TECHNOLOGIES FOR RURAL WOMEN ~ GHANA

Technical Manual No. 4

GARI PROCESSING

^.,---=4

Prepared under the joint auspices of the

International Labour Office. The Royal
Netherlands Government and the National
Council on Women and Development, Ghana

International LBoour Office Geneva

JANUARY 1987
National Council on Women and Development, Accra.
Copyright (C) International Labour Organisation 1986

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col 2 of the Universal Copyright Convention. Nevertheless, short excerpts
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source is indicated. For rights of reproduction or translation, applications
should be made to the Publications Branch (Rights and Permissions), Inter-
national Labour Office, CH-1211 Geneva 22, Switzerland. The Interna-
tional Labour Office welcomes such applications.

ISBN 92-2-105019-X

FIRST PUBLISHED JANUARY 1987

The designations employed in ILO publications, which are in conformity

with United Nations practice, and the presentation of material therein do
not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the
International Labour Office concerning the legal status of any country or
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The responsibility for opinions expressed in signed articles, studies and
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Reference to names of firms and commercial products and processes does
not imply their endorsement by the International Labour Office, and any
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ACCRA
 CONTENTS

Page

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. iv

PREFACE

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION ....... I

1.1 Background 1
1.2 Purpose 1
1.3 Conceptual and Methodological approach 2
1.4 Design 3

CHAPTER TWO SOCIAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL ASPECTS

OF IMPROVED GARI PROCESSING 4
2.1 Group formation 4
2.2 Sources of basic inputs and credit 5
2.3 Social organization of production 5
2.4 Marketing and profit sharing ... 7
2.5 Assessing the benefits . 7

CHAPTER THREE TECHNOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF GARI

9
PROCESSING
3.1 Machinery inputs for improved gari pro-
cessing 9
32 Gari Processing ..12
3.3 Comparison of improved and traditional
gari processing .20

CHAPTER FOUR ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF IMPROVED

SIS TECHNOLOGY . .................. 25
4.1 Introduction . *..; i.................... ..25
4.2 Performance figures ............., /., ... . ..25
4.3 Traditional and improved investment costs 25
4.4 Annual fixed costs .. 27
4.5 Variable Costs . .... ........... ....... 28
REFERENCES 30
APPENDIX I . . .... .......... .... . .... 31
APPENDIX II 32

m
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The publication of this manual on gari processing in rural Ghanaian com-

munities has been made possible by a grant from the Royal Netherlamls
Government through the International Labour Organisation (ILO) of the
United Nations.
The ILO and the dissemieating agency in Ghana, The National Council on
Women and Development (NCWD), acknowledge this generous support.
Many individuals and units in the ILO, Geneva and the project country,
Ghana, made valuable contributions to the preparation of this manual. These
contributors include personnel of SIS Engineering Ltd., Kumasi, Ghana and
he beneficiary rural communities of Antoa, Ashanti Region and Damongo,
Northern Region, Ghana.
Without the valuable support and personal interest taken by Mr Alfred
K.K. Mubanda UNDP Resident Representative, the implementation of the
project would not have been so effective. The skilful backstopping of the
project by UNDP staff notably MisslVlaria Ferreri has been most valuable.
NCWD Chairperson and the Executive Secretary, have closely guided and
reviewed the work of the project while valuable counterpart support from
NCWD was provided by Mrs Frances Minnow Hagan, Mrs. Susanna deVeer,
Ms. Vera Aryee and NCWD Regional Secretaries.
Thanks go to Miss Joyce Larbi who typed the original manuscript. Mr
D.A. Fianko-Torto, the project Administrative Assistant, played a critical
role in the project's implementation under intricate and complex organisa-
tional arrangements.
Finally, we are grateful to the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Accra for
the encouragement given, particularly by the Charge D'Affaires, who closely
monitored the progress and results of the project.

