Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Laura Beckwith
Kuldeep Chaware
Federika Coll
Lizzie Cowan
Bahia Egeh
Karimi Gitonga
Augustin Guilbert-Billetdoux
Sofia Musi
Diana Salazar
Alexandra Valerio
Tina Ziegler
June 2009
Abbreviations 1
Executive Summary 2
Acknowledgements 4
Research Objectives 5
Definition and Criteria 6
Methodology 7
Limitations 8
Theoretical Framework 9
Site History 11
Current Situation 13
Hypothesis 1 14
Strategy 1: Community Led Composting 15
Hypothesis 2 20
Strategy 2: Vegetable Box Pilot Project 21
Hypothesis 3 26
Strategy 3: Knowledge Sharing Networks for Partcipatory Research 27
Hypothesis 4 32
Conclusions 34
Recommendations 37
References 38
Appendix A: Monitoring and Impact Assessment 39
Appendix B: Methodology Schedule 45
Appendix C: Limitations 48
Appendix D: Webs of Institutionalization 49
Appendix E: Focus Group Transcripts 52
Appendix F: Transect Walk Report 68
Appendix G: Questionnaires 70
Appendix H: Interview Transcripts 76
The following report details the research findings and goes on to suggest a number of ways current
practices at the Dzorwulu site can be made more sustainable. The research used the Sustainable Urban
Livelihoods Framework to facilitate the analysis. This framework sees poverty as a situation of insecurity
not as a lack of material wealth and shows how the urban poor use a wide variety of assets (financial, social,
human, natural, physical and political) to decrease their vulnerability. As such, in the framework and in the
proposed interventions, the farmers themselves are not passive recipients but key actors.
1. Community Composting
This project would see waste collected from neighbouring communities being used as an input on the
Dzorwulu site. Providing compost to the farmers at a low price would solve the problems they are currently
experiencing due to the increasing cost and difficulty in acquiring poultry manure as well as the depletion of
the soil which is resulting from the overuse of chemical fertilizers. It would also contribute to a reduction in
the amount of uncollected waste thereby improving the health and sanitation conditions of the low-income
neighbourhoods in the area.
This strategy relates directly to the need for improved knowledge sharing between farmers and
institutions in order to study and promote techniques such as increasing biodiversity. It builds on pre-
existing relationships between the farmers and research bodies such as IWMI and the University of Ghana
but emphasises the role of the farmer in producing and transmitting knowledge as well as focusing on
sustainable practices.
By implementing these three strategies, farmers will be able to increase their level of security and make their
practices more sustainable. This will be positive not only for the individual farmers but also for the whole city
of Accra, which benefits in many ways from the practice of urban agriculture.
This work would not have been possible without the support of numerous individuals and organizations.
First and foremost, we are indebted to IWMI, our partners and hosts, who did so much for us in terms of
logistical support as well as providing insight and guidance. A special thank you is also extended to Sowah,
our very capable facilitator and translator.
Similarly, the staff at the DPU were invaluable in providing academic advice and of course, the organization
of the field work.
Furthermore, we are grateful to all of the many representatives of institutions in Accra who gave their time
and energy to contribute to this research. Without these perspectives our findings would have been limited
and much less relevant.
Last but not least, we thank the Dzorwulu farmers who welcomed us onto their site and taught us many
things, not only about urban agriculture but also about becoming development practitioners.
The research team was given the task of assessing the current practices of urban agriculture in the Dzorwulu
area of Accra, Ghana and recommending strategic interventions that could help the farmers make a
transition to “sustainable urban agriculture” (See Definition and Criteria on page 6).
In order to effectively complete this assignment, the team understood their primary objective to be the
following:
Support Sustainable Urban Livelihoods through promoting and enhancing Sustainable Urban Agriculture in
Dzorwulu and Accra by recommending appropriate strategic interventions
To do this, five objectives were defined to guide the research. The objectives, listed below, provided the
structure by which the information in the following report was collected and analysed.
The research team aimed to suggest interventions to use and expand the farmers’ assets to help them
transition to sustainable urban agriculture. For the purposes of this research, sustainable urban agriculture
was defined as:
Farming (crop cultivation, animal rearing, fish farming, etc.) within urban and peri-urban areas based on
equal consideration of four pillars of sustainability (environmental, economic, political and social), which is
appropriate to the local context and guarantees urban food security in the long-term.
The following criteria, based on the four pillars, were identified and used to assess the existing situation in
Dzorwulu as well as the proposed strategies:
Pre-field Visit:
During the first phase a systematic review of secondary data
to determine a diagnosis of the current situation and context
was carried out. It was followed by causal and context
Relational Analysis
analyses in order to construct hypotheses in accordance with
the Research Objectives. Several tools were used, such as:
Limitations
The main limitation of the research was the short time
spent in the field in Accra. Although it is impossible to
understand the complexities of relationships in only two
weeks, the team has attempted to confirm as much as
possible their findings through secondary literature and by
soliciting feedback from individuals and institutions well-
versed in the intricacies of the Dzorwulu site. Despite this
shortcoming, it is hoped that this work will bring a fresh
perspective to this case study.
Market Interviews
Another important limitation was that most of the
Dzorwulu farmers did not speak English. This limited the
number of interviews we were able to carry out due to the
need for a translator. It also had a negative influence on the
realization of focus groups, since the farmers that did speak
English sometimes monopolised the activity and might
have altered the responses of others.
This project viewed the promotion of sustainable urban agriculture through the lens of the Sustainable
Urban Livelihoods Framework (Meikle, et al., 2001) in order to highlight how urban agriculture is a being
used by the urban poor to meet their short and long-term objectives and how this strategy can be
supported and strengthened. The Sustainable Livelihoods model approaches poverty as not just being
a lack of wealth but also as a position of insecurity in many aspects. The poorest members of society are
especially vulnerable to external shocks and stresses and call on a number of different strategies to be able
to cope with these pressures. (See Figure 2 on page 10 for an analysis of the current situation in Dzorwulu
from a SUL perspective).
The framework views the urban poor as having a number of assets on which they use to improve their
security and sustain their livelihoods. Thus, a successful livelihoods strategy should be seen as a way to
expand these assets. The strategic interventions which will be outlined in this report will expand the assets
of the Dzorwulu farmers in order to increase their ability to withstand external shocks and stresses and
decrease their vulnerability. See Figure 1 below.
1970s
The site first began at the end of the 1970s as a Ministry
of Food and Agriculture model farm. After the project
was terminated some of the MoFA employees remained
and continued to farm the land while outsiders also
came and occupied vacant land for farming. Some of the
original MoFA employees continue to farm on the site
today. During the 1970s only organic fertilizer such as Location of Dzorwulu in Accra
poultry manure was used. The soil quality was good and
the stream was cleaner, partly due to fewer residential housing in the area.
