Organic farming in Northern Ghana Ghanaian journalist, Hannah Zemp-Tapang, was asked to document experiences in ecological farming in Northern Ghana. Here she presents some of her findings. As we drove into Goziire, the first thing I noticed were fields strewn with decaying millet and sorghum stalks, and I remarked to my husband, "so are these people that serious"? We had by then visited many villages in the northern part of Ghana and none was like Goziire, at this period of the farming season, when the land was being prepared for planting. Unlike Goziire, in many other villages the farmers were gathering the crop residue and burning to make it easier for ploughing. But here, in Goziire, I saw the farmers hoeing among the stalks, preparing the land to sow. The two agricultural officers of the Nandom Agricultural Project, who accompanied us from Nandom, led us to the Chief, Naa Leo Yiryel, who had encouraged his people in the early 1980s to try out organic farming and later to adopt it. According to Naa Yiryel, after a long period of using chemical fertiliser on their farms, they found that it did not give lasting fertility to the soil. When the government lifted the subsidy on fertiliser and other agricultural inputs, many farmers could no longer afford chemical fertiliser. For the first few years, they thought that the remains of the chemical fertiliser used during the previous years would help. But to their surprise, production was far lower than it had been in the years before chemical fertiliser was introduced. "What we produced could barely support us and our families all year round", the Chief said. "We became desperate and did not know what to do. Then the Agricultural Project people came to our rescue." Despite their predicament, the people of Goziire did not readily take to organic farming. "We tried it bit by bit, like a child would eat hot porridge", Naa Yiryel said. "You know, we had gone through a lot of changes in our farming systems and couldn't just take this one like that." Step by step Gradually, though, the people stopped burning and used some of the crop residue for compost and mulching. They also made compost from household waste and added what little animal manure they could get. In two years, the Chief explained, many of them were already convinced that organic farming was the best for them. The few who had held back also joined, and the whole community embraced it. They made agreements with neighbouring villages to control their fires and not allow them to spread into Goziire. They even formed community fire squads to ensure this. Vitalis Gyeyri, who was on his farm, stopped working to speak with us. Like many of his colleagues, he cultivates sorghum, millet, cowpeas, groundnuts, sweet potato and a small quantity of maize. The maize, he said, did not do well previously, when his soil had deteriorated, but after a few years of using natural material to rejuvenate the soil, he can now sow a small quantity of maize to be eaten when fresh (millet and sorghum are the staple foods). Vitalis's four-hectare compound farm produces enough to feed his family and more for relatives. He commented that after some six years of organic farming, his harvest has increased by about 200%. Even though he does not measure his yield, he estimates by sight and compares from year to year. The people of Goziire overcame the problems of organic farming during the first years of adaptation. Making compost from household waste, and later spreading it, was not easy for the women who were given that part of the work. For the men, it was no easier to deal with millet and sorghum stalks while weeding the farm. But with time, they have become used to it, and now say they have no problems. A lasting change We learned, from talking to many farmers, that organic farming was introduced to them in the early 1980s or even earlier by agriculture-based NGOs and some agricultural officers who had foresight and believed in the lasting benefits of using natural material to fertilise the soil. Some of these farmers took to it and practised it so long as their 'teachers' were around. As soon as they left, they gave up and went back to their old ways. One of the communities where this happened is Sagadugu, near Walewale, where a Dutch-supported organic farming project was going on until the leader became less involved and later fell sick and died. Even though the Chief says there are a few farmers practising organic farming in that community, the farmers I met have gone back to their old ways of burning. Their reason is that, since their leader is no longer there, they cannot go on on their own. The real reason might be that they were never really convinced of the benefits of the method. Organic farmers I talked to in other communities who had never had anybody to lead them, had learnt from either watching neighbours or from accidental experience, yet they say they would not try any other method of farming. Kankpung Jinjir of Bunkpurugu, who was working in his garden, said, "I would never use chemical fertiliser again even if it were offered to me free of charge." Kankpung had the dreadful experience of harvesting very little when he used no fertiliser on his farm, after four years of its use. It was then that he took up organic farming. He knows nothing about