GHANA

Background information

Name of Organisation
Farmers Organisation Network In Ghana (FONG)

Date of Establishment
FONG was formed in September 2003

Overview of Farmers Organisation Network in Ghana
Farmers Organization Network in Ghana (FONG) operates as an apex body of a network of small scale farmer and fisher based organizations in Ghana. FONG is a member of Reseau des Organisations Paysannes et des Producteurs Agricoles de l’Afrique de l’Ouest (ROPPA) located in Burkina Faso with affiliate member organisations in twelve (12) West African countries namely; Benin, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mali, Niger, Senegal, Togo, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

FONG is officially and legally registered in Ghana and tagged with registration no G11653 at the Registrar General’s Department, Accra, Ghana and also registered, bearing no D.S.W/2346 at the Social Welfare Department, Accra, Ghana.

Organs of the Organisation

The highest decision making body is the General Assembly. The President of the network is also elected by the General Assembly who has oversight supervisory role of the Executive Council. The role of the President and the Executive Council are to act on behalf of the General Assembly and implement the programmes of the Network. FONG has a National secretariat and three zonal secretariats based in the northern, middle and southern zones/belts of Ghana respectively, all involved in the day-to-day operations of the network. The National Secretariat is based in Accra, Ghana.

Structure of the Organisation

The organization is made up of the following:

The General Assembly
The President
The Executive Council
The National Secretariat
The Advisory Board

Agricultural activities of network members

The activities of members centre on the production of the following: rice, maize, soya bean, vegetables, yam, cassava, shea butter, oil palm, banana, plantain. Processing activities engaged by members includes shea butter extraction, cassava/garri making, fish processing/smoking etc. Some members are also engaged in livestock rearing.

The objectives of FONG are to:

share information and experiences among member farmers’ organizations through meetings, seminars, exchange visits/tours and joint implementation of projects
build and enhance the capacity of its members to enable them achieve their aimes.
communicate and explain government agricultural policy/policies to network farmer groups and relay their feedback on it/them to government.
act as an intermediary between development partners and member network farmer groups regarding program support

The organizational strength of FONG includes but not limited to the following:

Internationally and nationally recognised and a member of ROPPA through participation in policy dialogues and agricultural programmes.
Well qualified key staff recruited to manage both National and Zonal Secretariats.
A gender oriented organisation with a Womens’ Wing (Women’s College) established.
Members’ capacities have been built in various topics relevant to their production and business activities through training workshops, learning visits and exchange tours.
FONG has in the past received funding support locally and internationally from Agrittera, IFAD, European Union, FAO, OXFAM, UPADI and currently, ROPPA.
FONG has close to a total of 4,500 active network members. More new members are currently joining the organisation and data on network members is being updated as a result.
The organization advocates for good agricultural policies for smallholder farmers and acts as the mouthpiece of farmers.
A good relationship exists between FONG and other state and non-state actors.
Sharing of skills and knowledge amongst members (training, workshops, learning visits and exchange visits).
Active participation of FONG in the World Rural Women’s Day and World’s Food Day celebrations in Ghana.
Gained local and international recognition – It is a member of Ghana Federation of Agricultural Producers, ROPPA and PAFO which are agriculture oriented organisations.

Vision
A leading national Farmer Based Organisation contributing to food security and sustainable livelihoods in Ghana through agri-business, training and advocacy.
Mission Statement
To enable the formation of a network of small scale farmers and fisher based organisations in Ghana and to empower individuals and members to contribute towards agricultural development, economic growth and sustainable use of natural resources.

Guiding principles

Accountability
Transparency
Friendship
Participation
Partnership
Networking

Organizational Documents

In order to guide and direct the day to day running of the organization, FONG possess and relies on the following documents:

Constitution
Accounting manual
Operational manual
Human resource manual
Communication strategy document

Audit

FONG’s accounts are audited by qualified Auditors annually.

Some achievements

Formed agribusiness cluster groups in the northern region of Ghana
Celebrates annually the World Rural Women’s Day which falls on the 15th of October
Sensitized farmers and other key stake holders on policies like EPA, ECOWAP, CAADP etc

Contact Details
Postal Address:
P.O. Box DK 216
Darkuman
Accra-Ghana

Physical Address(Office location):
Opposite Darkuman Total Filling Station
Off Kaneshie market- Odokor-Mallam Road
Accra-Ghana

Telephone numbers:
Office telephone +233-302326880
E-mail address: farmersorganisation@yahoo.com ; info@fongh.org
Web site www.fongh.org
facebook: www.facebook.com/farmersorganisation

Contact Persons
Dr. King-David Amoah
(FONG President)
Cellphone: 00233-24-3863567, 00233-20-4258908
E-mail address: kdkamoah@yahoo.com

Mr. David Yemo Tetteh Odoi
(National Co-ordinator)
Cellphone: 00233-27-2986994
Email: davidodoi3000@yahoo.com

Management
David Y. T. Odoi (National Coordinator)
Samuel Essah (Finance/Administrative Officer)
Helena Azu-Adjei (Gender Desk Officer)
Lydia Sasu (National Women’s Leader)
Adotei Brown (Southern Zone Coordinator)
Esther Boakye(Middle Zone Coordinator)
Mohamed Adams (Northern Zone Coordinator)

Web site: www.fongh.org