1980s
In the 1980s, the influx of new farmers continued
through recruitment of farming helpers who arrived
through family/social connections and worked under
the people occupying the land. The 1980s saw the
introduction of chemical fertilizers to the site and the
construction of the ponds now used to store both stream
and piped water.
2000s
In 2000 the Dzorwulu Vegetable Farmer’s Association was formed and registered with the Department of
Cooperatives in 2002. In Dzorwulu today there are around thirty males and three females, with all but three
males part of the Association.
Vegetables are cultivated under intensive irrigation and there is a high degree of seasonality to produce.
An informal agreement with the VRA to use the land exists but farmers do not have any legal agreement
to secure their presence in the area. Nevertheless, a perception of secure land tenure is shared by both the
farmers and government institutions such as MoFA and the Ministry of Lands, Forestry and Mines.
This site also benefits from the strength of the aforementioned Farmers’ Association, which helps the farmers
coordinate their efforts, access training and services and collectively purchase equipment and inputs. The
farmers have also participated in numerous research projects with IWMI, the University of Ghana and others
which has helped improve their knowledge and practices. Although these relationships are valuable there is
still opportunity to improve the positive impact they may have (See Strategy 3 on page 27).
Some of the challenges which face the Dzorwulu farmers are a lack of reliable, affordable, and clean water
sources, increasing difficulty in accessing fertilizers and limited means to expand their production either
through acquiring more land or improving their terms of trade. These concerns will be further elaborated in
the following section and some possible strategies to address them will be offered.
From the review of secondary data, it was found that the waste management system in Accra is unable
to remove all of the waste that is currently generated. This was confirmed by the Waste Management
Department (WMD) as well as Zoomlion, the private contractor responsible for waste collection in the
neighbourhoods around the study site. The WMD added that approximately 25% of waste remains
uncollected or is disposed of informally by dumping in drains and streams or by burning. Waste
management is very expensive for the city but if it is neglected can cause extensive health problems.
From the farmer’s perspective the main issue is access to an affordable and reliable source of fertilizer. Where
poultry manure used to fill this requirement, farmers are currently struggling because poultry farms have
been relocated to the peri-urban area increasing its cost and causing difficulties in transportation to the site.
Partnerships with research institutions result in higher quality compost and an improved ability to
build human capacity.
When local communities have ownership over the project, they receive more community buy-in and
show better results
House-to-house waste collection for a small fee plus compost selling have been able to cover
necessary financial costs when the local community is actively involved in the project
Problem
Given the findings discussed above, the challenge is to design a program which would create an affordable
source of fertilizer for farmers, help to rehabilitate the land while taking into account the need for
institutional support for the farmers to provide training and resources to help them integrate compost into
their farming practices. If implemented in the surrounding low-income communities (such as Kotobabi)
with the participation of the community-members, a composting program could have positive social and
environmental impacts such as creating jobs, removing uncollected waste and decreasing transportation
costs for waste diverted from landfill.
Explanation of Strategy
16
ESD Field Trip Report 2009
Action Plan
This strategy has the potential to be implemented immediately as it is based in the current context of the
farm and the community. It will take up to 2 to 3 years to be fully implemented. If successful, it has the
potential to be replicated in other areas. Please note that in the following Action Plan, Case 1 refers to
composting done in the community and Case 2 to composting done on the farm site.
Pilot Project 1-2 years AWGUPA/IWMI Community capacity building and Staff time
training Financial Resources
A focus group and a meeting with a representative from DANIDA revealed negative views about wastewater
use in farming from the media has led to farmers’ experiencing low market demand. The focus group also
disclosed farmers’ perceptions of IWMI training programmes as unhelpful because the education “does not
reflect in the public.” (see Appendix E)
“Due to several TV programmes about the use of wastewater for
irrigation, people don’t eat vegetables in restaurants or they try to buy
vegetables grown outside of Accra,”
Through transect walks, individual interviews and focus groups, many constraints were identified in the
farmers’ access to both wastewater and piped-water. For instance, ponds were identified as a coping
strategy for water cuts; new pipes were found not to be installed due to farmers’ lack of legal framework and
financial assets; water bills are charged at a fixed rate subject to meter-reader/farmer negotiations, and paid
according to proximity of pipes to individual farmers (see Appendix D for detailed findings).
Alternative water sources such as rainwater and groundwater proved to be impractical for many reasons
such as the absence of roofs to collect rainwater and the salinity of groundwater which caused an attempt
by MoFA to drill a borehole to fail.
Problem
The following strategy is based on the
problem, as identified by farmers, of a
negative perception amongst consumers
about their produce due to wastewater use
for irrigation. Although farmers on site use
safe wastewater handling methods, market
women claimed it would not be possible
to promote or raise prices for safely grown
products, because of a lack proof.
Aquatic plants used to clean
Explanation of Strategy wastewater
The Vegetable Box Pilot Project (see Figure 4 on page 22) would consist of
a reusable box including a variety of vegetables and herbs, that would be
delivered regularly to consumers. The farmers’ prior certification ensures
that the vegetables are free of contamination thereby gaining consumer
Watering cans are a commonly
trust. The project will be targeted at high-income residents in the
used irrigation method
Dzorwulu area who will hopefully be willing to pay a slightly higher price
for the convenience of delivery and the security of clean vegetables.
The delivery of the programme will depend on several stakeholders. FDB, MoFA and a third party inspector
will be responsible for the realisation and continuation of the certification scheme, which is shown in
detail in the Action Plan below. IWMI would continue to provide their safe wastewater handling training
programmes; an initial financial input is required from MoFA; and the Farmers Association needs to build
upon their already existing social capabilities to create a Business Cooperative that will receive initial
logistics and accounting support and training from Enterprise Works.
The impacts of this strategy will be monitored using a number of indicators which relate to the relevant SUA
criteria mentioned earlier in this report. These criteria and indicators can be found in Appendix A.
While in Dzorwulu, it was observed that the area represents an island of biodiversity in Accra, with many
species of amphibians, reptiles, fish, insects and birds. This finding supported the hypothesis, since these
organisms have a role to play in pest control, pollination and preservation of the soil structure. In the wider
context of the city, it was known that Dzorwulu also represents a green area that improves the air quality of
the city and its organisms such as frogs help control malaria mosquitos (Baker, 2009).
The diversification of crops, intercropping and planting for self-consumption is already in place. However,
during a focus group, the team learned that it is generally used to maximize land use, with little awareness
of its use for pest control. This led to an exchange of knowledge between the farmers and the researchers,
combining the practical experience of the farmers in agriculture and the need to improve the use of the
scarce land; and the team’s scientific knowledge about intercropping for pest control. Farmers showed
willingness to experiment with new ways of intercropping to better control pests and expand the area
of self-consuming crops within the border of their beds, as well as to share successful findings with other
farmers. (See complete Findings in Appendix D)
Problem
From the late 70’s MoFA designated Dzorwulu as an experimental area to develop low-tech innovations
in agriculture. An Integrated Pest Management program was implemented but the farmers received little
follow-up advice or training. Other institutions such as IWMI have experimented with other improvements
such as the use of ponds to improve the quality of stream water. Furthermore, the University of Ghana has
organized student fieldtrips and a pilot microfinance project to set up a saving scheme among farmers.
