Ghana has strengthened surveillance and preparedness measures for banana bunchy top disease, a viral disease affecting bananas and plantains. The disease can cause yield losses of 2 to 12 tonnes per hectare and income losses of up to 100 per cent. A CABI study estimated farmer income losses at US$289 to US$1,444 per hectare.
Concerns about the disease reaching Ghana emerged in 2020 after it had been reported in 19 African countries, including Benin and Nigeria. Pest horizon scanning conducted by CABI with the Ghanaian government identified banana bunchy top virus as a high-priority invasive pest. PlantwisePlus subsequently supported the development of a prevention, preparedness, and response plan.
From 2021, PlantwisePlus worked with the Plant Protection and Regulatory Services Directorate (PPRSD), universities, and research institutes to assess the risk. Research found limited farmer awareness of the disease and the aphid responsible for its transmission.
In 2025, surveillance was conducted across 13 districts in the Eastern, Greater Accra, Oti, and Volta regions. Scientists collected samples that were analysed using molecular technologies at the Ghanaian Plant Disease Research Centre, based at the Biotechnology and Nuclear Agriculture Research Institute.
All samples tested negative, indicating that banana bunchy top disease was not present in the surveyed districts and communities. However, surveillance continued because of the disease’s spread in neighbouring countries, including Benin.
Ghana’s updated prevention and preparedness plan includes stricter guidelines for importing banana planting material and revised inspection protocols. PlantwisePlus and PPRSD also carried out pest risk communication activities and trained 24 phytosanitary advisors and inspectors in disease identification.
Awareness campaigns were conducted in four districts of the Volta Region, reaching more than 1,500 farmers across 28 high-risk communities. Farmers were trained to recognise suspected cases and report them to extension agents.
Ghana consumes an estimated 86 per cent to 91 per cent of the plantain grown domestically. Surveillance, import controls, inspection protocols, and grower awareness remain part of efforts to prevent the establishment of banana bunchy top disease.
Source: blog.plantwise.org
