Canada to support food security and poverty reduction

Canada is to provide $21.5 million to Ghana to help improve food security and reduce poverty, a Canadian member of parliament for Notre-Dame-de-Grâce–Lachine, Marlene Jennings, announced on behalf of the Minister for International Cooperation, Susan Whelan. Jennings, who announced the contribution in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, said the money would be channeled through the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). "Although Ghana has made great strides in reducing poverty, there are still too many Ghanaians whose basic human needs remain unmet," Jennings said. "Agriculture is key to Ghana's economic growth. Canada's contributions to improving food security and strengthening agriculture production and income in Ghana will ensure that the people of Ghana are able to build their own sustainable and prosperous future," Jennings said. Some $12 million will be used over six years in the northern region to support local government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) to build skills of community-driven planning and development, mobilise local communities through NGOs to identify solutions to their food security needs and fund initiatives including agriculture production, small business and off-farm income generation, and health and nutrition education, CIDA reported. Another $5 million will provide budgetary support to reinforce implementation of the poverty reduction strategy in key areas like integration of the strategy into the official budget, public finance management, public sector reform, decentralization and good governance. A further $3 million will be used over five years to provide advisory services to the government to develop an effective public system that responds to the food security issues and needs of the poor. Canada would provide advisors in marketing, agribusiness, agronomy, forestry, and the environment, CIDA said. Another $1.5-million will be contributed to a larger multi-donor fund, managed by the ministry of food and agriculture, to provide grants to farmer-based organizations. "Local farmers and communities in Ghana need to manage their own development for it to be sustainable," Whelan said. "Helping to build a more productive, environmentally-sound agriculture sector that provides economic opportunities for women, small farmers and youth will contribute to the well-being of all Ghanaians. Canada's extensive support for agriculture and rural development is making a difference in the lives of farming families in Ghana."