Unfortunately, these programs had weak support from the institutions and low feedback from the farmers,
who test the new techniques and their feasibility. Consequently, the programs did not last in the long-term
and were not dynamic to meet new needs that appeared in the field.
Explanation of Strategy
The strategy attempts to establish a Knowledge Sharing
Network of Participatory Research based on farmers
needs to help them use biodiversity to cope with
external pressures and stresses (See Figure 5 on page
28). The participatory research is the proposed way
to bridge the dialogue between farmers’ knowledge
and scientific knowledge. The starting point of the
strategy is an inter-institutional agreement between
the Dzorwulu Farmers Association, MoFA, University
of Ghana and IWMI; since all these stakeholders are
a part of AWGUPA, the inter-institutional agreement
strengthens the action of this multi-stakeholder Knowledge sharing with farmers on the
platform. Additionally the agreement ensures that: potential of intercropping
• Farmers support participatory research in Dzorwulu and provide feedback to the Extension Officer,
University and IWMI
• The University contributes to the training of the Extension Officers
• The University supports participatory research in Dzorwulu with courses in organic agriculture in its
Department of Science
• IWMI supports participatory research in Dzorwulu, with their PhD students, Internships and DPU students
• Monitoring will be the responsibility of the stakeholders at different stages as shown in Appendix A.
The strategy will be see the creation and sharing of knowledge with other farmers such as the Plant Pool
and Roman Ridge and in the international sphere with RUAF through learning from the Urban Agriculture
Magazine and sharing by publishing the results of participatory research that takes place in Dzorwulu.
Pilot Project Stage 12 months MoFA Training to the Extension Budget for the
2: Officers from University Extension Officer
Implementation experts (practical and training
theoretic)
Farmers Identify needs to tackle Time, knowledge and
Contribute to the participatory willingness
research
Feedback the researchers
University University & IWMI students Course on agriculture
(students and using participatory method in Students and teachers
teacher) their Dzorwulu research time, knowledge
IWMI (PhD Farmers feedback and
students and reestablishing objectives
researchers) according to their needs
Pilot Project Stage 12 months Farmers’ Farmers share information and Monthly meetings
3: Monitoring Association techniques they have been Time
Farmers applying ; establish relevance
and usefulness of it
This hypothesis originally implied that by increasing the ability of the farmers to access to credit and
financial services, their livelihoods could be improved through expanding their financial assets. In the
field, research was undertaken through semi-structured interviews with farmers including key members of
the farmers’ association and focus groups specifically looking at financial aspects of the farmers’ lives. The
research aimed to establish the requirements the farmers’ have for credit, and if credit were obtained what
they would spend it on. Farmers identified that their main constraints financially are a lack of availability of
land on which to extend their farming practices at Dzorwulu and that they require help with the expense
of buying chemical inputs (fertilizers and
pesticides). It was quickly established that
there is no land available for the farmers to
expand upon at Dzorwulu and that whilst
increasing the money available to them
to purchase chemicals might help them in
the short term, in the long term it would
increase their reliance on chemicals and
deplete their natural assets, ultimately not
being sustainable.
Returning to the Sustainable Urban Livelihoods Framework, each of the proposed strategies will expand the
assets of the Dzorwulu farmers, helping them become less vulnerable and more able to respond to external
shocks and stresses. The expected impacts on each category of assets and the overall impact on the farmers’
security are outlined in Table 3 on pages 35-36.
This report has shown that urban agriculture has the potential to be a sustainable livelihood strategy for
the farmers of Dzorwulu if certain vulnerabilities can be addressed. The farmers of Dzorwulu are fortunate
to have a certain degree of land tenure security, which is an asset not available to all urban farmers but
which may be necessary for the proposed strategies to be replicated in other areas. In order for urban
agriculture to play its role in urban sustainability and food security, it is also necessary to build partnerships
that will promote its long-term success. The Dzorwulu Farmers’ Association plays a central role in each of
the suggested interventions in acknowledgement of what they have achieved so far for the site and the
important contributions that they will no doubt make in the future. Farmers’ organizations create a platform
for the exchange of information and resources both between farmers and with the institutions, which
provide the framework for support for urban agriculture. Strengthening these associations and improving
their relationships will ensure a positive and sustainable impact on farmers’ livelihoods as well as on Accra as
a whole.
This report has identified some specific ways that urban agriculture on the Dzorwulu site can be made more
sustainable. However, there are also a number of ways that urban agriculture in general can be supported
within Accra.
IWMI, 2004. “Closing the rural-urban nutrient cycle: Options for municipal waste composting in Ghana”, IWMI,
West Africa.
Meikle, S., Ramasut, T., and Walker, J., 2001. “Sustainable Urban Livelihoods: Concepts and Implications for
Policy”, Working Paper Number 112, UCL Development Planning Unit.
Furthermore, some interviewers were not able to go through the whole questionnaire with the farmers
because of the language and time issues mentioned above; therefore only partial responses were taken.
Although it is important to be flexible and adaptable while interviewing someone, this sometimes directs the
conversation to other issues that were not necessarily included in the questionnaire. As a result of these, the
interview notes from the same semi-structured questionnaire may not be systematic or comprehensive but
conversely they may also include interesting information that was unanticipated by the research team.
Focus Groups
Regarding the limitations of the focus group discussions, it is important to highlight that the people who did
speak English at times monopolised the activity and might have altered the responses of the non-English
participants. Also, the intention of the questions might have been lost in translation. General limitations
of focus group discussions include the difficulty of making generalizations from the findings and that the
efficiency of the activity depends on the skills of the facilitators to conduct the focus groups and the ability of
note-takers.
Stakeholder Meetings
In the meetings with relevant stakeholders, lecturers’ sensibility towards certain issues or personal believes
might have influenced their presentation and the Q&A session and therefore they did not necessarily represent
fully their institution’s position. Since the presentation and Q&A sessions with key stakeholders were attended
by members from all three groups (Tema, La and Dzorwulu) the group could not address all the questions that
they intended and limited the time to go deep into relevant subjects for the group.
General Research
Perceptions and opinions are built when analysing secondary data. These affect the disposition of the
researchers when going to the field. It is sometimes hard to identify and overcome those assumptions and
therefore they might influence the researchers’ approach. Further, the hypotheses were formulated before
going to the field, i.e. from a top-down approach. The group tried to overcome this by testing the relevance
and accuracy of the hypothesis by interviewing the farmers on matters related to it and sometimes even
addressing the hypothesis explicitly.
