CNN Central News & Network-ITDC India Epress/ITDC News Delhi: India and Ghana have signed a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen cooperation in agricultural research, education, technology transfer and commercialisation. The agreement was signed between the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and Ghana’s Crops Research Institute (CSIR-CRI) in Accra.
The partnership was formalised in the presence of India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Ghana’s Foreign Affairs Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa. The agreement is part of India’s broader South-South and India-Africa cooperation initiatives in science, technology and development.
The first phase will focus on vegetable crop research, particularly tomatoes. ICAR will support the scaling up of proven agricultural technologies and the introduction of suitable high-yielding tomato lines and varieties to help strengthen domestic tomato production in Ghana.
The agreement also covers processing and value addition of cassava, yam and other tuber crops. Cooperation in post-harvest management will include cold storage, refrigerated transportation, sorting, grading and processing technologies aimed at reducing post-harvest losses.
The MoU provides for exchanges of scientists and technologists, germplasm and breeding materials, scientific information, research methodologies and technical knowledge. Joint research projects and institutional linkages between relevant research centres in the two countries are also envisaged.
Ghana-based Arima Farms Ltd. has been recognised as the commercial partner to CSIR-CRI for specific research and commercialisation activities under the framework. A Joint Working Group comprising representatives of ICAR and CSIR-CRI will oversee implementation and review progress through periodic meetings in New Delhi and Accra.
The partnership aims to strengthen the connection between agricultural research, technology development, capacity building and commercial application, with a focus on supporting sustainable agricultural development and improving farming opportunities in Ghana.
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