agrl_innovations_in_ssa.pdf?utm_content=buffercb41d&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

household incomes have risen by an average of 15 percent as a result of garlic production. This
has made a significant contribution to poverty reduction among garlic-producing households
(World Bank, 2006).
New or unresolved challenges. There remains an ongoing need for research to be more closely
integrated into garlic value chains so that production and postharvest processing constraints
are quickly resolved. For instance, farmers still face pest and disease problems so resistant
varieties or management systems that reduce their incidence are required to ensure future
productivity can be sustained. At the same time there remains an on-going need to ensure
access to inputs and improve soil management practices.
Lessons learned for scaling up. Access to an export market has been a driving force for
the development of the garlic industry, with access enhanced by export through FairTrade
agreements enjoyed by organic garlic production. Ensuring long-term sustainability requires
close coordination and cooperation of stakeholders in the value chain, particularly with regard
to research so that production problems can be addressed as they emerge.
Ghana’s pineapple industry
This case study concerns the rehabilitation of
the pineapple industry after loss of valuable
export markets to Europe as new country
producers provided sweeter varieties
favoured by consumers. This resulted in
loss of foreign earnings and many farmers
stopped production. This situation prompted
Government and donor intervention as part
of a national economic recovery programme,
involving multiple stakeholders in the
public and private sectors supported by NGOs and international agencies. Pineapple
productivity has now recovered and is making an important contribution to significant
poverty reduction in pineapple-growing areas, with farmers reporting a 10 percent
increase in household income levels.
Initial context: Although pineapples were grown during both colonial and post-colonial periods,
by the early 1970s the crop had largely disappeared. It initially recovered during the 1980s,
with three types of export companies dominating the industry, larger producer–processors
with a network of smallholder producers, processing companies with their own plantations,
and smaller production companies with a smallholder production base.
This initial recovery of the pineapple industry from local to export production resulted from
Government’s Economic Recovery Programme (ERP) aimed at increasing foreign currency
earnings. This required businesses to export commodities in order to earn foreign exchange to
finance their operations. The recovery was due to favourable climatic conditions for pineapple
The case studies: West Africa 67