Mango project receives assistance

THE Export Development and Investment Fund (EDIF) has partnered the Adventist Development and Relief Agency, ADRA Ghana, to provide technical support for EDIF-supported mango projects in the savannah zone.
The partnership will help promote large-scale farming in the assigned areas that comprise the northern part of the Volta Region, Brong Ahafo, Upper East, Upper West and northern regions.
The two parties have consequently signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to actualise the programme.
According to the acting Chief Executive Officer of EDIF, Dr Abdul- Nashiru Issahaku, the collaboration is to capitalise on the expertise of ADRA in the provision of technical assistance to achieve the targeted results of the project, as it seeks to become a source of raw mango for export, add value to locally produced products and generate foreign exchange for the economy through exports.
He said there was the need to partner institutions with expertise to achieve results; hence, their decision to engage ADRA in the project.
ADRA, he explained, would assess the technical state of the projects, determine needed resources and make further recommendations, assess the needs of the 72 beneficiaries of the project and provide training and technical skills and relevant support for the project to achieve results.
He also noted that in terms of value addition to produced fruits, the company would inaugurate a facility to provide financial resources to processors very soon.
The Director for Agriculture and Food Security Programmes at ADRA Ghana, Mr Samuel Asante-Mensah, said the company was delighted to partner EDIF to embark on this project, because of the importance of tree crops to farmers in terms of yielded incomes.
He, therefore, pledged the company’s support to ensure the success of the programme by increasing the income of beneficiaries and foreign exchange inflow into the country through the export of the mangoes.
Their support, he said, would include site selection, land preparation, planting, fertilisation, pruning, pest control and harvesting.
According to him, there is a high demand in Europe and the Middle East for both processed and unprocessed mangoes, so  the project is needed to produce beyond local consumption and for export.
The EDIF’s mission is to enhance the economic growth of Ghana through the provision of funds on concessionary terms for the development and promotion of the country’s export.