One hundred and sixty smallholder women farmers from four selected women’s groups in the Abrewankor and Gekorong communities have completed a Trainers of Trainees (ToT) capacity-building programme on innovative sack gardening.
The initiative, organized by the Iseguri Initiative, seeks to equip women farmers with practical skills to grow vegetables around their homes while improving household nutrition and strengthening food security, particularly during the dry season.
Growing Nutrition, One Sack at a Time
Speaking at the opening of the training, Jemima Etse, Focal Person for the Iseguri Initiative, said the programme was designed to increase the nutritional value of meals prepared for households, with particular attention to school-aged children.
She explained that incorporating vegetables into children’s diets is important for healthy growth and brain development, making household vegetable production an important tool for improving family nutrition.
With the dry season approaching, Ms. Etse encouraged participants to establish their sack gardens early so they would be better prepared to maintain a steady supply of fresh vegetables when rainfall becomes limited.
Women Encouraged to Prioritize Children’s Nutrition
Rejoice Selorm Azameti, the Municipal Women in Agricultural Development (WIAD) Officer, urged the beneficiaries to take full advantage of the training and use their new skills to improve the nutritional health of their children.
She noted that several other women’s groups in the region are also seeking opportunities to participate in similar programmes, describing the beneficiaries as fortunate to have received the training.
Ms. Azameti further stressed the importance of regular watering, particularly during the dry season, encouraging the women to remain committed to caring for their sack gardens to achieve the desired results.
Sharing Knowledge Beyond the Training
The Project Coordinator of the Iseguri Initiative, Raymond Buami, challenged the trained women to become ambassadors of the knowledge they had acquired.
He encouraged participants to share their sack-gardening skills with other women’s groups, family members and members of their communities, noting that wider knowledge-sharing could help extend the benefits of the programme beyond the initial beneficiaries.
Fire Safety Takes Centre Stage Ahead of Dry Season
Mr. Buami also used the occasion to caution farmers about the increased risk of bushfires during the approaching dry season.
He urged farmers to ensure that cooking fires lit at their farms are completely extinguished before they return home. He also advised community members to avoid charcoal burning, which can contribute to the loss of vegetation and negatively affect local water bodies.
He reminded the participants that “fire can be a good servant, but a very bad master” when not handled responsibly.
A Step Towards Sustainable Household Food Production
The completion of the ToT programme marks another step towards promoting practical, low-cost approaches to household food production in the Nkwanta South Municipality.
By equipping women farmers with sack-gardening skills, the Iseguri Initiative is helping participating households explore ways of producing vegetables in limited spaces while preparing for the challenges of the dry season.
For the 160 women who completed the programme, the next phase will be turning the knowledge gained into productive sack gardens—and sharing those lessons with others in their communities.