48
WEB OF INSTITUTIONALIZATION: STRATEGY 1
Waste: findings
Resources Mainstreaming urban
agriculture
+Monthly dues of farmers
-No multi-sector approach linking waste and UA
-Need for financial support -Compost is not mainstreamed at the institutional level
Political commitment Policy planning
Procedures
+Large % of municipal budget is spent on WM
+Policy for plastic recycling exist
+WMD looking at community composting -Unknown what procedures are needed or
+Regulatory framework for composting exists
+Positive perception of farmers by sub-metro permits to compost or provide land for
Environmental Sanitation Policy 1999
-Waste is not being viewed as a productive input composting
-WMD not a member of AGWUPA
-No policy for community composting or
organic waste separation
Pressure on political
Representative political Staff development
constituencies
structures -Limited training on composting for
+AGWUPA +Sub-metro & Assembly women MOFA extensions officers
Cabbage, lettuce, onion, cucumber, cauliflower, carrots, Chinese cabbage, sweet pepper, white radish, radish, beetroot,
spinach, okra, basil, kibra, coriander
Woman – cabbage, lettuce, onion, spinach, cauliflower, basil.
Different varieties in rainy seasons (More exotic vegetables: white radish, Chinese cabbage, carrots, sweet pepper)
Local vegetables as well
Cauliflower, cabbage, cucumber, okra, beetroot, spinach and basil, spring onion and sweet pepper.
They crop in all seasons
5. Ex-MoFA employee, lost her job but let her use the land
Area used to be a model farm for MoFA
Family sometimes helps her
1. Born in Gabon
1.4 How long have you been farming in Dzorwulu? How long are you planning on staying?
18 to 20, 30, 15, 25. One translator and Angelina was there from the beginning. The young ones were there for two years,
the other two for less than one year.
1.5 Were you farming before that somewhere else? How did you start farming? And why?
No. They started as a part time basis (the translator said that he was a student) and know they are full time.
Some who used to go and learn farming techniques after school when they were younger.
1.6 How much time do you spend farming? (per day, per week)
They start from 6 or 7 am to 7 pm. And they can do that because they can pray there.
They farm everyday and generally on a Sunday as well although sometimes they will take this off.
They get food for themselves, for life, for everything, school fees, income, enjoy farming (woman nodded).
1.8 How did you get this land? Do you have enough land?
Woman – from MOFA. She prefers how things are now.
Their fathers left it to them and before this it was the Ministry that gave it to them.
The Dzorwulu site floods the most and can totally devastate their crops. It happens roughly every 5 years.
Not compulsory but will help if someone needs it and they are not too busy
2.5 Do you have any other help on the site? (Ask women specifically)
They hire labour for the harvest. A part of the income goes to the person helping.
Yes they will hire help when they need it, mostly at the tilling and digging stage, this is not the hardest stage but is when
there is the most work to do. The machinery they use is hand hoes and knapsacks for spraying pesticides. They also
have water pumps that they share per pond(?)
There is no problem with theft there used to be but then they became organized amongst themselves and it doesn’t
happen anymore.
Was a problem in the 90s when commodities were scarce but since 2000 it is not a problem
Level of Organization
3.1 Are you part of the Dzorwulu Vegetable Farmers Association?
Why or why not? (Perceived benefits, is it useful)
Older farmers of one group were members, but the young were not because they were new but that they are ready join
anytime.
(Observation: we noticed the translator explaining to one of the youngsters what was the association and about the
monthly dues.)
“We share ideas and to take decision together. We get government assistance: office give training and sometimes mon-
ey”
They meet twice a month under the tree. They all agree on how to spend the money.
Not everybody is in the association, present at the interview were the chairman, organizer and members. They all pay
their monthly dues and they said there was no more problem with collecting the dues.
3. Is member because he found a relative in the Association, to get information and inputs, government subsidizes fertil-
izers and it is easier to access through the association, buy big bags together and share them, one person collects the
money and buys it
3.2 What role do you play (if they are part of the organization)?
What does that role do?
The translator – treasurer. There were some executives, like a committee.
The relief support – works outside the association and money is given to help with wedding and funeral expenses.
3.5 Does the Association represent the farmers with the government or other groups?
They have a close relationship with IWMI and MOFA. The relationship with MOFA is good because they have easy con-
tact with them through the Extension Officer.
They used to go to the AMA offices for meetings which does not happen anymore. Officers will come to the site and
they will talk to them then but it is not as regular as it used to be.
3.6 What is the relationship with AWGUPA? Do you think you have influence?
3.8 Do you share tools? Do you share tools with people outside the Association?
Economics
4.1 How well is business going?
Different opinions: the translator started complaining but then the woman said it sometimes good sometimes bad. Ac-
cording to the season. During the dry season the size of the beds are reduced because of crop damage.
The price of the market are not fixed and because the sizes of the beds are different it makes it more difficult.
They said they make more money in the dry season and there are problems with flooding in the rainy season. The group
were all full time farmers and had no other jobs.
They have problems with not enough land, poor seeds that they also have to pay for, there is also a problem of market-
ing.
If everyone grows lettuce then the price of lettuce will crash. The market women dominate the pricing of vegetables as
if they don’t buy from them the crops will go to waste, the farmers do not dictate the price. If an individuals crop fails
they go to the association and they will help them out. Everyone pays the same amount in monthly dues.
Water
5.1 Where do you get your water?
Piped and stream water. In raining season is also needed because the soil dries up very quickly.
Why?
Costly
Water company wants to use the scarce water for domestic and industrial use
Availability of piped water is unreliable (some is stored)
Stream is sometimes more reliable and closer
5.4 How did the site get access to piped water? How long have you had it?
They get it from the Ghana Water and Sewerage. The access was there since the Ministry but they have gotten more.
They pay for the installation.
It was already on the site when they started farming. They get a monthly bill and everyone who uses this water pays
equally. They maintain the pipe themselves.
5.9 Who pays for the water? How do you share the cost?
They pay for the water monthly different rates and they have a meter.
5.10 What are the ponds for? How are they managed?
The ponds are collective and depends on distance of plot from the pond. They are shared.
They look at the market and decide which crops to plant. If there are a lot of certain types of pest they won’t plant certain
crops.
6.2 Did you learn about pest control from the Farmer’s Field school? Are you still using any those techniques?
In the farmer school they learned to use neem tree, but they don’t do it because it is very difficult to use and produce.
The woman said that they sometimes they use pepper but they don’t produce it but buy it.
The chemical is easy to get and easy to apply but it is more expensive.
They buy pesticides for fungi in a shop in Medina.
FAO approached the association and they nominated a certain amount of farmers to take part in the scheme.
They felt it was partly successful and that some of the things they learnt are good others are not practical for them. They
learnt about the Nim Tree and not to kill frogs and spiders.
6.3 Is the soil fertile? What do you do to care for the soil?
Chicken manure is good for the soil and the chemicals are not, but they are good to spray on the plants.
