IFAD in Ghana

Through loans and grants IFAD has invested in initiatives to reduce poverty in Ghana since 1980, funding 16 loans to implement 15 programmes and projects. Four of them are ongoing and one was recently approved. IFAD loans amount to a total commitment of US$184.45 million, making Ghana the second largest user of IFAD resources in the region.

IFAD’s strategy in Ghana

Programmes and projects funded by IFAD cover a wide geographical area that includes several regions, and they are designed to alleviate poverty and foster economic development. The most recent is the Rural and Agricultural Finance Programme approved by the Executive Board of IFAD in December 2008.

The goal of IFAD's investments in Ghana is to enable rural poor people to improve and diversify their livelihoods in a sustainable manner. Through its operations, IFAD supports the key development objectives of the country's Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRS II), including economic growth, employment, service provision for human development and governance for empowerment. IFAD aligns its assistance with the country's main policies and strategies in the agricultural and rural sectors.

In 2007, together with a group of 16 development partners, IFAD signed the Ghana-Joint Assistance Strategy (G-JAS). G-JAS aims to improve the alignment of development assistance with the core business of government and the government’s political and partnership cycle. It builds on commitments by development partners to work towards the achievement of goals and priorities of the second Ghana Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy and to accelerate progress according to mutually defined harmonization principles.

The IFAD-supported country programme for Ghana also focuses on developing a market-driven agricultural sector and a dynamic private sector during the period from 2006 to 2011. To achieve this goal, IFAD invests in infrastructures, financial services, access to land and water, and women's access to development opportunities. To empower poor people, activities emphasize their direct participation in development activities. More specifically, IFAD helps poor rural people improve smallholder agriculture by supporting food production, small-scale irrigation and livestock activities. IFAD contributes to development of micro and small enterprises and agro-processing and artisanal activities. Investments also support the strengthening of local institutions, decentralization and the participation of rural communities and institutions. IFAD plays a catalytic role by developing strategic partnerships and by financing loans and grants that support research, policy
dialogue, knowledge-sharing and innovation.
 
Source: IFAD