MOFA-FSRP POULTRY INTENSIFICATION SCHEME TAKES-OFF
(AS POULTRY FARMERS TAKE DELIVERY OF FIRST BATCH OF DAY-OLD CHICKS)
With an object of revamping the broiler industry, the Ministry of Food & Agriculture (MOFA) is rolling out the first phase of the Poultry Intensification Scheme under the West Africa Food System Resilience Programme (FSRP). To that effect, some selected commercial anchor poultry farmers in the Ashanti Region have taken delivery of about 130,000-day-old chicks - which constitutes their first consignment of day-old chicks for the commencement of the scheme.
Other regions in line for day-old chicks deliveries under the scheme are the Bono, Eastern, Greater Accra, Central and Volta Regions, to contribute to the MOFA-FSRP mission to revamp the poultry industry in Ghana.
BENEFITS
The MOFA-FSRP Poultry Intensification Scheme is being run in phases under World Bank funding, with each beneficiary receiving input credit in the form of about one hundred and sixty thousand (160, 000) day-old chicks, one hundred and eighty (180,000) kilograms of feed, as well as supplies of vaccines, in the first round of allocations. They will also be granted training in best modern practices and climate-smart technologies within the poultry industry. They will further be able to access matching grants to procure equipment to support post-production processing and cold storage. The scheme targets the production of approximately 2 million broiler birds on a yearly basis, under a $12.5m World Bank facility.
ELIGIBILITY
The programme has selected twenty-two (22) commercial anchor farmers nationwide to be supported to produce, process and market 2 million birds annually over the next three years. The criteria for participation in the scheme demands that applicants must have been in poultry (broiler) production, processing and marketing within the last 5 years; must be registered with the Registrar General or other statutory body; must have linkages with small holder farmers; must be in the databases of the District Directorate of Agric of their operational areas; must include at least 10% women and 10% youth in both upstream and downstream of the value chain; and must be compliant with requirements of regulatory bodies like the Environmental Protection Agency, Ghana Fire Service, the Food & Drugs Authority, Ghana Standards Authority and the World Bank.
The scheme will feed into the PFJ 2.0 targeted poultry self-sufficiency output of 400,000 metric tonnes per year by 2028.
ABOUT FSRP
The West Africa Food System Resilience Programme (FSRP) is a World Bank funded program, promoted by ECOWAS for participating countries. It is to strengthen food system risk management, improve the sustainability of the agricultural productive base and harmonize agricultural markets in the West African sub region. Participating countries include Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Chad, Sierra Leone, Togo and Chad. In Ghana, FSRP which is being implemented by the Ministry of Food & Agriculture, is focusing on the intensified production, marketing and consumption of wholesome Rice, Maize, Broiler Poultry, Soyabeans (for the poultry) and Tomatoes.