Some is better than others, the soil is constantly in use and some of the areas are salty. If the soil is not so good it is
because it is used constantly. They have less land and therefore have to grow continuously. They use manure a lot as
the fertilizer is expensive.
6.5 Are there any animals or insects on the site? What do they do?
Pests- snails, birds. fungi.
There are frogs but they don’t bother.
7.2 Do you have any problems with the fertilizer you are using? (observe for perceptions on health risks during applica-
tion and consumption of vegetables, cost, easy to access)
They have no problem with health problem with the manure.
But the manure is now scarce. Before they used to bring it to the farm and give it for free, but now they are charging and
this year it is scarce and expensive. They pay 1 cedis per pack.
They don’t use safety measures but they are trying to change.
7.3 Why don’t you use compost? (Or why if they do?)
Explain what compost is if they don’t know
It is a waste of time because they are not ready to do it. Lack of vegetable waste and if this would be available they would
do it.
They have been taught how to do it.
Most of them live nearby and the travel time is between 10mins to 1 hour (1 farmer said he travelled for 2 hours)
They get a truck, cars (not clear if they are there own) or they walk.
8.4 Is there waste collection there? If not, what do you do with the waste?
There is a dumping site in their neighbourhood and the government comes to collect it every three days.
They have waste collection and it is better than before but is still not good.
No one farms at home there is not enough space, sometimes they produce seedlings at home. Some people might have
small areas but nothing substantial.
Demographic information
9.1 Age
They were 4 youngsters, and 4 older people.
9.2 Gender
6 men and 1 woman.
9.3 Ethnicity
9.4 Religion
Most of them are Muslims.
Conclusion
10.1 What do you think is the main problem?
The market systems and that the chemicals are not good and that they are damaging the crops.
Government support – the government does not support them at all. The support they need is more land and extra
chemicals as they are expensive. In the rainy season some of the site is totally inaccessible. No aid for farming inputs
and all of the government stores are now privatized. Roman Ridge started to replace farms with buildings.
Waste in Community
Zoomlion is supposed to pick up waste but they are not reliable and don’t clean the area
Come around once a week
Pay 10 to 20 pesewas per bag dumped to AMA
To solve waste problem:
Thought there should be more and better paid employees
One said that they need to take responsibility themselves because not all people are taking care of the garbage well
“We all need to clean up, put the garbage where it goes and keep it clean”
Don’t have anyone to complain to, the Assembly man and MP will tell you to talk to someone else
(Interview with secretary: turn some grass back into the soil)
Farmers present in the focus group: Mohammed Ali, Aruha, Margaret, Mununi, Yakoum, Karim, Ali Jousef, Bukari Fusaini.
The proposal activity for farmers, Mapping networks, to identify groups and organisations that they relate with and
characterize the relationship of the them with the farmers, how close or far is the relation. Strength of Collaboration.
The first groups that they mentioned were the Roman Ridge and Plant Pool. They mentioned that few years ago the
three groups were in one big organisation but as it didn’t work so they separated. After pushing the information, they
said that they are still very close and that they gather sometimes to discuss general issues like marketing and water. This
happens once or twice a year.
- In the map, they placed them really close to them.
After that, they mentioned IWMI. They said that they meet them every two months. They work with them but not so
frequently.
- In the map, they place IWMI close to them, but not as close as the farmers. (In the second circle).
Next, they mentioned Enterprise Works. They say they have a close relationship because they are across the street. Some
of the farmers work with them on marketing issues. Selected members are working on FSTT programme.
- They placed them closer than IWMI but farther than the other farmer groups.
They said that MoFA is very close to the group. They work with Delvyn. They said that they have contact with it every
time they need. They appeared to be very excited about it. (OBSERVATION: during this, Delvyn (from MoFA) was present.
So it might have influenced their answer.)
- They almost put it under them. Closer than other farmers.
They mentioned that university students visited their farms for their own research but they didn’t identify any relation-
ship with them. (OBSERVATION: they mentioned the university students after an intervention from Delvyn). They placed
their card really far from them.
Next, they mentioned Cooperative Society (Department of Cooperatives). They said they have a distant relationship and
that they meet twice a year, usually people from the Cooperative come to meet them. Similar observation was made for
AWGUPA (OBSERVATION: Sofia asked if they had any relationship with AWGUPA. They didn’t recognize the name, and
after Delvyn explained them who they were, they understood.)
- They put them really far away.
The Agricultural Development Bank was mentioned. They said they have their account there. That is as far as their rela-
tionship went. (OBSERVATION: We asked them if they could give them credit or loan, they said no.)
2. c. Angelina: what happened when there are a proposal, she said that there is not money in the bank of the association
so there is no point in propos.
3. They don’t put their individual savings in the community account; they use their individual ones.
Note: they would want to increase the fees, but that is not possible.
4. the defaulters are a big problem, sometimes the people don’t pay for 3 or 4 months. They try to deal with that, encour-
aging farmers to pay. Thought the treasure say that everybody can pay the fee amount.
(Observarion: that is a contradiction to what they say on Tuesday, about people who can pay because of lack of money)
The main problem according to the treasure is that the people don’t want to pay,
6. they need more income, they could achive that by having better organisation and getting more land. About the land
they have asked to government for more land, but there is no answer yet.
How that would change their life, they say they don’t have problem with working more, about where to have the new
land is a government issue, since they are the once who can provide more land.
9. they say they are happy with the administration of the association.
OBSERVATION the treasurer was answering the question.
10. FSTT do: encourage and motivate people to get organise on marketing system. Now it is a
They are exploring with them ideas about marking systems like packaging and selling direct to restaurant.
They would like to have loans to expand to buy chemicals and water pumping machine.
They identify as the FSTT, cooperative society, IDB and IWMI as organisations that could give them credit.
When you learn something new, how do you share it with other farmers?
You go and tell another farmer “Try this”, and then he tells another. (Word of mouth, snowball strategy)
When you do intercropping, do the market women buy both vegetables? Can they only buy one? If so, who harvests
them?
They don’t need to buy the two vegetables. In this case, the farmers do the harvest themselves. The market women
come from Kaneshi and Medina market.
Intercropping
When introduced to other biodiversity techniques, the farmers said that they wouldn’t mix the crops in one bed but
they would be willing to plant around the bed or one bed – one bed, half – half, etc. They were very interested and will-
ing to try.
Questions
Did you already know that?
Do you think this could be helpful?
Would you consider trying it?
Food security
c. Do you think it would be good to reserve a small space in your plot to plant crops for self-consumption? Crops
like corn and beans.
They said it was better to buy because they had no more land.
d. Do you eat any fruits? Which fruits? Where do you get them?
(They do eat the fruits from the trees in the bushes.)
f. Would you like to plant bananas or papaya there so you could take fruit home?
g. Do you think this would be a way of using the unused space of the farm?
