USADF Signs Three Grants In Support of Grassroots Groups in Ghana:

WASHINGTON - August 20, 2009  

WASHINGTON, D.C. – August 20, 2009 – The United States African Development Foundation (USADF) has signed three grants to benefit community groups in Ghana.  The grants will benefit Christian Mothers’ Association-Ghana (CMA), Eden Tree Vegetable Processing, and Ghana Organic Agriculture Network (GOAN).

After signing the grants, USADF President Lloyd Pierson stated, “USADF works at the grassroots level to support a wide array of grassroots groups.  The three grants will support three very different groups to create jobs and generate incomes.”

Located in Damongo, Northern Region, CMA promotes the socio-economic well being of women through the harvesting and processing of shea nuts.  They then sell the nuts to Naasakle Limited, another USADF grantee who in turn processes the nuts into shea products for sale to the United States,.  The eighteen month grant will finance the renovation of the office space, development of a business plan, the purchase a motorcycle, training in environmental standards for harvesting, and working capital.

Eden Tree is a fruit, vegetable, and herb processing company based in Accra.  The company would like to take advantage of the market demand from local supermarkets and hotels but is limited by inadequate skills to link to markets, lack of working capital, and outdated technology.  The four year grant will fund training, farm development, working capital, and new equipment.

GOAN provides technical services and training in organic farming to poor smallholder farmers in Kumasi.  By working to promote organic agriculture, GOAN focuses on ecological sustainability, increasing agricultural productivity, food security, and income for smallholder farmers.   The eighteen month grant will fund a business plan, accounting needs, and train farmers in agronomic practices and organic cultivation.  Specifically,
80 farmers from Tepa will be mobilized and register as two co-operatives and 720 farmers will be trained in market production and planning.

USADF established programming in Ghana in 1984.  Ghana’s current portfolio stands at twenty-six investment projects totaling nearly $5 million dollars.  For more information about the portfolio, please visit the country’s quick source page at http://www.adf.gov/USADF-QuickSourceCountryPortfolioPage-Ghana.htm .

The United States African Development Foundation (USADF) is a United States Government agency dedicated to expanding access to economic opportunity in Africa. Currently USADF operates in 20 African nations.  Over the past 25 years, USADF has funded nearly 1,500 projects representing in excess of $150 million in support of African enterprises and local African communities.  For more information on USADF, its programs and application guidelines, visit www.usadf.gov.
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