New project: Achieving Vocational Excellence in the climate-smart agriculture sector in Ghana

In the face of a changing climate, Ghana's agricultural sector is facing unprecedented challenges. Climate smart agriculture (CSA) offers a promising solution to enhance food security and environmental sustainability, but its successful implementation hinges on a skilled workforce capable of operating CSA technologies. The newly granted CB-VET project addresses this critical need by strengthening vocational education and training (VET) institutions in Ghana to capacitate the agricultural colleges with the necessary skills and knowledge for a thriving CSA sector with a main focus on production and processing.

This project brings together a consortium of:

Ghanaian VET schools: Kwadaso Agricultural College and Adidome Farm Institute
European academic partners: CINOP, American Farm School and MSM,
Ghanaian university: Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST)
Ghanaian private partner: Bunash Enterprise and Farms
Ghanaian NGO: Rights and Advocacy Initiatives Network (RAIN)

The partners are leveraging their collective expertise to enhance VET provision in Ghana. The project will focus on three key objectives:

Fostering Private-Public Partnerships: Building strong partnerships between VET providers, private sector employers, and government agencies is crucial for developing demand-driven VET programs that align with industry needs.
Enhancing VET Quality and Relevance: Upgrading VET curricula and training methodologies to reflect the latest CSA practices and technologies will ensure that graduates possess the skills required for employment in the CSA sector.
Aligning VET with Development Strategies: Integrating CSA principles into VET programs will align skills development with national and regional development strategies, promoting sustainable agricultural practices and economic growth.

The project will implement a range of activities to achieve these objectives, including:

Establishing private-public ecosystems: Facilitating collaboration between VET providers, industry partners, and government agencies to identify and address skills gaps in the CSA sector.
Developing post-production short courses: Designing and delivering short courses that equip students with the specialized skills required for CSA post-production processes.
Training of Trainers (ToT) programs: Enhancing the capacity of VET staff to design, implement, and evaluate effective CSA-focused VET programs.
Knowledge sharing and dissemination: Promoting the exchange of best practices and fostering cooperation between VET providers in Ghana and the EU.

The proposed CB-VET Ghana project is a timely and transformative initiative that will empower Ghana's youth to become the driving force behind a sustainable and resilient agricultural sector. By equipping the VETs with the skills and knowledge needed for CSA practices, the project will contribute to food security, environmental sustainability, and economic prosperity in Ghana and beyond.

This project is part of the European Commission Erasmus+ program and will be managed by Hans Nijhoff, Senior Project Consultant and Veerle Barten, Project Consultant at MSM’s Expert Centre on Emerging Economies. The project will run from December 2023 until November 2026.

This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication (communication) reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.