A team from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research – Savanna Agricultural Research Institute (CSIR - SARI) has visited some communities in the north to introduce to them the Partnership for Agricultural Research, Education and Development project and its activities.

The communities visited were Yepala, Jabalpe, Tosinape, Tantuani, all in the Savannah Region, Kalbeong, Yebongo, Nayagnia, Kologo, all in the Upper East Region, and Losse, Tendoma, Dakyie and Wogu in the Upper West Region.

Farmers in those communities were briefed on the concept of Innovation Platforms and the Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) credit system that the project meant to introduce to them to help facilitate value chain linkages and address financial constraints.

Under the project, seed companies have been selected to help educate and train farmers in rice seed production where the farmers will partner with the seed companies to set up demonstration fields in each community and also support project farmers to produce rice seed.

Under the project, the farmers that show most promising will then be selected as out-growers for the seed companies.

Mr Eliasa Krofa, Principal Technician at CSIR-SARI educated community members on the importance of demonstration fields, and advised them to select fields close to busy roads in their respective communities where they would host demonstration fields showcasing new rice technologies from CSIR-SARI.

Mr Desmond Adogoba, Socio Economist at CSIR-SARI also sensitised community members on the VSLA credit managing system the project intended to introduce to them to help farmers manage and build up credit for some of their activities.

Mr Adogoba said “this in the long run will help the project to sustain its gains after exit.”

The current programme, Partnership for Agricultural Research, Education and Development (PAIRED) is in West and Central Africa, funded by the United States Agency for International Development, and designed to undertake the needed restructuring, with the aim of transforming the Conference of Heads of African and French Agricultural Research (CORAF) into a structurally sound and financially stable organization to lead agricultural research and innovation in West and Central Africa.

The specific objective of PAIRED is to enhance the institutional leadership of CORAF in increasing agricultural productivity, which is pursued through three intermediate results that are mutually reinforcing and addressing issues on enabling conditions for sustainable and efficient operation of CORAF as an institution.

CORAF is partnering research institutions such as CSIR-SARI to deliver productivity and welfare-enhancing technologies and practices to farmers in its operational areas.