Share FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinWhatsappTelegramEmail 244 Ghana Events Second Lady, Samira Bawumia, has launched Ghana’s first shea butter exhibition and conference with a call to empower women in the shea industry. More Articles You Would Love Bonang Matheba Flaunts $3,800 Gucci Bag Gift From Her King MUSIC VID: Adina’s Serves The Haute Fashion Styles As Stonebwoy Lights Up Her Latest Song ‘Take Care Of You’ The Second Lady who through her not-for-profit organization is empowering over 1000 women in the shea value chain said the growing shea industry can meaningfully contribute to the country’s economic development when the women who constitute majority of workers are empowered. Mrs. Bawumia said the shea industry has grown over 600 percent over the last two decades and provides a stable income for the shea communities mostly in the North. “GEPA’s data showed that Ghana exported a total of $90 million of shea butter and its derivates in 2018, which is approximately 55,990 tones, an increase of about 70 million in 2017, which is quite remarkable. She said despite such impressive statistics, challenges like unfair pricing are affecting the rural women, who rely on picking and processing of shea as a form of livelihood. “Who is making the profit?” she quizzed. She said “We need to ensure that the hard working women are getting the fair wages and prices they should get for the nuts.” Mrs. Bawumia said the government is committed to addressing some of these challenges indicating that the implementation of the Planting for Export and Rural Development initiative will increase shea export and boost rural and local economies. Rashid Zakaria, Chief Executive Officer of the Savanna Golden Tree Limited, lead organizer of the April 2020 event, said the shea industry in the North can be likened to the cocoa industry in the South with a global market value of $1.2 billion in 2018. He said the expo is deliberately designed to promote business partnership among shea value chain actors, especially, farmers, women pickers, researchers, aggregators, women groups, buyers, processors, pharmaceutical companies, cosmetic industry, equipment dealers, government, development partners and financial institutions. “It is also structured to publicly recognize the effort and contributions of women, youth and the small to medium enterprises who dedicate their time to pick less than 40 per cent of nuts in the bush annually,” he added. “The expo will also promote and highlight the contributions of shea butter in the development of the rural women of the seven Northern Ecological Zones that have the comparative advantage over the production and processing of shea nuts and butter for the international markets,” he said. Share FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinWhatsappTelegramEmail Abigail Oluwakemi I'm a fashion stylist turned blogger, I hope you love my work. More For You Vlisco Ghana Unveils ‘Eclectic Cool’ Collection & Naa Ashokor As Brand Influencer With... #BeautyOfTheWeek: Proud Jamaican Influencer Anthena, Scoops Our BOTW of the Week With Her... Fashion Week Organizers from Across Africa Assemble in Ethiopia to Forge A Cohesive... Leading Ghanaian Menswear Brand ‘Kustom Looks’ Takes Over ‘All Africa Games 2023’ With... #OOTD: Berla Mundi Serves Haute Couture As She Shakes The Net With A... VIDEO: Arisar (Barbados) @ Accra Fashion Week 2023 VIDEO: Wig Wearing Black Mom Hospitalized With Horrific Skin Reaction & Illness After... A Detailed Insight Into Ethiopia’s TechStitched Fashion Program & The Participating Fashion Weeks... Cornrows With Cowry Shells: A Red Carpet Show Stopper & A Modern Twist... PICS: To Much Glamour; Check Out Bonang Matheba, Swanky & More At The... Leave a Comment Cancel ReplyYou must be logged in to post a comment. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.