IV
 PREFACE

Within the framework of the I LO/Government of the Netherlands/Ghana

National Council on Women and^Development Technical co-operation on
Technologies for Rural Women of Ghana, this manual on gari processing is
the fourth in a series of manuals on five processing activities undertaken by
the rural women of Ghana! This field project is a follow-up to an ILO
Africa Regional Project (financed by Norway) on Technological Change,
Basic Needs and the Condition of Rural Women. ILO work on technologies for
rural women was launched at the beginning of the UN Decade for women
(1976-85) in response to various recommendations at international conferen-
ces for interna+icnal agencies like the ILO to give greater emphasis to the
impact of science and technology on the socio-economic conditions of
women. For example, the resolution adopted by the UN Conference on
Science and Technology for Development (UNCSTD, 1979) recommended
that UN bodies like the ILO, dealing with science and technology, should
continually review the impact of their programmes on women. Subsequently,
the World Conference of the UN Decade for Women (Copenhagen, 1980)
recommended that "the ILO in co-operation with pertinent (UN) bodies
should develop studies to assess the working and employment conditions of
rural women". The publication of this manual following the Nairobi Con-
ference on the Women's Decade is therefore significant.
Subsequently, in the resolution on equal opportunities and equal treatment
in employment adopted at the 71st Session of the International Labour Con-
ference (June 1985) and the Forward Looking Strategies adopted at the
Nairobi World Conference (July 1985), productive employment for rural
women is reaffirmed as an area of special and priority concern. More recently,
in a special resolution, the Inter-Governmental Committee on Science and
Technology for Development (eighth session, June 1986) urged that necessary
measures be taken to ensure the implications of the Forward Looking Strate-
gies for the Advancement of Women in the field of science and technology
for development are fully taken into account. This ILO project notably re-
sponds to the Nairobi Forward-Looking Strategy recommendation for inten-
sifying efforts in the design and delivery of technologies appropriate for
women.

The manual contains guidelines on specific preparatory work required at the

grass roots level to bring the women's youps into organisational readiness to
receive improve technologies. Since the manua%based on direct observations
and feedbacks obtained from monitoring of the ocial, technical and econo-
mic problems associated with technology used by rural women, the guidelines
emerging from it are of concrete and practical significance. Another innova-
tive feature of the manuatas its exclusive concern with the control and mana-
gement of improved technology by rural women individually and in groups.

The other processing activities covered relate to palm oil, f ish,coconut oil and soap
 The manual provides a methodology for a multi-disciplinary assessment of
benefits of improved technologies to rural women. Finally, it demonstrates
the importance and feasibility of jinking national R & D and training institu-
tions, local manufacturers, extension agencies (including NCWP) and women's
groups.
A team of three specialists K. Ewusi (Economist) Gracia Clark (Social
Anthropologist) and S. Gyasi (Technologist) -with the assistance of NCWD
staff, notably Frances Minnow-Hagan, have worked on this joint ILO/Nether-
lands/NCWD project for a period of three years under the guidance of Iftik-
har Ahmed of the Technology and Employment Branch. The ILO office in
Lagos provided valuable administrative support.
S. Gyasi assumed the principal responsibility for the production of the
set of five manuals.
Recognising the success of this pilot project, it has been extended to the
second phase (1986-88) under continued ILO/NCWD/Netherland joint colla-
boration to widen the coverage of women's groups on a larger national scale.

Gertrude Zakaria-Ali, A. S.Bhalla,

Executive Secretary, Chief,
National Council on Women Technology and Employment
and Development, Accra. Branch,, ILO, Geneva.

VI
 CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

1.1 BACKGROUND

Fufu, ampesi, kokonte, gari, yakayaka a^c/tep/oca are the main Gh.ariai.gn
staple prepared out of the root crop cassava.
Due to the ease of its preparation for the table and also its relatively long
storage life, gari has become a leading food item on the Ghanaian market.
Wherever cassava is grown in Ghana, a good proportion of the crop is pro-
cessed into gari, a dry granular pale-yellow mass that rises welt on the addi-
tion of water,
fiiree popular preparations from gari are:
(a) addition of hot water to the gari to produce a sticky firm mass taken
with soup.
(b) a mixture of cooked red beans, palm oil and gari normally taken tor
breakfast.
(c) soaking of the gari m water to produce a fluid mass to which sgarand
milk are added to taste.
Gari is a favourite food item among educational institutions and workers'
canteens. This is primarily due to gari's reasonable cost and easy prparation
for lunches. Consequently it is a favourite of food contractors and market
women. This creates a good market for cassava producers in practically all
regions of Ghana. The introduction of cassava graters has greatly enhanced the
yglume of gari output in rural Ghanaian communities. .__:__

1.2 PURPOSE

Rural Ghanaian women have played a predominant role in the traditional

processing of gari. With the introduction of innovative features such as mecha-
nised cassava grating, gari roasting and milling machines the women have
accordingly modified their methods to increase the volume of their traditional
gari production.
This manual demonstrates how, with the appropriate socio-economic and
technical support, the rural Ghanaian women have been able to meet the
challenges of their occupation, specifically gari production.
The manual shows how the rural Ghanaian women still play, their tradi-
tional roles in their communities (smallhold farming, household chores and
social obligations) while embracing innovative technologies in their gari
production. This has been made possible by applying simple technology,
encouragement of a cooperative spirit and appropriate division of labour.
In short the manual is based on direct practical experience of the use of
improved technology in ^ri processing by women in the rural areas of
Ghana. It provides guidelines on social, organisational, economic and tech-
nical aspects of the use of improved technologies as elaborated below.
(a) The first basic purpose of the manual is to provide a methodology and

1
 guidelines for the preparatory work required to bring women's groups
to organisational readiness prior to the introduction of improved tech-
nologies. This is specially designed to ensure ownership and control of
the technology by the women's groups themselves.
(b) In addition to the usual.economic cost/benefit analysis, simple indica-
tors formulated for the assessment of benefits from the use of improv-
ed technologies are suggested.
(c) The economic and technical constraints likely to be faced by rural
women in the use of improved technologies are identified.
(d) Guidelines on the technical training in terms of contents, methodology
and location are also provided.
(e) Guidelines are provided on safety considerations together with tech-
nical efficiency.