They buy their seeds from their Agroseed Company, and that sometimes they keep them fresh and they last for up
to a year.
Topic Comments
Description of Along the stream to Roman Ridge, across the site to the railway
Route tracks below the football pitch, across the bridge past the high
white fence to the road.
Physical Space Varied depending on each individual farmer, some have more
Division/size of land than others. The general observation of plot sizes are same
plots and vary approx. in between 0.25 acre-0.75
Facilities on site Some shelters and shade from trees, also places to sit and a
Activities shower.
Areas which flood Fertilizer lying around
Storage of crops No crop storage but sheds to store tools
Storage of fertilizers Walking paths
Football pitch used by children from the area
Women have half the size of the standard size
Dzorwulu and Roman Ridge divided by a palm
Flooding happens every year during rainy season but only in
the low areas
Tools and Practices Fork – saw many, made from bent rebar also using plow to
Types of tools remove the soil.
(shared or not) Knapsacks to apply chemicals are shared
Marketing practices Pumps, hoses and water cans to irrigate.
Additional helpers Seems to be additional helpers at the field
Techniques to Farmers share equipment, mainly the fertilizer pump
reduce mosquitos Sprayers – saw a few around, the one that was being used the
Techniques to man had boots, mask and rubber gloves, this is not the case
reduce health risks for all farmers. Few men wearing boots and gloves to protect
themselves when using fertilizers.
Many farmers had help with their plots, mostly young boys,
some family members but not all
Farmers sell straight to buyers. Market women come in
the night to harvest, don’t give advance warning, take to
Agobloshie market to sell to other sellers.
No such techniques to reduce risk are oserved to reduce risks,
though all seem to be aware of the risk.
Introduction
1.1 What are you growing?
1.2 How much are you producing? (per cropping season)
1.3 Do you eat your vegetables or sell them?
1.4 How long have you been farming in Dzorwulu? How long are you planning on staying?
1.5 Were you farming before that somewhere else? How did you start farming? And why?
1.6 How much time do you spend farming? (per day, per week)
1.7 What are the benefits to farming?
1.8 How did you get this land? Do you have enough land?
1.9 Seasonal practices: types of crops, irrigation, crop patterns
Physical Site
2.1Where does it flood?
2.2 Who has those sites?
2.3 Do you share plots?
2.4 Do you help/cooperate with each other?
2.5 Do you have any other help on the site? (Ask women specifically)
2.6 Do you use any equipment to keep you safe?
2.7 Do you have any problems with theft?
Level of Organization
3.1 Are you part of the Dzorwulu Vegetable Farmers Association?
Why or why not? (Perceived benefits, is it useful)
3.2 What role do you play (if they are part of the organization)?
What does that role do?
3.3 How are monthly dues used?
3.4 Is the fund working well? Why or why not?
3.5 Does the Association represent the farmers with the government or other groups?
3.6 What is the relationship with AWGUPA? Do you think you have influence?
3.7 Do you have contact with other groups or farmers?
3.8 Do you share tools? Do you share tools with people outside the Association?
Economics
4.1 How well is business going?
4.2 How could you improve it?
4.3 Do you need loans?
4.4 Do you receive any support from the government?
4.5 Do you have any other funding/loans? For what?
Water
5.1 Where do you get your water?
5.2 If they use waste water, why? Do you see benefits?
Demographic information
9.1 Age
9.2 Gender
9.3 Ethnicity
9.4 Religion
9.5 Family: members of household
9.6 Level of Education
Conclusion
10.1 What do you think is the main problem?
10.2 What do you need to improve the site or your farming?
10.3 What do you like about being a farmer?
Demographic information
Age
Gender
Ethnicity/Where are you from?
How did you first hear about the Dzorwulu site?
Religion
Family: members of household
Level of Education
Land Tenure
Have you ever been evicted?
Do you feel secure on this land?
H3: Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Waste
Explain the idea to reduce waste and use it as an input for farming
1. Have you heard about compost from other people on the site?
2. What are the benefits? (Do they see benefits to using less chemicals in terms of health?)
3. Do you have space on site to compost?
4. Would you mind making compost on the site?
5. Do you see any problems with its production?
6. If you had good compost, what other fertilizers would you use?
7. Do you hire labour? For how many hours? How much are they paid?
Will introduction of compost have an effect on the income of the women farmers?
Land questions:
1. Where do you get your seeds from?
2. How much do the market women give you for 1 bed of lettuce and how much do you think the market
women will sell it for?
3. Do you always sell the vegetables to the same market women?
4. How long have you been selling to those people? (if they sell to the same people regularly)
Water
1. Do you know about the fertilizer character of using WW? If yes, do you think you need less chemical fertilizers
if you use WW?
2. For WW users: Do you wear rubber boots or gloves when handling WW? If not, why?
3. Do you have any expenses on treating your skin after using WW?
4. Have you ever participated in a Safe WW handling programme? Which? Was it useful?
5. Do you use any other methods to handle WW safely? (get it out of the pond, not putting it on vegs eaten raw,
put it on vegs eaten raw in a careful way/ not splashing)
6. Did MoFA ask you to pay for electricity for the boreholes? Did they talk to you about the boreholes, before
building them? How is the water quality in boreholes?
7. AWGUPA: have you heard of a group of NGOs, government and a farmer from Dzorwulu getting together for a
meeting discussing the change of the policy on the use of WW?
8. Do you pay domestic or commercial rate for piped-water? How much do you pay per month and how do you
split it up individually?
10. Have you ever thought about the association meeting with market women and discussing the labeling of their
products, since it has been grown with piped water?
Financial – farmers collect ‘monthly dues’ paid to the farmers association, which are used for
• Common machinery for farming production specifically ‘knapsack spray machine’ (approx 25 cedis
each)
• Maintenance of any commonly purchased machinery
• Used for social events – specifically mentioned funerals
Women are members of the association and use the commonly purchased goods.
Market women control the selling of produce in the market and it’s hard for farmers to sell their own produce.
Women farmers use the same techniques as the male farmers and they only use piped water, because the
stream is far away from their site. The market women will make more money than farmers. The prices are set
by free market principles, and the farmers sell by the bed.
Farmers are concerned with producing goods not with other business to do with agriculture.
The association can help with arranging the price of crops i-e potentially raising the price to increase income.
FSTT deals with the issues of marketing, pricing their products and the economic aspects of the whole agri-
cultural process. This is a project being undertaken at the moment.
Financing is needed to produce higher income crops, so that more profit can be made. IE cabbage is more
profitable but needs more investment.
The Department of Cooperatives helps with training in financial management for the Farmers Association
Agricultural activities/material/land
Pumping machines for pumping water from the stream are owned and maintained individually.
Each farmer has between 1.077ha and 0.02ha. Retirement depends on their health and how the individual
farmer feels, there is no set age.
