Transforming land and livelihoods in Ghana

The project

Through this project — known as the Northern Ghana integrated development project — we are working with farmers in Northern and Upper East Ghana to restore and protect the environment, helping people living here to thrive. Farmers will learn how to sustainably restore and protect their land, benefiting the entire community for now, and for the future.

Through processing and selling tree products, community members will increase their incomes. They will also learn about the benefits of social protection schemes, like savings groups.

Why is this project needed?

In the northern regions of Ghana, over half of the population live in poverty and rely on farmland for food and income. But the climate crisis is making rainfall unpredictable and drought and floods are becoming more frequent and severe.

Farmers are forced to overuse their land in an attempt to grow enough crops to eat and sell. As a result, soil that was once fertile is no longer able to support life. This means that many people are facing hunger and poverty.

A women in Upper East Ghana tending to crops on her farmland.

Our aims

The project aims to support farmers in the northern regions of Ghana to restore and protect the land. The project is also supporting women — who often have limited opportunities to earn an income — to process and sell tree products like shea butter.

Farmers will learn sustainable agriculture techniques, and develop ‘Climate Adaption Plans’ to help tackle the effects of the climate crisis. Women’s farmer groups will also be supported with access to social protection schemes like savings groups and disaster relief funds.

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farmers will be trained in sustainable agriculture
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people will be supported to improve their incomes
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women's farmer groups will be established

Our impact

Due to the COVID-19 global health crisis, we’ve had to adapt our project to ensure that we keep the people we work with safe and well. To support communities during the pandemic, relief items like rice, face masks, and soap, were distributed to 4,000 women. We also helped raise awareness of coronavirus and how its spread can be prevented.

Over 1,500 people received training on social protection schemes like savings groups. Some community members also started to enhance their shea butter, honey, and farm enterprises.

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people educated on social protection schemes
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women received pandemic relief items
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civil society organisations have started training

Our partners

We are grateful to the EU for funding this project and to our implementing partners, ActionAid Ghana, and URBANET.

This project is funded by the European Union via ActionAid Ghana. This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of Tree Aid and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union.