How innovation is turning dry seasons into harvest seasons in Ghana
Northern Ghana is a dry zone, with a rainy season from May to October, and a dry season from November to April. During the dry season, very few people can farm, which means families don’t get the nutrition they need.
But, farming in the dry season is possible, with the right innovation!
Thanks to generous iDE Canada donors, the Polak Fund awarded a grant to a group of iDE Ghana staff and female farmers.
The grant was used to test a rainfall harvesting system. This system collects water in the rainy season, to use in the dry season — meaning they can eat fresh produce and earn income from farming all year-round!
The group chose to test on land considered bad for farming, because that’s often the only type of land available to women.
With the collected rainwater, they grew cucumbers and okra, harvesting 1,673 kgs. That’s over a thousand kilograms of food for them and their community to eat during the dry season.
And because they had freedom to innovate, it sparked even more ideas to earn income!
The water collection system — raised metal sheets that funnel into a gutter and then into holding tanks — doubles as protection for anything underneath. The team decided to use this space for a platform to dry produce, which extends its shelf life.
They also started raising chickens and fish. The chickens produced 57 crates of eggs, and the fish provide a source of protein and extra income too, while their tanks hold even more water for irrigation.