Mr Kwamina Duker, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Development Bank Ghana (DBG), has called on stakeholders in the financial sector and cassava value chain to step up their collaboration to help promote the cassava sector.
According to the CEO of DBG, his institution is ready to support bankable and sustainable projects to promote the growth of the cassava value chain to boost the Ghanaian economy.
“We will collaborate with key stakeholders to help fund and support businesses to grow the cassava value chain,” Mr Duker said during a stakeholder’s forum on cassava in Accra.
Mr Duker noted DBG would help unlock the potentials of the sector, stressing “DBG will do this through our holistic approach to combine finance, capacity building and market development.”
“We will also provide thought leadership on policy development to stimulate a conducive environment for agri-business. We hope that you will embark on this journey with us and together we will see a real transformation for cassava businesses in Ghana that also translate into the economic fortunes of our country.”
Kwamina Duker
Mr Duker asserted that DBG’s mandate js to grow the private sector and unlock growth for the economy, by working constructively with stakeholders to address the finance gap for long term capital in a catalytic way. In addition, he said the bank will deliver a beneficial Ghanaian credit market that works for all stakeholders sustainably.
“DBG focuses on four key sectors: agribusiness, manufacturing, Information Communication Technology (ICT) and high value services. The importance of unlocking value within key agri-value chains cannot be understated. So, that explains why we are here today as a sponsor for this event.”
Kwamina Duker
Practical suggestions to Address the Challenges of the Sector
Mr Duker, thus, entreated the players in the cassava value chain to come out with practical suggestions and solutions to address the challenges of the sector.
The forum was hosted by the Ghana Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agriculture Lending (GIRSAL), in partnership with Development Bank Ghana (DBG) and the Ghana Industrial Cassava Stakeholder Platform (GICSP).
The maiden Cassava Multi-Stakeholder forum was aimed at congregating participating cassava stakeholders and value chain actors to better understand the challenges in cassava production, processing, and marketing and how they can be mitigated for financing.
GICSP stated that cassava is the most important root crop in Ghana and more than 70 per cent of farmers in Ghana produce cassava, and the sector contributes about 22 per cent of agricultural Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Ghana Among Top Five Cassava Producers in Africa
GICSP further stated that Ghana ranks among the top five cassava producers in Africa, with an annual average production of 16 million metric tonnes with at least 18 varieties of improved cassava produced in commercial quantities for various uses.
The CEO of GIRSAL, Mr Kwesi Korboe, on his part, urged the players in the forum to use the opportunity to demystify the cassava value chain and come out with solutions to best position the industry.
Mr Korboe observed that the cassava sector continued to be plagued with challenges, in spite of measures pursued by the government and development partners for the past 20 years to revamp the sector. “I hope today, we will come out with practical solutions to address the challenges facing the sector,” Mr Korboe said.
The Chairperson of the GICSP, Mr Chris Quarshie, in his remarks said, cassava posed huge potentials for the country, as there is huge demand for cassava and its derivatives such as ethanol, starch on the world market.
“Cassava derivatives such as ethanol, cassava flour, starch and sweeteners produced locally can reduce our imports in the short term by over $400 million annually and increase our exports by another $200 million, rising to $500 million in the medium term.”
Mr Chris Quarshie
Mr Chris Quarshie disclosed that the country currently produces 18 million metric tonnes of cassava a year and 10 million tonnes are in storage under the ground. He noted that cassava contributed over $2 billion to the Vietnam economy in 2021.
“If Vietnam can export over $1.5 billion in exports from a national cassava production of 10 million tones, what can we do with our over 10 million tonnes in storage? This is especially poignant when we also consider the following.”
Mr Chris Quarshie