1.3. CONCEPTUAL AND METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH

Even though most rural Ghanaian women in cassava growing areas were
conversant with gari production, there was the need to define a broader con-
ceptual framework within which to introduce the women to the new tech-
nology of gari production.
The rural women's existence in their various communitie is influenced
by social and economic factors such as farming, child rearing, domestic
chores^ petty trading, membership of church groups, benevolent societies
and so on.
Hence an introduction of any technology to rural women without an
appraisal of the social and economic factors that affect their daily chores
will be tantamount to art imposition of an alien technology on thern.
In the light of the above, the basic approach of introducing the improv-
ed technology of gari production to rural women was based on the tsam
work of three experts: a rural sociologist, a rural technologist and a develop-
ment economist.
The rural sociologist played a primary role of identifying and studying the
social organisation of rural women's groups prior to a final decision to esta-
blish the project in the particular areas. The rural sociologist also paid
periodic visits after the installation of the equipment to perform duties as
outlined in Chapter 2.
The rural technologist took off from where the rural sociologist left off
by visiting the proposed project site, identifying the existing technologies in
the area and making appropriate recommendations. The rural technologist
further participated in the installation of the equipment, introduction of the
women's group to the improved technology and technical evaluation of the
project equipment for appropriate modification where necessary.
The detailed functions of the rural technologist are highlighted in Chapter
3.
The development economist played a key role of assessing the economic
impact of the technology on the rural women. This took several forms,
including a survey of the women's existing income generating activities in a
perspective wider than gari production. The economist also assessed the capa-
bility of the women's group to organise capital to meet certain costs of the
project inputs and finally monitored the economic returns, of the new tech-
nology.
The methodology of the rural economist are detailed in Chapter 4 of this
manual.

1.4 DESIGN

As shown in the table of contents, there are four main chapters in this
manual. These exclude the references and appendices.
The first introductory chapter is devoted to the brief history of develop-
ments that led to certain decisions being taken at both national and inter-
national levels to improve the lot of rural Ghanaian women, through rural
technology.
The introduction also shows the sociological, technical and economic
bases for adopting the methodology of introducing the improved technology
to the rural women.
Chapters 2, 3 and 4 are devoted to the social, technical and economic
aspects respectively of the project implementation. The ordering of the
chapters 2 to 4 reflects ths^sequence of surveys, interviews and evaluation
that was followed by the team qf experts, even though there were no hard
and fast rules about the duration or oounds of each expert's activities.
The sketches and drawings, in the technical section, Chapter 3 show good
proportions but are not drawn t scale. The pertinent technical drawings
may be obtained from the manufacturers, listed in the Appendix.
The pictures depicting women at various stages of gari processing were
taken on the job and are therefore a true representation of the tasks as
described in the manual.
individual researchers and institutions that have published on improved
technologies for rural women are listed in the References. A list of the sup-
pliers, manufacturers of the gari processing equipment appears in the Appen-
dix. The quoted prices reflect the production costs at the time of the project
and will need to be.revised by interested parties that may use this manual as
a reference material.
 CHAPTER 2

SOCIAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL ASPECTS OF IMPROVED

GARI PROCESSING

2.1 GROUP FORMATION

The two pilot project areas for gari processing are Antoa (Ashanti
Region) and Damongo (Northern Region). Both sites are located in popular
cassava growing areas and women in the villages were processing gari on
their own before groups were formally organised under the guidance of the
National Council on Women and Development (NCWD).
There was no special requirement for membership qualification. However,
the main criterion for membership was that one should have some know-
ledge of and interest in gari processing.
In addition, new members were expected to be hard working, honest,
dedicated and willing to work with others.
In each project area an initial group of 15 women was formed with the
encouragement of the Regional NCWD Secretary. The group was also
encouraged by the village chief who allocated the group a project site arid
also offered them other logistic support. Each women's group finally grew in
number to about 45.
There were five executive members comprising a president, an organising
secretary, an executive secretary and her assistant and one executive
member.
The ages of the cooperators in the women's initial group ranged from 22
to 65, with the majority of them falling within the age grouping of 25 tc44
as shown in a sample table below.

