A cross section of the participants with staff of Fidelity Bank and Eco.Business Fund. INSET: Alex Agyei-Amponsah, Director, Commercial & SME, Fidelity Bank
THE DEVELOPMENT arm of Eco.Business Fund, managed by Finance in Motion, in partnership with Fidelity Bank Ghana, has hosted two agricultural summits in Ghana to discuss economical and sustainable solutions to the challenges currently faced by the local poultry sector.
The summits offered more than 100 participants a mixture of trainings and knowledge sharing sessions on access to finance for inputs and feeding, sustainable farm management practices, disease control, insurance, as well as how to navigate the current global uncertainty and impact of climate change.
Dr. Jens Mackensen, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the Eco.Business Fund, said: “The support of the Eco.Business Fund goes beyond access to finance. These summits, co-hosted with Fidelity, demonstrate our commitment to support farmers and industry stakeholders in the country by equipping producers with the skills they need to withstand potential threats to their businesses and adapt to the challenging global environment and climate change.”
Managing Director of Fidelity Bank Ghana, Julian Opuni, also noted that “Ghana’s agribusinesses have a lot of potential to contribute to the country’s economic development. As a local bank, Fidelity Bank has always explored ways of supporting SMEs. It is thus a fulfilling moment for us to see that this journey in supporting agribusinesses has had a smooth take-off with our poultry seminars held with industry players in the sector. We are confident that the lessons from the discussions and presentations will advance the industry and maximise poultry farmers’ returns on investment.”
The summit held in Accra for players in the poultry sector follows a similar one held last month in Sunyani over two days and gathered numerous industry participants such as farmers, experts in animal husbandry, members of GIRSAL and GAIP, insurance companies, agricultural exporters and many more.
The one held in Sunyani had participants drawn from Ashanti, North East, Bono, Bono East, Upper West, Upper East and Savanna regions while the Accra edition had participants from the southern sector of Ghana.
Poultry is the most developed livestock farming in Ghana and plays a vital role in providing the country’s population with poultry meat and eggs. However, it faces considerable domestic challenges, such as the high cost of inputs, diseases, inefficient production methods, inadequate access to the market and poor processing facilities, which are putting many poultry businesses out of business and the country’s food security at risk. Other challenges include competition from cheap imports, and access to affordable credit.
Fidelity Bank, a leading financial institution and a significant player in Ghana’s agricultural business finance space, has supported the sector for many years. The bank believes that preventing a further deterioration in the already fragile sector requires stakeholders to get together to find creative ways of solving the main challenges.