Norway Expands Soybean Market Access in Ghana
A €3 million initiative targeting 10,000 smallholder farmers, especially women, aims to strengthen Ghana’s soybean value chain and link farmers to global markets through coordinated stakeholder engagement.
Norway has committed €3 million to strengthen Ghana’s soybean value chain through the Making Agrifood Markets Accessible programme, improving market access for smallholder farmers across six regions.
The three-year initiative, launched in Accra, targets 10,000 smallholder farmers, with 60% being women, aiming to generate 20,750 jobs and support six SMEs in connecting farmers to structured markets. IDH leads implementation, coordinating policy dialogue with AGRA while IITA provides agronomy and climate-smart extension services. YARA contributes input supply and crop nutrition support to boost productivity.
The programme builds on previous efforts that strengthened links between small and medium enterprises, farmers and other stakeholders. Despite soybean’s growing role in Ghana’s agriculture — supporting animal feed production, food security and women’s incomes — farmers continue to face limited access to finance, quality inputs, mechanisation, extension services and fair markets, constraints the new initiative seeks to address through targeted partnerships and systemic improvements.
Once fully implemented, the programme will enable more Ghanaian soybean farmers to participate in international value chains, increasing their incomes and contributing to rural economic development through improved market linkages and sustainable agrifood system transformation.
