Students enrolled in the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) programme successfully concluded an Agric Justice Field Research internship in collaboration with Harvard Law School. This significant endeavor was led by Mrs. Clara Kasser-Tee, Coordinator for MA/LLM Law for MSMEs, who conceived the field research initiative. On Wednesday, January 17, 2024, MSMEs students from the University of Ghana Law School (UGSoL), alongside their counterparts from Harvard Law School, presented updates and findings about the project. The project, which aims to establish an agricultural clinic to support Ghanaian farmers, is a planned initiative that spans five years. Professor Lucie White and Dean of UGSoL, Professor Raymond Atuguba, provided invaluable support for this collaborative effort.
Currently, the project is in the information-gathering phase, and the presentations touched on various aspects of this stage. The team was divided into four groups, each focusing on specific types and forms of farming: subsistence, cash crops, corporate, and cooperative farming.
Group one focused on subsistence farming, targeting farmers in the Eastern and Volta regions of Ghana. In their presentation, they discussed the influence of the Ministry of Agriculture on farming practices and highlighted the daily challenges that these farmers face in their occupation. One notable issue is that most subsistence farmers do not own the land they cultivate, which exacerbates the difficulties they encounter.
Group two covered cash crops, with a specific focus on one of Ghana's most popular cash crops, cocoa. They revealed some previously unknown facts that are not commonly known to the average Ghanaian. Despite cocoa being the only regulated crop in the country, implying that cocoa farmers should have all their needs met and face no hurdles, the reality on the ground is quite different. Farmers expressed deep dissatisfaction with numerous challenges they encounter. They shared that they lack proper representation on the Cocoa Board and do not have sufficient access to vital information. Additionally, farmers complained about the health risks associated with the highly toxic fertilizers they use, as they lack Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to safeguard their health. Furthermore, due to the instability of cocoa prices, many individuals resort to smuggling their cocoa out of the country, which ultimately impacts the farmers who suffer financial losses as a result.
Group three focused on corporate farming and presented a striking contrast between two pineapple farms. On one hand, there was a small farmer who faces daily struggles to ensure the growth of his pineapples, investing effort to produce fresh and well-groomed fruits. On the other hand, there was a well-organized pineapple plantation equipped with all the necessary tools and equipment for a successful harvest. Despite having an established market, the small farmer is compelled to sell his crops, while the plantation owner exerts complete control over pricing and market access. This highlights the challenges faced by corporate farmers in obtaining fair prices for their crops, even though they are expected to have ready-made markets.
Group four focused on cooperative farming, where farmers form cooperatives to support their agricultural endeavours. However, the cooperative often fails to operate in accordance with its initial intentions, leaving farmers responsible for paying for their own incentives, such as fertilizers and funds. The majority of funding for the farms comes directly from the farmers themselves. Additionally, most farmers lease the land they cultivate, making them vulnerable to losing their farms if the landowners decide to sell. Moreover, these farmers primarily rely on traditional manual labor instead of utilizing advanced technologies.
All the groups raised challenges that the farmers in their various types of farming face and most of these challenges run through all the types. Some of these challenges are:
• Lack of funds and funding: Many farmers in these groups expressed concerns about their lack of funds to support their farms. They highlighted that most microfinance companies and banks require the return of their money, including interest, well before harvest time. As a result, farmers often find themselves running at a loss instead of being able to sustain their operations.
• Land tenure system: Most of the lands utilized by these farmers are leased, and unfortunately, the leasing terms often result in considerable losses for them. Some farmers end up losing up to half of their proceeds, while others face the risk of losing a third. Additionally, there is a looming threat of losing both crops and lands when landowners decide to sell the lands, particularly to real estate developers.
• Aging farmers: again, most of these farmers that are actually passionate about the farming and enjoy what they do are aging and they fear that there will be less farmers when they are gone as most young farmers took to farming not because they wanted to but because they had no other options.
These are a few of the challenges raised among others.
The presentation highlighted the impressive collaboration between both parties, demonstrating their ability to effectively merge different viewpoints and advance the clinic. In his closing statements, the Dean of the University of Ghana School of Law expressed gratitude towards the entire team for their unwavering commitment and hard work. He also announced that students from the University of Ghana School of Law would be joining Harvard Law School students in the spring, from the 23rd to 30th of March 2024, to further expand upon the project.
