Development and Analysis of the Rice Value Chain for the Hohoe and Jasikan Districts of the Volta Region, Ghana

To establish an effective monitoring and evaluation system that would effectively measure progress towards achieving the project objectives and targets, different data collection methods including surveys, focus group discussions and participatory workshops were conducted. Data were collected to have an in-depth understanding of the constraints in the rice value chain and to identify intervention strategies for addressing the constraints through the value chain analysis approach. The study was conducted in the Volta Region because of several factors including promoting pro-poor marketing opportunities for enhancing income, productivity and livelihoods of the resource-poor value chain actors.
The objectives of the study were to: a) provide baseline information that would justify the formation of Innovation Platforms (IPs) in the districts, provide the entry point for the IPs and information against which performance of the IPs could be evaluated; b) identify and understand the production and postharvest processes including marketing constraints and hindrances in the rice value chain; c) identify innovation opportunities along the value chain for research and investments to generate socio-economic benefits; d) conduct a value chain analysis to recognise which activities are the most valuable and which ones could be improved to provide competitive advantage; and e) provide a basis for comparison among the different rice-growing areas of Ghana as a means for advising policy makers in the provision of incentives and assistance to the actors in different areas