There is no issue of theft as there are farmers 4 or 5 farmers that live on the site and guard it.
Many of the farmers were working part-time and now many of them have changed to full-time. There is a
potential for a large income from farming and this is why they have changed from part-time.
MoFA and IWMI are trying to put by-laws in place about urban agriculture.
MoFA cannot give land to farmers it can only assist them to obtain it. Land has to be given by the government.
Plots are inherited by family or friends of the farmer who is leaving. If a farmer is ill and has to leave his plot he
must designate someone to cultivate it for him, there is no fixed system in place for allocation.
There is no formal agreement initially for farming on the site however the relationship is mutually beneficial
as the VRA have easier access to the over head cables if agriculture is taking place on the site (it was previously
very overgrown and inaccessible)
MoFA originally set up the site to be used to raise seedlings that could be sold to other farms and was always
thought of as a long term project. The female farmers were employees from MoFA, most other ex MoFA staff
have left the site now partly due to a change in government party.
There is no conflict between farmers and local dwellers; local dwellers go there to buy their vegetables.
There is area available for composting but the time taken for composting is too long. 1-1 ½ months. It also
takes time to prepare the compost and time to turn it and add more water. It also takes a lot of time to get
compost good for the soil.
Learn about the practice of composting. Had a site set aside on his site for experimenting with compost. Ben-
efits to the soil was only seen about 2 years later with bigger lettuce. However farmers can’t afford to think in
long terms. Farmers need money quickly.
If you do it you may not need fertilizer but can take a year.
Farmer’s need to see how it works in practice not just be told about benefits.
At the moment they are trying to pay back the loans they got through the students. The money/loan was
given at a time when the costs of chemical fertilizers were high. It’s used to buy seeds and chemicals.
Interactions with government – At one point attempted to access part of over 200 acres of land which was
available through the government. They didn’t get it. They want to work and want help to work but are not
getting any help from the government.
The farmers make much better profits in the dry season. Also when there is a shortage of seeds farmers can
make better profits.
Seeds at the moment are bought from places such as AgroCentral. Need education on how to save seeds. It
is a very tricky process to harvest seeds effectively and many farmers do not know how. The education that is
received from the extension officers can sometimes be questioned. The extension officers a lot of time don’t
know enough about what the farmer’s do. They can end up educating the extension officer rather than the
other way round. Many times the problems that they have such as with pests and the type of pests that need
to be analysed on specific crops is not followed up by the relevant authorities.
Previously farmers were in a big co-operative and it allowed more farmer to farmer interactions whereas now
this doesn’t happen. Thinks the bigger co-operative had benefits that the smaller co-operative didn’t. Was
able to go to other farmers’ sites in Accra and learn directly from other farmers. Hoping that the farmers can
still learn collectively through the smaller co-operative.
Other organizations and institutions who come to the farmers with ideas are sometimes impractical. They feel
that they do it in the school while the farmers do it in the field and they are very different. What works there
doesn’t necessarily work on the farm. There is a need for farmer’s to practice and experiment first.
The education received from the government to the co-operative and farmers were mainly on the formation
of the co-operative through the department of co-operatives and they also received a subsidization of fertil-
izers by the govt. Coupon system, one coupon for each sack.
Received funding/loan help from a lecturer at the University of Ghana who had been sending students there
for a while and noticed that finances and access to credit were needed. Financed 19/26 which are used as in-
dividual loans. Loans were spent on inputs. When inputs went high the farmers were unable to increase their
produce to compensate. They also were unable to get fertilizers since the price of oil was also high.
He has never tried to use compost but would. He uses poultry manure and leaves it for one month after get-
ting it to allow proper decomposition to happen. He normally incorporates farm waste back into the soil by
leaving it on top of the bed to decompose.
Inorganic fertilizer use – receives a good result in the very short term. 2-3 weeks to see a result
Organic fertilizer use – keeps longer in the soil maintains benefits for a longer time
Poultry manure previously done in the areas very close to Dzorwulu. Then the AMA byelaws halted poultry
rearing within the area due to complaints about the smell and it moved to the peri-urban area. Transportation
is now a problem and there are very few people acting as intermediaries to assist this. Some of the women
farmers on the site are acting as intermediaries and selling the compost to other farmers. Still though it’s dif-
ficult to buy enough manure.
There is a problem with waste in the community he’s from. If garbage could be separated it could be a good
Feels the system now with a smaller decentralized co-operative is better than before with the larger group,
which covered the whole of Accra. The larger group had problems in getting people to meet at one location.
It also had problems with sharing incomes received amongst people. Smaller organization is also easier to
manage and works better because everybody knows each other.
Male
He inherited his plot from his grandfather
Muslim
Didn’t want to specify his age.
39 years old, from Boku (northern Ghana), Muslim, 7 people hh (including him), education: class 4, lives in
Mamobi
Farms in Dzorwulu because he lives close and because his father did, during the raining season he is cultivat-
ing maize in central Ghana (this is where he got experience on composting)
Q Changes:
Little changes over time, loans from organisations, govt coupons for fertilizers
Land Tenure:
1 No
2 yes
3 stop farming, able to have money to establish a small table top market (not vegetables), relaxing, land will
be handed over to son or grandson, maybe livestock raising
Perceptions & main problems
1 every business or job has problems, number one problem is marketing, market women pricing of products
is bad, sometimes no buyers
2 issue of marketing, improve purchase
3 because he is farming he has access to vegs to eat, also cultivating maize for himself, is happy about it
Waste
1 he doesn’t compost and he didn’t see anybody doing it, has done it before in central Ghana on 2 acres land
using cow dung, chicken manure and wood ash
2 there are benefits, they used waste from household for a year, but it was not enough so they used it only on
half of the area, used compost and fertilizers on the same beds
3 not enough space, other problems on the site are the polybags and all the plastic and the lack of time, but it
is possible in homes or other places
6 he would use no other fertilizers
7 no labout currently, was employing labour 1 year ago for watering, paid 5 beds 1 GHc, now the son helps
Land
1 from Agro import dealer
2 1 bed for 30 GHc biggest bed, at least 50 or 60 GHc
3 constant costumers, but he would sell to anybody who comes around doesn’t matter if short supply or not
4 3 years (farming for 9 years)
5 No
6 no, because this would expose him to exploitation
7 no need to consult anybody to sell product when the women come he is able to negotiate well, don’t tell
actual prices to other farmers (secret market), not possible because of different sizes of beds
8 better quality then other region because long life span, rural farmers produces get spoiled sooner, same
quality within Accra. Yes branding would be better money
Interviewee: Farmer
Date: May 09
Place: Dzorwulu Site
Interviewee: Farmer
Date: May 09
Place: Dzorwulu Site
- Arrived on the site for the first time in 1979. Had no job so joined his brother.
- Has been working for 35 years in the Land Commission in part time.
- Has 6 children. Has never been to school and regret it. This is why he sent all his children. That has been
the main benefit of farming for him.
