The Shea 2026 Conference was officially launched in Tamale, with a call for stakeholders to work together to strengthen the shea sector.
Northern Regional Minister, Ali Adulf John, highlighted the importance of the shea tree, saying, “The shea tree is often called ‘women’s gold.’ For generations, it has provided livelihoods, food security, and economic opportunity for rural communities across northern Ghana and the wider Sahel.”
“The shea industry has a clear and important role to play in Ghana’s economic reset, particularly in driving rural economic growth, supporting women entrepreneurs, and expanding Ghana’s export potential,” Mr. Adolf said.
He encouraged stakeholders to work together to strengthen policies, investments, and programmes that will allow the shea sector to flourish.
“The sustainability of the sector lies in the protection of the shea trees, hence there is the need for us to create policies to protect them,” he added.
A Member of the Executive Committee of the Global Shea Alliance, Julius Awaregye, urged the government to create export value for shea to strengthen local production.
“The shea tree is both a traditional and livelihood resource which is becoming a key global commodity in both fruits, cosmetics, and other industrial products, with the resources growing globally as well as the demand growing.”
“We want to use this opportunity to call on Ghana to create an export value for shea production to strengthen local production,” he said.
There is a prelude to the 2026 Shea Conference, organized by the Global Shea Alliance, themed ‘Beyond Borders,’ which will bring together stakeholders from across the global shea value chain in Accra from April 27 to April 29.
Mr. Awaregye stressed the importance of protecting the shea trees, saying, “The sustainability of the sector lies in the protection of the shea trees, hence there is the need for us to create policies to protect them.”
Head of Partnership and Representative of the Presidential Advisor, 24-Hour Economy Secretariat, Dr. Ishmael Nii Amanor Dodoo, said there is a huge market for Ghanaian shea at the global stage.
“Countries like Canada, the UK, Switzerland, and others are craving for the Ghanaian shea. I want to assure everyone here that the 24hr Economy Secretariat is ready and willing to partner with Global Shea Alliance to boost production,” he said.
Nicholas Apokerah, Board Chairman at Shea Network Ghana, called on stakeholders to unite to address challenges facing the shea sector.
“The challenges in the sector are numerous, and we cannot solve them in isolation. We need to come together as stakeholders, with a common goal to tackle these challenges,” he said.
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