A tuber for Ghanaian development: Influence of agro-processing activities in the lives and livelihoods of cassava farmers.

Sammanfattning

The study explores the influence of agro-processing activities in the lives and livelihoods of cassava farmers in five communities located in four districts in the Ashanti and Volta regions in Ghana. The qualitative research is done by performing thirty-six semi-structured interviews to farmers and stakeholders along the cassava value chain. The research concludes that agro-processing activities allowed cassava farmers to generate additional income and later invest it to improve their lives and livelihoods and those of their household members. Specifically, the investigation indicated that the additional income was predominantly generated through two channels: First, benefiting all farmers, through the influence of agro-processing activities in the use of new farming technologies, farm-size increases, and improved marketing opportunities. Second, benefiting those farmers who were processing cassava, through the additional income obtained from selling agro-processed products as opposed to raw cassava. In addition, the study found that the social development area in which farmers invested the most was education, followed by health, and infrastructure. As well, the research revealed that agro-processing activities positively influenced increasing opportunities for women and development of partnerships.