Ghanaian farmer to lose Ghc 5 mln investment over taboos

   A prominent livestock breeding facility in Ghana risks losing its investments in goat rearing due to a taboo forbidding goat rearing in the community.

   Fredrick Benneh Frimpong, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Semanhyia Learning and Development Farms at Senase in the Berekum municipality in the Bono Region of Ghana, said he is facing an unexpected setback as the traditional leaders of Berekum have ordered a closure of his 5.0 million Ghana Cedi- investment, citing a breach of a taboo not to rear goats in the Berekum area.

   Benneh Frimpong narrated in a You tube post on New Year Day that the traditional authorities have issued a two-week ultimatum to evacuate all goats from the community.

   Although goat rearing had been practiced in the community without repercussions, a recent event, including the slaughter of stray goats during the funeral of the late Berekumhene, has prompted the sudden enforcement of the taboo.

   In the video, the CEO said about four months ago, the queen mother of the area had issued an order for the people in the community to take all goats from the community.

   “Three days after the order, a group of young guys came into the community with machetes and killed all the goats. I was told the news but later heard that because there was a funeral coming up, the order was for goats roaming randomly, and that is why the guys were killing the goats in the town,

   “But three months later, while traveling around South Africa, I got a call from my mother saying she had been summoned by the palace, and she was given two weeks for us to evacuate all our livestock from the premises because it was a taboo and that the gods do not want goats here,” he added.

   Semanhyia Farms has been operating in the area for five years and in addition to other breeds, it has a large stock of goats as part of its farming project in the area and is reputed for the introduction of South African goat breeds into the country, boasting of 2000 such breeds with each valued at 1, 500 U.S. dollars.

   The farm also introduced innovative feeding solutions, including climate-resistant hay including alfalfa and keeping the goats in a fence in the farm.

   The CEO said the order is a devastating nightmare because a lot had been invested into the farm and many young people have their livelihoods from the farm.

In Ghana., most lands are stool and family lands, giving traditional authorities enormous power in the land tenure system.

Watch full video below