GhanaVeg in collaboration with the Crop Research Institute of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in Kumasi, organised a day’s forum to bring researchers and vegetable sector players together to touch base and share ongoing research interventions to ease prevalent situation that challenge the sector. The forum was used to address research gaps as well as discover possible solutions to tackle some challenges the sector faces.
At the end of the section, such challenges will be factored for support under the GhanaVeg Research and Development Funds. The Funds have been designed to aid private organizations and their research partners to collaborate in solving real life’s challenges through innovative research ideas which will transform the sector.
The day’s event which coincides with the 15th Annual General Meeting of the Ghana Institute of horticulturalists is themed “Promoting Food Security in a Sustainable Environment in Ghana”.
The Program Leader of GhanaVeg, Mr. Joep van den Broek said in facilitating food security in Ghana, research is relevant. He indicated that vegetables can provide essential vitamins, proteins and calcium needed in the body for growth. He explained that, current challenges such as Phytosanitation, soil and climatic change can be reduce if researchers and key players in the sector collaborate in finding practical on-field solutions. “We at  GhanaVeg want to provide a more efficient production system by supporting front-runner businesses with innovative ideas, increase productivity and to create a demand driving system towards the consumption of healthy and quality vegetables in Ghana. Awareness creation is also key to us and that will be our focus towards the end of the year.”
He also used the platform to announce an Agronomy Training of Trainers (ToT) which will be organised  jointly by GhanaVeg  and Agronomist from the Centre for Development Innovation (CDI) Wageningen UR in the Netherlands to tackle issues of agroecosystem in vegetable production. The two day on-field training will commence October 14-15.