Strengthening agricultural data sharing and interoperability in Ghana: Insights and recommendations from a stakeholder workshop

Ghana has substantial agricultural data generated and managed by the National Agricultural Research System (NARS), universities, government agencies, development partners and private-sector organisations. These data cover soils, crops, climate, water, biodiversity, mechanisation and markets, but remain fragmented across institutions, standards and systems, limiting their discovery, sharing and reuse. The priority is therefore not to create new data structures, but to strengthen the connections and arrangements through which existing national data assets can be responsibly shared and used. Ghana is also developing an increasingly supportive policy environment for data governance and sharing, including the Data Protection Act 2012 (Act 843), the Ghana Statistical Service Act 2019 (Act 1003), the Ghana Open Data Initiative, the emerging National Data Sharing Policy and the National Agricultural Data Infrastructure (NAgDI) framework. These provide important foundations for responsible data management, but formal frameworks alone do not guarantee active data exchange. In practice, data sharing depends on trust, institutional willingness, clear responsibilities and practical agreements between organisations that generate and manage data. The Agricultural Data Sharing and Interoperability Workshop, convened by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) within the broader PAASS context, brought together national partners to identify practical pathways for strengthening agricultural data sharing, governance and interoperability.
Four conclusions anchor this report:
• Coordinated governance, not more data, is the binding constraint on Ghana's agricultural data ecosystem.
• Digital agriculture and AI can only deliver on their promise when built on well-governed, interoperable, high-quality data.
• The workshop established the Coalition of the Willing, Ghana Chapter as the coordination mechanism under PAASS, tasked with technical coordination, knowledge exchange, and implementation of agreed priorities.
• NARS and universities remain central, generating evidence, setting technical standards, and building the next generation of agricultural data professionals.
Ghana already holds the scientific expertise, institutional capacity, and data assets required for a coordinated national agricultural data ecosystem. What is missing is the connective tissue: shared standards, sustained institutional collaboration, and investment in interoperable infrastructure. This report sets out the priority actions to build it.