Agriculture machines worth $ 2.5 million were issued by the Japanese government under grant assistance. The support included 11 rice reapers, 6 rice mills, and 77 agricultural tractors with matching implements, 49 power tillers and 20 rice threshers. According to the Japanese embassy representative, the support is to help Ghana reduce importation while increasing local rice production to meet domestic demand. In light of increasing consumption for rice in the country, the support will strengthen quality of rice supplied and quantity distribution within the rice value chain in Ghana. According to Ghana’s Agriculture Minister, the machines will make possible for smallholder farmers to achieve timely field cultivation, high-level of field bed preparation, planting and proper harvesting thus reduce post-harvest losses in the rice sector. The support will help the government to boost rice production by about 20% per annum over the next four years, thus make Ghana self sufficient in rice.
http://oryza.com/22397/japan-supports-ghana-rice-sector-25-million-worth-agriculture-machinery
http://www.fao.org/3/a-at546e.pdf