Organisers of the World Shea Expo have announced that this year’s programme will be held in Tamale, in the Northern Region, in September 2026.
The announcement signals renewed focus on Ghana’s shea industry, with stakeholders positioning the sector as a key driver of economic transformation through value addition and inclusive participation.
The Expo is expected to attract more than 8,000 participants from across the globe, including women’s cooperatives, processors, exporters, policymakers, investors, development partners, and international buyers.
The event, with the theme “From Local Commodity to Global Brand: Accelerating Women and Youth-Led Value Addition in Shea”, reflects a growing national agenda to shift from exporting raw shea nuts to developing refined products for global markets.
The Expo is being organised by Savannah Golden Tree Limited in partnership with the Presidential Initiatives in Agriculture and Agribusiness (PIAA) under the Office of the President, with support from the Ghana Export Promotion Authority (GEPA), Ghana EXIM Bank, the Tree Crops Development Authority (TCDA), and the Ghana Enterprises Agency.
Organisers indicated that the 2026 edition would feature exhibitions, technical presentations, plenary sessions, field trips, business-to-business engagements, training programmes, and live demonstrations to strengthen linkages across the shea value chain and promote industrial transformation.
They noted that although Ghana remained a major exporter of shea, much of the value addition continued to take place outside the country, limiting economic returns for local actors, particularly women who dominate the early stages of production.
A statement copied to the Ghana News Agency said despite Ghana’s strong export position supplying global cosmetic, food, and pharmaceutical industries, much of the value chain remained external, constraining gains in refining, branding, and distribution.
It added that with exports exceeding 70,000 metric tonnes, valued at about 112.6 million dollars, and a global market projected at above two billion dollars, the transformation potential of the sector was substantial.
The statement explained that the Expo would serve as a strategic platform to address these gaps by promoting investment in processing, improving access to technology and finance, and strengthening market linkages.
It said the theme placed women and youth at the centre, with the aim of expanding their access to skills, finance, technology, and markets to enable their transition into higher-value activities, while positioning Ghana as a producer of globally recognised shea brands driven by inclusive and sustainable industrial growth.
The statement noted that Dr Peter Boamah Otokunor, Director of the Presidential Initiatives in Agriculture and Agribusiness, said the Expo would mark a significant step in Ghana’s agribusiness transformation agenda.
He noted that the country was moving beyond the export of raw materials towards building a competitive shea industry capable of creating jobs and empowering rural communities.
Dr Otokunor emphasised that empowering women and youth to participate in higher-value segments of the shea value chain were critical to achieving inclusive and sustainable growth.
The Expo is also expected to facilitate policy dialogue among government institutions, financial bodies, and development partners, focusing on industrialisation, trade, and climate resilience within the sector.
GNA
