Agriculture Culture

My yam farm.

I have said it before, and I will certainly say it again: agriculture is key in the development of Ghana (and I believe in many other countries of a similar economic demographic).  It's a skill that so many of us possess; one that we have inherited from our mothers and fathers.  It's a job that requires no application and a business that demands as little or as much start-up capital as one can afford.  This is not to say it's an easy job.  However, it is a very accessible job-- one that can efficiently bring economic equality to individuals and families throughout all of our regions.  For exactly this reason, my non-profit organization (Clash International) has chosen agriculture as it's first focus in Ghana.  We believe empowering individuals to achieve their own financial stability is the gateway necessary for these individuals to, in turn, develop  their own societies in a manner that is most suitable to their needs.  We've chosen agriculture, because it's something so many Ghanians (roughly 65%) already do in some capacity.  There are also a few specific (and resolvable) reasons that they are not already as effective as they could be.  These reasons are the cornerstones of our program.  Today I want to talk about the few that fall under the umbrella of "agriculture culture."
In Ghana, each people group has their own traditional farming practices.  For some people, this means they only farm one kind of crop (i.e. only yams, cassava, maize, etc.).  For others, this means they only farm using the seeds that have been passed down to them by their parents and grandparents.  On top of this, cultural traditions often gendered crops; meaning only women were "supposed to" farm groundnuts, or only men were "supposed to" farm yams.  Perhaps each of these tenants made sense in their historical context; however, today they simply stifle the efficacy of farmers and their farms.  They limit the quantity, quality, and diversity of our produce, as well as the revenue that is associated with each of these things.
There is also a level of mob mentality that goes on in Ghana's agricultural sphere, particularly in the more rural communities.  There is very much a sense of "We plant at this time," "We harvest at this time," and "We sell at this time."  In some communities, this schedule is maintained to an extent by the political hierarchy; however, it is primarily imposed by the people (and their form of peer pressure) themselves.  You can imagine the effect this has on the market, as well as the value of their individual crops.  There is little concept of an individual carving out his or her own edge on the market. I have seen countless yams harvested all at once only to spoil weeks later in the house, because the supply was simply far beyond the demand.  Weeks after that, the price of yams leaps, but there are no more yams.  They are all gone by this point-- sold at a much lower price or spoiled.
When it comes to animal rearing, there seems to be a culturally-enforced, hands-off approach.  While I can't really trace the origin of this style, I believe it to be fostered by the fact that many identify as a farmer first and an animal caretaker second.  People are rarely willing to invest any time into the care of their animals.  They seldom care or fence them.  They simply allow them to roam and graze freely (with everyone else' animals into homes, roads, public toilets, and refuse dumps) and then sell them when the time arises.  This almost gives the allusion of "free money."  They sell the animal and earn a profit without really doing any work-- no cleaning, building, or food preparation.  However, it's truly a missed financial opportunity, where a slightly more specific effort could yield a much greater profit.
This is by no means an extensive list of the agricultural practices that are truly hindering our farmers; however, it does touch on many of the larger points and many of the areas we try to emphasize at Clash.  And while I believe that it is important to maintain our culture and identity as Ghanaians and as our various people groups, I also believe culture to be dynamic.  While our identity need not change, our practices may evolve and adapt to our circumstances in the name of efficiency and growth.