Smallholder resilience
in the midst of global
and domestic shocks
Lessons and reflections from fieldwork
in Ghana
- Selorm Kobla Kugbega

Notable Domestic and Global crises
in Ghana/ SSA
• Fall army worm infestation (2016/2017)-production
related crisis
• Covid-19 (2020-date)- primarily market/demand related
crisis
• Economic shocks- occurred concurrently with Covid
(2020-date)- market and production related crises
• Effect-Eg: Outgrowers tied to international corporations have
contracts cancelled and left with non-edible cassava, sorghum
produced for industrial purposes eg starch, beer

Notable Domestic and Global crises in Ghana/
SSA
• Droughts and floods in northern Ghana, Kenya (2020-date)-production
related crisis
• Recurrent productivity boom-bust cycles: Incentive-based productivity
boom without commensurate market demand leading to price collapse
• Farmer-herder conflicts (2055 to date Southern plains of Ghana, Northern Nigeria)-
affects production but also the food value chain including transport and
functional markets

Three modes of
adaptation
• Household level adaptation
• Production related adaptation
• Market/value chain adaptation

Household Level Adaptations
• Production and consumption of indigenous vegetables and crops of low commercial value such as
millet, sorghum, Bambara beans (Dominated by women)
• Intrahousehold re-allocation of factors of production ie labour, capital, machinery, fertilizers
• Priority is given to the family farm controlled by men. Low prioritization of women and youth farms
• Migration- to cities, Libya and onward to Europe for youth- incomes reinvested in cash crop
farming
“I am too old else I would have journeyed to Libya myself….. Farming is difficult and the returns
are low. I am saving now to support my son on his journey to Libya. I hope he gets to Italy”- 62
year-old farmer
• Customary pledges for migrants and the most vulnerable farmers- mortgage farm land and future
farm produce for money- risk of perpetual debt cycles

Production-
related
adaptations
• Alteration of traditional planting and harvest cycles- creation of minor
season/off season smallholder experts who seek to avoid food price
collapse due to oversupply during the major season
• Non-traditional tree crops- the new frontier of smallholder
resilience (cashew, coffee, teak- Increased incomes but threatens food security)
• Produce demand and supply projections Ie
• “if we think cassava will be in high demand, we plant it and time its harvest for a
period where demand is lowest but many others could have thought same
leading to an over supply” 58 year-old farmer
• Farm expansion despite farmer-herder conflicts-
• Logic: Better to have the remainder of a big farm than have a small farm totally
destroyed by cattle.

Market and value chain
adaptations
• New markets eg: digital value chains/e-commerce platforms
• Led by small and medium scale enterprises that have capacity for vale
addition eg. Packaging, destoning grains
• Mixed farming: small ruminants, poultry-
• “I don’t sell my maize anymore. I am tired of bad market prices. I
prefer to feed my sheep, goats and poultry with the maize harvest”-51
year old farmer
• Direct links to corporate consumers- offices and schools
• Requires micro-processing and packaging- to meet demands of
corporate clients/offices
• Cooperative-based produce marketing
• Eg: Sale to state grain purchasing companies and agribusinesses
• Requires adherence to high quality standards

Final Thoughts
• Easy to be caught in the recurrent dialogue around global shocks ie economic, climate, covid.
• But small farmers experience shocks at different levels and these shocks may occur at the
same time
• Variations within smallholders- men, women, youth have different modes of adaptation
• But adaptations in themselves may present problems- eg: a move away from food crops in
favour of tree crops may bring food insecurity challenges
• Need to emphasise multilevel adaptation (household, farm/production, market/ value chain) rather
than single target adaptation
• An eclectic approach (draws on multiple local and technocratic strategies) is key to smallholder resilience