Ghana is a country where agriculture plays an important role in the economy. Women farmers make up nearly half of the country’s agricultural communities, but they face multiple disadvantages.
Women produce less than male farmers not because they are less efficient farmers but because they lack equal access to resources and skill-building opportunities, according to government research.
Training opportunities enable these female entrepreneurs to learn, understand, and apply current technical approaches to boost their businesses. As part of CARISCA’s aim to include women and disadvantaged groups in supply chain capacity training, the center hosted a “train-the-trainer” workshop in September.
Designed to enhance agribusiness practices and leadership skills, the workshop equipped participants to improve their businesses and train other women in their communities.
Fifteen female entrepreneurs representing associations and cooperatives in the Ashanti Region attended the workshop at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. These women, mainly farmers or informal business owners, had little or no formal education, with most fluent only in Twi, one of Ghana’s languages.
The impetus for the training came from a visit to Ghana’s northern region by two CARISCA senior technical advisors. The pair met with women business operators in the agriculture sector to better understand their challenges.
Some of the challenges the women cited included difficulties with business management, transportation and adapting to a rapidly changing industry, especially in areas like social media marketing.
Following the research visit, CARISCA created a manual to guide local female entrepreneur leaders in training other women, equipping them with essential skills.
This manual served as a key resource during the five-day workshop. Modules covered included:
- Negotiation and customer relationship management
- Transportation and product distribution
- Branding and change management
- Social media marketing
The customer is always the king
CARISCA carefully selected facilitators fluent in both Twi and English to ensure that participants could easily understand the workshop content. These facilitators, successful agribusiness owners themselves, offered practical lessons and guidance.
“I spoke about negotiation and customer service,” shared Akua Tawiah, an entrepreneur in agriculture and catering. “I expect participants to negotiate better with their customers, wholesalers and distributors. On customer relationships, I encouraged them to be patient and treat every customer as a king because the customer is always the king.”
During the social media marketing session, participants were divided into smaller groups to learn how to create accounts on various platforms, form online groups and use them effectively to grow their online presence.
In the branding and change management session, participants learned how to package their products effectively based on what they were selling. They then divided into smaller groups to discuss and brainstorm the best packaging for certain products.
“I made sure participants understood that when positioning their products in the market, they must ensure visibility for everyone to see their products,” said facilitator Matilda Owusu-Mensah, director of operations for Quama Food Processing Company. “Many participants found it challenging to change old habits, so I provided suggestions to help them.”
Participants also learned the importance of transportation and logistics.
“They learned that it’s not just enough to package your product and hand it over to a driver or customer. They now understand the need to make alternative arrangements and ensure the product reaches its destination,” explained Esi Abanyie, managing director of Silver Lobster Hospitality and Management Services.
On the final day of the workshop, participants engaged in an exhibition and interactive session. They brought along their products to role-play and present how they would brand, sell and transport them, applying the lessons learned over the five days.
“Some of the exciting moments were when we asked them to apply what they had learned through an exhibition,” said Matilda Owusu-Bio, CARISCA STA, who organized the training. “We realized from what they showed us that they really understood what they’ve learned.”
The importance of packaging
In interview sessions, some participants shared how they plan to apply their newfound knowledge to grow their businesses.
“Today, I plan to start using social media by creating WhatsApp groups for my customers,” said one participant, a vegetable farmer. “Through these groups, I can keep them updated on the status of the vegetables I’ve planted, inform them about items in stock, and gather their feedback.”
“I learned the importance of packaging and branding for products,” said another participant, a palm kernel oil trader. “My palm kernel oil, especially in gallon packs, wasn’t packaged well. However, since coming here, I’ve discovered that effective packaging can really attract more customers.”
“From Monday to Friday, my biggest takeaway was the importance of packaging and how to build friendly relationships with my customers,” said a third participant, a lettuce farmer. “I also learned about the importance of social media in business, which I didn’t know much about before this training.”
At the end of the workshop, CARISCA presented participants with certificates of participation and encouraged them to share their newly acquired knowledge with other women in their associations.
Next, we will schedule follow-up visits to the participants’ cooperatives and associations to check their preparation for hosting training sessions for other members of their groups.
