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Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: stagnation or a quiet transformation?

Author

Listed:
  • Nazaire Houssou

    (International Food Policy Research Institute, CSIR Campus)

  • Michael Johnson

    (Care International)

  • Shashidhara Kolavalli

    (International Food Policy Research Institute, CSIR Campus)

  • Collins Asante-Addo

    (Johann Heinrich von Thünen Institute)

Abstract

This research was designed to understand better the patterns of agricultural intensification and transformation occurring in Africa south of the Sahara using the Ghanaian case. The paper examines changes in farming systems and the role of various endogenous and exogenous factors in driving the conversion of arable lands to agricultural uses in four villages within two agro-ecologically distinct zones of Ghana: the Guinea Savannah and Transition zones. Using historical narratives and land-cover maps supplemented with quantitative data at regional levels, the research shows that farming has intensified in the villages, as farmers increased their farm size in response to factors such as population growth, market access, and changing rural lifestyle. The overall trend suggests a gradual move toward intensification through increasing use of labor-saving technologies rather than land-saving inputs—a pattern that contrasts with Asia’s path to its Green Revolution. The findings in this paper provide evidence of the dynamism occurring in African farming systems; hence, they point toward a departure from stagnation narratives that have come to prevail in the debate on agricultural transformation and intensification in Africa south of the Sahara. We conclude that it is essential for future research to expand the scope of this work, while policies should focus on lessons learned from these historical processes of genuine change and adaptation.

Suggested Citation

  • Nazaire Houssou & Michael Johnson & Shashidhara Kolavalli & Collins Asante-Addo, 2018. "Changes in Ghanaian farming systems: stagnation or a quiet transformation?," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 35(1), pages 41-66, March.
  • Handle: RePEc:spr:agrhuv:v:35:y:2018:i:1:d:10.1007_s10460-017-9788-6
    DOI: 10.1007/s10460-017-9788-6
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    1. Houssou, Nazaire & Aboagye, Patrick Ohene & Kolavalli, Shashidhara, 2016. "Meeting Ghanaian farmers' demand for a full range of mechanization services," GSSP policy notes 9, International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).
    2. Ellen Mangnus & A.C.M. (Guus) Van Westen, 2018. "Roaming through the Maze of Maize in Northern Ghana. A Systems Approach to Explore the Long-Term Effects of a Food Security Intervention," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-19, October.
    3. Chapoto, A. & Houssou, N. & Asante-Addo, C. & Mabiso, A., 2018. "Can smallholder farmers grow? Perspectives from the rise of indigenous small-scale farmers in Ghana," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 277225, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    4. Jagustović, Renata & Papachristos, George & Zougmoré, Robert B. & Kotir, Julius H. & Kessler, Aad & Ouédraogo, Mathieu & Ritsema, Coen J. & Dittmer, Kyle M., 2021. "Better before worse trajectories in food systems? An investigation of synergies and trade-offs through climate-smart agriculture and system dynamics," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 190(C).
    5. Katherine A. Snyder & Emmanuel Sulle & Deodatus A. Massay & Anselmi Petro & Paschal Qamara & Dan Brockington, 2020. "“Modern” farming and the transformation of livelihoods in rural Tanzania," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(1), pages 33-46, March.
    6. Jessie K. Luna, 2020. "‘Pesticides are our children now’: cultural change and the technological treadmill in the Burkina Faso cotton sector," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(2), pages 449-462, June.
    7. Lefore, N. & Giordano, Meredith & Ringler, C. & Barron, J., "undated". "Sustainable and equitable growth in farmer-led irrigation in Sub-Saharan Africa: what will it take?," Papers published in Journals (Open Access) H049101, International Water Management Institute.

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