Technology demonstration was the heart of the project, and the principal tool was a large (approximately 0.5 ha) production test plot (PTP). Participating farmers using a package of recommended production practices grew the PTP, which served as a classroom where both farmers and extension agents were introduced to the new technology. Improved varieties, row planting, moderate amounts of chemical fertilizer, seed production and grain storage made the innovation of the programme.

When SG 2000 started in the country in 1986, less than 10% of the national maize area was planted on a regular basis with improved seeds. The Ghanaian diet was heavily dependant on starchy roots and tubers, such as cassava, yams and coco yams, that are high in carbohydrates but low in protein; and maize, low in protein quality, although higher in total protein. Hence the importance attached by the Crops Research Institute (CRI) to the research and the promotion of Quality Protein Maize (QPM) which has twice the levels of lysine and tryptophan of ordinary maize, and would therefore improve the nutritional welfare of the poor—especially women and weaning children.

Through field days and communications with peers already in the programme, many farmers joined the programme. In fact, the number of farmers grew so fast that the close supervision in the first two years was no longer possible. The project We relied on graduate farmers, associations and groups of farmers to carry out the message.
This extraordinary expansion of the field demonstration programme—from 16,000 PTPs in 1988 to 80,000 in 1989—caused huge problems. Neither the Ministry of Agriculture nor SG 2000 had the organizational capacity to manage such a large programme.

Post harvest grain losses due to improperly stored maize could amount to 30 per cent of the harvested grain in Ghana and other Sub-Saharan countries. The threat of such high grain losses often forces farmers to sell surplus grain as quickly as possible, which causes prices to drop sharply. To help this twin problem of storage and marketing, the SG 2000 programme launched a project to improve and expand the grain storage capacity of small-scale farmers.

In 1989, more than 85,000 farmers planted at least 85,000 acres (34,400ha)—7 per cent of Ghana’s total maize and sorghum acreage—using the new technology being demonstrated by SG 2000. The SG 2000 programme, which began with just 40 agricultural demonstration plots in Ghana, was then shaping up to become an important African success story.

Alongside the PTP, the farmer was asked to grow a second plot using his or her conventional farming practices to help in making comparisons. The crop growth and yield in the PTP was almost always overwhelmingly superior. It is a ‘let them test it’ approach which, rather than preaching to farmers, encourages them to test the technologies in their own responsibilities. The PTP farmers had to repay the cost of fertilizer and improved seed varieties, but the greater yields they had obtained made the repayment easy.

The profitability and the simplicity of the recommended technological packages were the key to of the success of the SG 2000 strategy. The participating farmers got recommend inputs on credit for up to three seasons. After that, they were considered to have graduated from the demonstration programme, and they turned to conventional channels to acquire the inputs they had learned to use.

The Ghana project spearheaded a credit scheme involving formal banking institutions. The Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) issued credit for inputs to the farmers' group that have fully repaid the previous season’s loans. The scheme ensured that the farmers were able to get input credit after they "graduated" from SG 2000 project.

Assisting in the development and the diffusion of quality protein maize (QPM) varieties was one of the most significant achievements of SG 2000 Ghana. The protein of QPM varieties was better than that of normal maize varieties, an important benefit for diets in countries like Ghana where maize is the staple food. Ghana’s farmers plant over 100,000 hectares to QPM varieties and hybrids released by the national Crop Research Institute. The varieties had been spreading to many other African countries, as well: eleven countries—Mali, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Guinea, Mozambique, Uganda, Malawi, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Ethiopia—received QPM varieties and germplasm produced in Ghana.

Conservation tillage, or no-tillage farming, was fostered by the Ghana project. Through conservation tillage, farmers saved the cost of ploughing and land preparation, they were better able to plant when soil moisture conditions were right, and their land was less vulnerable to erosion from heavy rainfall. SG 2000’s work on conservation tillage technology also began in Ghana, then spreading through Africa.

In 1995, the SG 2000 Ghana project entered into a new mode of operation called Phase II. Under the new mode, the project no longer had an expatriate country director; instead a national project coordinator guided the project.

To help upgrade the technical and communicational skills of frontline agricultural extension staff working in the public and private organisations in Ghana, the University of Cape Coast has developed a new innovative Bsc degree course for mid-career staff holging either a post secondary school certificat or a diploma in agricultural studies. (See About SAFE).

After 8 years of collaboration, SG 2000 was transferring most of the management responsabilities for its activities to the national leadership of the Minsitry of Food and Agricultrure (MOFA). Since 1991, MOFA and SG 2000 had given considerable emphasis to improving on-farm post harvest technologies and grain storage. By 1994, farmers had built some 4,000 drying cribs, mainly in the southern regions where post harvest losses had been the greatest.
SG 2000 has also been closely involved in the development of Ghana’s private seed industry. Nearly 700 tons of certified seed was sold in 1994. Maize accounted for 85%, with half being the QPM Obatanpa, released in 1992.

While a good record of seed quality has been maintained, the seed industry was still struggling to establish a firm economic base. High cost of production inputs, especially for fertilizer, relatively low producer prices, and limited access to commercial credit have restricted investments by seed growers. Similar cost and finance problems also affected Ghanaian farmers, who restricted their demand.

In phase II, SG 2000 continues to support four main areas of activity: production technology and transfer, post harvest activities, seed production and distribution and QPM.

Wayne Haag reported in 1999 that fertilizer use in Ghana had begun to increase, and that the input retail distribution system was also expanding. “However, things are moving too slowly. More effective partnerships need to be forged to accelerate process.”

In 2000, the SAA Board of Directors approved a 3year extension of the project, but urged SG 2000 Ghana management to concentrate its efforts in a relatively few number of districts, integrating various programme offerings—crop production, post harvest, agro-processing, training and institutional capacity-building—so that these districts could serve as demonstration locations for other areas.
For SG 2000, the year 2000 had seen the development of strengthening partnerships with local governments and rural institutions. Furthermore 100 per cent recovery loans made to participating farmers have been achieved.

The programme ended in 2003, but SG 2000 kept on looking closer to the country through its regional programme. Ghana is still SG 2000’s model programme.