Ghana: ActionAid Provides Shea Butter Support

By Development Diaries
May 9, 2022

ActionAid Ghana, in partnership with the European Union (EU), has delivered shea butter processing equipment to women groups in four districts of Ghana’s Upper West Region.

Development Diaries understands that the processing machinery, including crashers, kneaders, miller, roasters, head pans and motors, are expected to boost shea butter production in Billaw, EremonSorguon, Chinchang, and Jumo communities.

Speaking in Billaw, ActionAid’s Acting Head of Programmes, Margaret Brew-Ward, explained that the donation was part of the organisation’s ‘Northern Ghana Integrated Development Project’, which aims to reach 825,000 people.

As part of the programme, ActionAid has also trained 130 women in the use of the machinery to ensure maximum efficiency from its use.

The project seeks to reduce rural poverty by promoting environmentally sustainable agricultural practices that contribute to a green economy, promote income generation, and enhance access to social protection services.

‘It is our expectation that the women we have trained will share the knowledge with other women in the shea butter business that did not benefit from the training in order to maximise the essence of the intervention’, Brew-Ward said.

She added that shea butter production was one of the surest means to create employment and economic growth for rural women, urging the recipients of the equipment to increase the value of their products in order to reach international markets.

According to her, the project, coupled with training of the women in the shea butter processing, will help the women earn a living and provide for their families while providing a product that meets international quality standards.

A representative of the Chief of the Billaw community, Sumara Baenal, commended ActionAid and its partners for the facility.

Baenal said the project will help boost the quality of shea butter produced both for local and international consumption.

More than 900,000 rural women in Ghana are dependent on shea butter production as their main source of livelihood, according to a report published by the Inclusive Business Action Network.