OCP and Ghana’s Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on Sept. 7 aimed at developing the fertilizer value chain in Ghana as part of the government of Ghana’s newly-designed Fertilizer Expansion Programme (GFEP).
The two are also exploring opportunities to develop the fertilizer production sector of Ghana, according to a joint statement. In particular, the parties will explore the feasibility of setting up a fertilizer production plant that could combine natural gas from Ghana and phosphate from Morocco to produce customized high-quality and affordable fertilizers.
“The fertilizer value chain development will further include the introduction of fertilizer blending to allow the production of customized mineral fertilizers that will meet soil- and crop-specific nutrient requirements at affordable prices to farmers,” said the parties.
“In line with GFEP, the fertilizer value chain will be improved at the farmer level, with targeted farmer-centric and agronomic initiatives, providing appropriate inputs to farmers and supporting them with adequate training, soil mapping, field trials, and fertilizer formula development,” they said.
Fertilizer consumption by Ghana’s farmers currently averages at 12kg per hectare, which is considered among the lowest in the world, according to the statement. It is also far below the target of the Abuja Declaration on Fertilizer for the African Green Revolution, which is aimed at increasing fertilizer use from 8.0 kg to 50.0 kg of nutrients per hectare by 2015.