farmers over a five-year period.

The fund would be disbursed through the Agricultural Development Bank to help farmers purchase agricultural inputs. It would also be used for the construction of a 40-km road that would open up the area and ensure easy access to production and marketing areas.

Ghana's deputy finance minister, Victor Selormey, and Laurent Duriez, the AFD resident manager, signed the agreement.

The first phase of the project started in 1995 and ended in 1999 after 400 farmers planted rubber trees on more than 1,200 hectares of land.

A statement issued by AFD at the signing ceremony said 164 old rubber farms covering 3,050 hectares have been rehabilitated and are producing more than 1,200 tonnes of rubber per annum.

The director of crop services in the food and agriculture ministry, Francis Ofori, said the second phase involves expanding the project six districts in the Western Region.

He added that the selection was based on favourable climate and soil conditions, the large size of the population in the districts, and high incidence of poverty.