Press release No.: IFAD/41/08

Rome – 12 September 2008. A $22.33 million loan to the Republic of Ghana from IFAD will increase investment in rural areas to provide economic opportunities, particularly for women.

The total cost of the Northern Rural Growth Programme is US$103.55 million. IFAD, which has initiated and designed the programme, will provide a loan of US$22.33 and a US$0.40 million grant. The programme is co-financed with the African Development Bank, financial institutions and private investors and will run for eight years.

The loan agreement was signed today in Rome by Professor George Gyan Baffour, MP, Deputy Minister for Finance and Economic Planning and Lennart Båge, President of IFAD.

The Northern Rural Growth Programme is aimed at achieving sustainable agricultural and rural livelihoods and food security for the rural poor people, particularly smallholder farmers, rural women and vulnerable groups in Northern Ghana. The specific objective is to develop inclusive and remunerative agricultural and food value chains, from farmer to consumer, such as grains and oilseeds, fruits and vegetables, and animal products. 45,000 households, mostly small-scale farmers, will be directly supported. More than 100,000 households will benefit from investments in infrastructure.

Access to rural financial services will be improved while investment in transport and market infrastructure will reduce post-harvest losses, improve quality and reduce transaction costs. Irrigation development will be supported, improving agricultural production in terms of both quality and quantity. Producer organizations will be strengthened.

By investing in the rural areas of northern Ghana the programme will contribute to increased investments and economic activity, higher farm-gate prices, higher household incomes and improved standards of living, thus reducing poverty and bridging the development divide between the northern regions and the rest of the country.

The programme is a direct response to the three major poverty divides in Ghana: rural-urban, north-south and gender.  

With this project, IFAD will have financed fourteen programmes in Ghana, amounting to a total commitment of US$178.4 million, making Ghana the second largest user of IFAD resources in the region.

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IFAD was created 30 years ago to tackle rural poverty, a key consequence of the droughts and famines of the early 1970s. Since 1978, IFAD has invested more than US$10 billion in low-interest loans and grants that have helped over 300 million very poor rural women and men increase their incomes and provide for their families. IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency. It is a global partnership of OECD, OPEC and other developing countries. Today, IFAD supports more than 200 programmes and projects in 81 developing countries and one territory.