About one thousand women belonging to the Sunkpa Shea Women’s Cooperative in Murugu in the Savannah Region of Ghana least expected to gain international recognition that could win them ten thousand dollars.
That is what their good farming practices: nature based conservation practices earned them after they competed and beat 500 other groups to win the 2022 Equator Initiative Award, a global initiative.
The Sunkpa Shea Women’s Cooperative consists of about one thousand women from eight Women’s Associations, and operates within the Mole Ecological Landscape in West and North Gonja in the Savanna region of Ghana.
The Women are into sustainable organic shea collection, processing and marketing of Shea butter as well as involved in agro- forestry where they integrate fruit trees as part of their crops.
All their farming practices are devoid of synthetic chemicals to promote biological diversity: a nature-based conservation practice which is touted as the most cost-effective climate solutions.
The Secretary of the Sunkpa Shea Collectors Group, Sophia Abdulai credited Arocha Ghana and other partners for educating them on sustainable farming practices that is making them economically empowered.
She said “The women are into organic honey and wax production apart from the Shea butter processing” .
Madam Abdulai expressed the Association’s pride, saying “we take into consideration the restoration of degraded land by planting Shea and other native trees in order to create a healthy environment”.
She said they have benefited greatly from being part of the shea co-operative “And can now pay the school fees of their children and take care of their homes. We have received training and education on best practices as a co-operative through which we now have the bargaining power to negotiative for good prices for our products” .
AROCHA Ghana’s Northern Regional Manager, Godwin Dzekoto expressed delight that the organization’s hard work over the years has been acknowledged by the international community adding that “Attention is now being given to the green economy space and the Mole landscape”.
He was hopeful the award would spur the women on to achieve greater success.
Mr. Dzekoto said some of the money from the Equator Initiative Award will be used in supporting capacity building programmes, the production of high quality Shea butter, leadership skills and also in aggregation.
“Some of the money will be used in the purchase of equipment and protective wear to aid the women in the collection and processing of Shea. For example basins and hand gloves” Mr. Dzekoto added.
Part of the money he noted, will be invested in the Mole Ecological Landscape Conservation Trust Fund.
The fund was established to provide some long term financial sustainability to the Community Resource Management Areas, CREMAs in the landscapes.
CREMAs are formed by community members that are organized to manage their natural resources through planting of trees, wildfire management, patrolling conservation areas to prevent illegal activities like illegal mining among other activities.
EQUATOR INITIATIVE AWARD
The Equator Prize, organized by the Equator Initiative within the United Nations Development Programme is awarded biennially to recognize community efforts to reduce poverty through the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
The Sunkpa Women’s Cooperative from Ghana was among indigenous groups from countries like Gabon, Mozambique, Argentina, Panama and Papua New Guinea who emerged winners of the 2022 award.
The winning organizations demonstrated innovation, and how nature-based solutions can enable communities achieve their own local development goals, while building community resilience, even in times of economic, environmental, political and public health shocks.