- Will be here until he dies. Children will succeed him.
- He uses chemical fertilisers and chicken manure. The quantity has never changed over the last 35
years, even when they got the coupon for the chemicals.
- Always had vegetables on the site, but the site has changed over time. Used to be bush.
- The association dates back to 2006-2007
- Has never been more women on the site.
- Has experienced eviction attempts.
30 years old
Interviewee: Farmer
Date: May 09
Place: Dzorwulu Site
33 years old
It is a family business.
During the dry season she has to pay more for vegetables.
During the wet season there is abundance and she has to reduce her prices.
She puts the leftovers to the bin.
She doesn’t say to her customers if the vegetables she is selling have been watered only with piped water, or
organic, etc. She doesn’t market them.
She wouldn’t pay more for that either.
She said that they don’t have an association.
She said that the extension officer of the Ministry of Public Health doesn’t visit the market but that an AMA
officer does. They come to inspect hygiene and talk to the market queens.
• 1 yes, here
• 2 she pays 1 GHc every day
• 3 every day of the week, from 5.30 until 6pm
• 4 she likes it she sells since 1945, its good she likes everything
• 5 it used to change by seasons, but now they have irrigation and there is no change anymore, before
vegs was cheap now its expensive
Age-23
Ethnicity-Eastern Region of Ghana
Religion-Christian
First I explained to Delvine the concept of the certification and the veggie box as marketing strategy.
D: The monitoring would go hand in hand with MoFA, EPA and Ghana Standards Board (GSB). EPA would be in
charge of the environmental monitoring of the natural assets on site.
Q: Could you imagine learning how to do the quality control with a certain toolkit and carry it out regularly?
D: Yes, I would like to learn how to do this, but I would need an assistant to help me with the additional work
load. I am at the Dzorwulu site every three weeks for one week and there wouldn’t be enough time for me to
do it on my own
Q: How many extension workers are employed by MoFA and courses do they receive?
D: In the Sub-metro area there are in total 7 other extension workers, so 8 including me. We meet regularly and
talk about our work. We receive regular training and workshops on M&E techniques, gender issues, livestock
raising, pests and diseases, and crops. When farmers give us feedback on the things we tell them we don’t al-
ways change our training and advices for them because they would not trust us anymore if we would change
our advices all the time.
Q: What are the criteria for the nomination of the best farmer of the year?
D: The extension worker nominates the best farmer of the year and every extension worker has his or her own
criteria, but generally it has a lot to do in how far they are willing to respond to and implement the advices
given by the extension worker.
D: Yes, there are two farmers on the roman ridge site, they use motorbikes and they sell mainly to restaurants
Q: Do high income household mainly have housekeepers who do the shopping or do they shop themselves
when it’s about food and veggies? What do you think?
D: I think that it depends and that some have housekeepers and some do the shopping themselves.
Q: Do you know how many water taps exist on site and who the bills are getting paid?
D: There are to pipes on site and the bills will get paid by the people who use it. One pipe bill is paid by the
women the other one by Karim.
Individual Interview with Karim about the water bills, veggie box and certification.
Q: How many water pipes are on site and how are the bills paid and how much is it per month?
K: There are two pipes on site and the bills are paid by me for one pipe and by Margaret for the other pipe,
but all women collect the money for their bill. We pay about 30-40 GHc per month and on our pipe there are
two taps. We are two people who use the taps and share the bill. There is a meter, but if we would pay the
meter price it would be too expensive. The meter readers set a fixed price which is less than commercial and
domestic rate and we have to bribe them for this. They change every year and at the beginning, when they
don’t know our situation, we always pay much more, but after a while they understand our situation and they
give us a better fixed price per month.
I explained Karim the idea of the vegetable box and ask him how many vegetables they can grow all year
round
K: whole year: cucumber, lettuce, spring onion, Chinese cabbage, beet root, spinach, basil, kisibra, jeisam,
coriander, parsley, mint
Seasonal: aubergine (grows it for the first time and is happy with the result, takes 4 month), reddish twice a
year, carrots only during the dry season
K: It’s an interesting idea, but there is still the problem of the wastewater use and the negative perception. And
farmers are difficult to group together and start the scheme and agree on prices and everything else.
He starts talking about the boreholes: We want to drill our own boreholes only 7 feet deep where the water
is good, with help from IWMI.
Q: how do you pay the bills for the water and how many people use it and how many taps do you have?
A: Margaret receives and keeps the bills, but all the women collect it from the users. We have 4 taps for our
pipe. The taps are used by immigrants (doesn’t tell the number of people).
A: Initially I was working with a Lebanese shopkeeper who sold only meat and people where asking him why
he doesn’t sell vegetables as well. So he asked me to deliver him the vegetables. After a while the costumers
asked him to deliver directly to their homes. I deliver to restaurants and private people. Now they don’t have
to call me anymore to give the order, because I know their preferences and to most of them I deliver twice a
week. It took about 3 years to know their preferences and the products they want.
A: I deliver all over the city and I don’t only sell my products or products from Roman Ridge or Dzorwulu, but
I collect them close to the places where I deliver.
Q: Why?
A: Because there is not enough produced around here so I buy it close to where I have to deliver to. It’s not a
matter of quality.
A: I deliver every day and if I start early (7am) I can make 7-8 costumers a day and if I start late (10-11am) 4-5
people a day. I don’t have any people to help me with the delivery, but I have a farm hand who comes every
day.
A: I sell to market women as well, and although I have to spend money on plastic bags and petrol it is more
profitable to deliver. Per bed of lettuce I get 30 GHc from market women and 40 GHc when I deliver.
Q: Are your costumers concerned about the irrigation source for the products?
Main problem: labour intensive to dig beds, but never hires help
Never tried compost, uses manure and chemicals and both are good
Water: only uses piped water, pays bill with group every month
There are 3 meters with 6 people on each meter, they pay a fixed rate
Sometimes the pipe is locked for days at a day, more often in dry season
One pond lasts 10 beds so there’s no way it will last 3 days while the piped water is unavailable
Sometimes they are warned before they close the tap
Water goes off in all communities not just the farm
Never heard any complaints/problems about using piped water
Compared to other areas the site has good service and they store water for other places
Sell vegetables to both market women and some locals, different market women each time
Sell to family for a higher price than market women to discourage them coming to the site for a discount off
market price (too much work to harvest in small quantities)
Also eats what he grows and buys some food from outside (what he eats is mostly the fruit from the nearby
trees)
Sometimes borrows money from market women (Karimi might be able to expand on this)
No other sources of credit, never had any problems with market women
Some pay before they sell and some after
He would prefer to get paid before
Never discusses the prices with anyone before selling, just decides what is a good price
Some market women tell the truth about what is a good price but you never know unless you go to the mar-
ket yourself.
Women in the community separates plastic bags and sells them to a company