In a quiet village in Northern Ghana, Tagmir, a rice farmer, begins his day before the sun fully rises. The fields stretch out before him, golden and ready for harvest. He shoulders his sickle, walking with determination, but a deep sigh escapes his lips. Farming is his life’s work, but it is also his greatest struggle.
Tagmir’s challenges are many. When planting season arrives, he scrambles to find a tractor. Without it, the land must be tilled with hoes—a slow and back-breaking process. During harvest, workers are hard to come by, and even when they come, they sometimes take rice home as “payment” without asking.
Last year, Tagmir made a costly mistake by using the wrong chemicals, and his yields suffered. This
year, he spent extra buying from an expensive shop, unsure if the products would work. He also struggled to find a harvesting tool he desperately needed. By the time he found one, it was too late—the rice had dried out and couldn’t be cut efficiently.
Once the rice is bagged, the next hurdle begins. Tagmir often waits by the roadside, praying for buyers to stop. They dictate the prices, leaving little room for negotiation. “Last season,” he recalls, “I had to sell my rice at $50 per sack, even though I knew it was worth more.”
Women play a vital role in his farm’s operations, but their hard work often goes unnoticed and unrewarded. Many of them lack education, making it difficult to find opportunities beyond the fields. “If only we could make things easier for them,” Tagmir reflects, “they could contribute even more and feel valued for their work.”
Despite these struggles, Tagmir remains hopeful. He dreams of a day when he and his fellow farmers can access the tools and information they need—tractors, affordable chemicals, real-time advice, and reliable buyers. “If we had the means to make things easier and increase our yields and profit,” he says with a glimmer of hope, “we wouldn’t just have food on our tables. Our children would go to good schools, and the women who work so hard would feel empowered.”
Tagmir pauses, looking out at his field bathed in the golden light of dusk. “This,” he says quietly, “would truly increase our self-worth and esteem.”
FACT
Over 60% of Africa's population depends on agriculture for their livelihoods, yet smallholder farmers, who produce 80% of the continent's food, face severe challenges: limited access to modern tools, unreliable markets, and a lack of information.
As a result, many farmers earn less than $2 a day, struggle with post-harvest losses of up to 40%, and remain trapped in cycles of poverty, despite their critical role in feeding the continent.
This story was written following an interview with Tagmir, a smallholder farmer and teacher in Northern Ghana, conducted by a DevHub Africa researcher. Through our collaboration with Tagmir, DevHub has gained access to over 200 farmers in this small farming community, the majority of whom are women and lack formal education. Beyond this community, there are over 100 more farmers like Tagmir across Northern Ghana, all in dire need of transformative change. Technology holds immense potential to improve farming methods for smallholder farmers like Tagmir across Sub-Saharan Africa, boosting yields, providing sustainable livelihoods, and making significant strides toward achieving Sustainable Development Goal #2: Zero Hunger.
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