Scale up investment in soybeans production to drive economic growth – Prof. Adjei-Nsiah

 The government has been urged to scale up its investment in the production of soy­beans, especially in the Northern Region, as it has the potential to drive economic growth.

Apart from soybeans having the potential of driving economic growth, a former Head, Forest and Horticultural Crops Research Centre, Kade, Professor Samuel Adjei-Nsiah, said that it also had the potential to create employment and enhance food security.

Prof. Adjei-Nsiah also stated that this at an inaugural lecture at the University of Ghana (UG), Legon, on Thursday, on the topic, “Bean there, Done that: Unleash­ing the Potential of Soybean in Contributing to Poverty Reduction in the Northern Region.”

He bemoaned the challenges that soybeans farmers faced due to low soil fertility, climate variability, limited adoption yield-enhancing technologies, and limited access to mechanisation services, which had accounted to the low produc­tion of soybeans in the Northern Region.

Additionally, he again expressed concern about the quantity of soybeans that were exported from Ghana to other countries, both official and unofficially, through the porous nature of the country’s boarders.

“In 2023 alone, about 47,230 metric tonnes of soybeans was exported to five countries, namely, the United States of America, India, Turkey, Canada, and Sin­gapore, through official channels, while about twice of the figure was exported through unofficial channels,” Prof. Adjei-Nsiah revealed.

“Again, about 72 per cent of the export went to the USA, yet the USA produces 100,000 million metric tonnes of soybeans annual­ly. So why should they then come and take the few that we produce,” he lamented.

Prof. Adjei-Nsiah explained that the soybeans produced by coun­tries such as the USA were mostly genetically modified (GMO) soybeans, while Ghana produced organic and non-GMO soybeans.

According to Prof. Adjei-Nsiah, countries like the USA processed their produced GMO soybeans and exported it to Ghana, while Ghana, on the other hand, export­ed her organic soybeans to those countries, with Ghanaian farmers not receiving the premium price.

He, therefore, stressed the need for Ghana to consume the organic soybeans she produced and should not export it to countries like the USA.

Prof. Adjei-Nsiah indicated that the soybeans could serve as an import substitute for the country and could also be used to produce poultry feed and feed for other animals.

Fiurthermore, Prof. Adjei-Nsi­ah stated that he and his research team, over the past ten years, had enhanced soybeans production in the Northern Region through capacity training programmes for soybeans farmers as well as government and private extension agents.

He added that he and his re­search team, through participatory research and on-farm trials, had improved soybeans varieties that were drought-tolerant, high-yield­ing, and resistant to common diseases.

Moreover, Prof. Adjei-Nsiah also said that his research team had provided smallholder farmers with real-time agronomic advice, weather updates, and market information through the utilisation of Information Communication Technology (ICT) tools.

The Vice-Chancellor of the UG, Legon, Prof. Nana Aba Appiah Amfo, commended Prof. Ad­jei-Nsiah and his research team for enhancing soybean production in the Northern Region through their research.

 BY BENJAMIN ARC­TON-TETTEY

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