green manure and alley cropping but he does not burn his crop residue uses it instead for compost and mulch. Kwabena Lambon, also of Bunkpurugu stopped using chemical fertiliser three years ago because it was too expensive. He learnt from neighbours that he could use groundnut shells, kitchen waste and crop residue for compost. This, he says, has improved his soil a lot. "I still get as much as I did when I used chemical fertiliser, but now I don't have to use any money and I see that my soil has improved". Konjit Laar, a widow from the same neighbourhood, told me that she had wanted to improve the fertility of her farm but could not afford fertiliser. Then she decided to try using kitchen waste and groundnut shells for compost. Since this was small in quantity, it could not cover the whole farm so each year she covered a bit larger portion with compost. "After the first two years, I saw the difference between the crops where I had used compost and those where I hadn't used anything. Then I was convinced that there is fertility in groundnut shells and kitchen waste", she said. Konjit is well known for her love of groundnut shells. But, as she explained, that is the only organic matter she can acquire easily, as there is keen competition for animal manure and decayed matter collected from the community dumping ground. Learning by accident Individual farmers who are involved in organic farming in the northern region of Ghana mainly use animal manure, kitchen waste, farm residue and decayed human faecal matter. They do not burn residue and some use the larger stalks from millet and sorghum to form barriers to prevent erosion. This then rots in a year or two and is spread on the farm and fresh stalks are put in its place. From visiting farms in Najong and Bunkpurugu, this appeared to be common practice, even among farmers who had not gone strictly organic. Osei Duut of Najong said he took up organic farming by accident. He used to gather all the crop residue in heaps and burn it before preparing the land. Some years earlier, he commented, he was either not smart enough to do all his usual duties, or perhaps the rains came earlier than expected and he was thus unable to burn the heaps because of a heavy down-pour. He never found the right time to do so until he had prepared the land and sown. By then it was unnecessary. In the following year, the heaps of crop residue had decayed and he decided to spread it on parts of the land. "When my millet started growing, I could see the difference between the crops growing on the areas with the decayed matter and those without it. And then it occurred to me that the decayed matter was manure. Since then, I have used it in large quantities and also use animal droppings". Osei says his neighbours admire his crops but tease him that the fertility comes from human remains, since he farms on old cemetery ground. "I don't mind them but I know they will gradually accept what I'm doing because a bag of chemical fertiliser now costs C30,000.00 (about US$18), and if they have to use two bags, how much are they going to have harvest to cover all that money and still have something left over for themselves?" Desperate Osei's opinion seems to be the order of the day in the northern part of Ghana, which covers about 40% of the country and where the majority are subsistence farmers. Many of them now find chemical fertiliser too expensive and are shifting to animal manure. But animal manure is not for everybody since not every farmer owns animals. Many are desperate to find ways to improve the fertility of their soils, but they do not know that much of it could come from the very crop residue they burn each year. Each year they struggle to get enough to feed their families. In many families, though, hunger is a reality, especially in the upper regions where the soils are poor and overused. The geographical area has a similar historical and traditional background, though made up of different tribes. The area experiences erratic rainfall - usually between 800-1000mm per year. This is mostly irregular, and in many years there is either drought or flood, which does not promote good agricultural production. The soils have been over-used for years and are poor and prone to erosion. This explains why most farmers are desperate, but fear to venture into new methods like organic farming. They give several reasons - from ignorance to fear of snakes and scorpions which could be attracted by the organic matter on the farm. A farmer in Zasilari believes that not burning the farm before ploughing is 'dirty farming'. Another says, when discussing leaving crop residue on the farm, "how can I weed with all these stalks pricking me?" But, for the farmers in Goziire, dirt or no dirt, stalks or no stalks, organic farming is more beneficial than it is a problem. Vitalis sums it all up when he says, "if we are to produce enough to feed our families and relatives, then we will have to make sure our crops do well. And even though it is easier to apply chemical fertiliser, we cannot ignore the monetary cost and the harm it does to our soils. Therefore I will say organic farming is the best alternative." Hannah Zemp-Tapang, Gbilugu Ecological Farm, PO Box 43, Walewale NR, Ghana. ILEIA Newsletter Vol. 12 No. 3 p. 30. << country/story review