On April 18th, Rebecca Lee Funk presented findings at the monthly agriculture sector working group meeting from a recent analysis of a set of case studies of farmer based organizations in Ghana. Data from 501 farmer groups was collected in 2010 from six regions throughout Ghana. A set of case studies was then conducted in 2011 to examine 24 of these groups in depth in order to better understand the collective activities undertaken by these groups.
Key findings from this analysis include:
- Farmers have learned that in groups they have greater chances of receiving services and freebies
- Apart from those that are engaged in marketing or processing, they are not receiving significant benefits from collective activities; nor are they engaged in viable economic activities
- Producer groups are mostly just groups waiting for things to happen to them – they all want a tractor
- Few have actually become bankable and self-sustained
For more details, the full presentation can be found here. The working paper on this analysis will also be shared on this blog when it is finalized.