The Navrongo farming enclave in the Upper East Region has emerged as Ghana’s most productive rice zone, recording a yield of 5.9 tonnes per hectare, nearly double the national average, according to the Managing Director of the Irrigation Company of Upper Region (ICOUR).
Dominic A. Anarigide credited a combination of modern farming techniques, improved farm management, and targeted agricultural partnerships for the breakthrough, speaking in an interview with Bolgatanga-based A1 Radio. “Navrongo now produces 5.9 tonnes per hectare, the highest in the country, thanks to the adoption of modern farming techniques and proper farm management,” he said.
National rice yield data shows Ghana’s average has ranged between 2.8 and 4.0 tonnes per hectare over the past decade, making Navrongo’s 5.9-tonne figure a significant outlier and a marker of what targeted irrigation and agronomy support can achieve at the farm level.
Anarigide pointed to the Ghana Rice Improvement Project, implemented in partnership with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), as a key driver of the productivity gains. The initiative introduced improved seed varieties, precision nutrient management, and structured extension services for farmers within the ICOUR scheme.
The Tono Irrigation Scheme at the heart of ICOUR’s operations spans a gross area of 3,860 hectares near Navrongo, with a developed irrigable area of 2,490 hectares. The scheme currently channels roughly 98 percent of its cultivated land to rice production, supporting a farmer population of approximately 2,500 spread across nine villages.
ICOUR’s scheme now has over 4,000 registered farmers, of whom approximately 2,885 are engaged in rice farming, drawing on water from both the Vea Dam in Bolgatanga and the Tono Dam in Navrongo to sustain year-round cultivation.
The government has also moved to sustain this momentum, with ICOUR set to distribute 20,000 kilograms of rice seeds and 3,000 bags of fertiliser to about 1,000 farmers under its Happy Project, part of the Mahama administration’s broader Feed Ghana Programme.
The Navrongo yield milestone arrives at a propitious moment for Ghana’s food security agenda. The African Development Bank (AfDB), in partnership with the Africa Rice Centre (AfricaRice) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), launched an 8.5 million dollar programme in February 2026 targeting 14 West African countries including Ghana, with a goal of boosting rice yields from two to seven tonnes per hectare by 2029. Navrongo already sits within that target band, offering a replicable model for other regions still lagging behind.
Rice contributes an estimated 15 percent to Ghana’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), yet the country continues to import significant volumes annually to meet domestic demand, making productivity breakthroughs in schemes like ICOUR central to any credible import-substitution strategy.