Table 2.1. Age Composition of Pilot Group of Gari Processors*

Age Group No. of Cooperators Percentage

24 and lower 3 20.0

25-34 4 26.7
35 - 44 5 33.3
45-54 2 13.3
55-64 0 0.0
65+ 1 6.7

Total 15 100.00

* Antoa, Ashanti Region

It was desirable to have a knowledge of the marital status of the indivi-

dual women in a pilot group. This was necessary because rural Ghanaian
women combine their household chores with their normal occupation out-
side to the home. These chores include child rearing, cooking, cleaning and
washing.
In a sample survey of one women's pilot group, two were separated from
their husbands, one was widowed and the remainder were married as shown
in Table 2.

Table 2.2: Marital Status of Cooperators in Initial Group at Antoa

Marital Status No. of Cooperators Percentage

Single - 0.0
Married 12 80.0
Separated 2 13.3
Divorced 0.0
Widowed 1 6.7

Total 15 100.00

2.2 SOURCES OF BASIC INPUTS AND CREDIT

There are three sources of raw cassava for the gari processing by the
women's group. First the women buy the cassava from other people's farms.
They negotiate with the farmers as to how much the unharvested cassava
crop would cost. Upop agreement, the women processors pay half of the
total cost of cassava and when they complete the harvesting they pay the
difference.
Second, the women's group obtains cassava from farms of the group mem-
bers. Third, the members have cultivated their own cassava farm as a ready
source of raw material for their industry.
Members did not pay dues when the group was initially formed. They ob-
tained their working capital from the Town Development Committee. They
have since paid back the money they borrowed.
The group used part of their initial capital to buy some of their basic
inputs that included sacks, metal basins and frying pans and part as deposit
for the cassava they bought from other people's farms.
The women's group initially did not have a bank account and in the inter-
im the group's president kept alltheir funds. All the group members appear-
ed to have a knowledge about their credit balance. Thus the initial informal
way of handling their financial matters was not a hindrance to the smooth
running of the organization.

2.3 SOCIAL ORGANIZATION OF PRODUCTION

There is evidence of cohesion among the group members, apparently

due to the reasonable size of the working group at any given time. , '**
At the commencement of production, the women spend the first few
days to collect firewood. When they have enough firewood, the women
THE PARTICIPATION OF CHILDREN IN THE GARI PROCESSING BI THEIR
MOTHERS IS A FACTOR THAT CAN NOT BE IGNORED IN A RURAL SETTING.
THE PRESENCE OF CHILDREN DURING HEAT INTENSIVE OR MECHANISED
OPERATIONS OF THE GARI PROCESSING CALLS FOR SAFETY CONSCIOUS
MOTHERS IN THE WOMEN'S GROUP.

&

THE LARGE GROUP OF CHILDREN IN THIS PICTURES UNDERSCORES THE

SOCIOLOGICAL CHALLENGES TO THE PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION EXPERTS.
IT IS NORMAL FOR THE CHILDREN TO LOOK^FOR AND JOIN THEIR
MOTHERS AFTER SCHOOL, DURING WEEKENDS ANT) VACATIONS WHEN THE
CHILDREN ARE MORE IDLE.

6
 b$gin the gari processing which involves several sub-groups of two or three
each carrying out miscellaneous activities including cassava harvesting from
the farm, peeling of the cassava tubers, grating the cassava into dough, press-
ferijnentation, sieving, roasting and bagging for market.
Any aspect of the work such as fetching of firewood or uprooting of cas-
sava which may require extra physical exertion may be carried out by hired
male labourers.

2.4 MARKETING AND PROFIT SHARING

Part of the gari produced by the women's group is sold to the local
people. The bulk is either transported to marketing centres or sold directly
to educational institutions in the region of operation. The consensus isthat
if the women are able to market their product in bulk it saves them time and
energy and they will receive their payment in bulk instead of in bits from
individual customers.
The group members take part of the gari produced for consumption at
home without any payment.
There was no initial profit sharing after the gari had been processed. The
women instead used part of their profit in procuring additional inputs for
their industry.

2.5 ASSESSING THE BENEFITS

1. The group members have improved their technique of gari processing

and are now able to prepare better quality gari which fetches a higher
price on the market.

2. Because of the increased volume of gari produced, there is a higher

demand for cassava. The group members have a ready market for cas-
sava produced on their individual farms. Furthermore, non-group
members also benefit from the good prices which they obtain from
the sale of their cassava to the project groups.

3. Group members have confirmed that even when they do not realise
additional income in terras of physical cash from the group's opera-
tion, they are happy since they take some of the gari home to sup-
plement their family diet.
4. The husbands of the group members are also happy about the
women's project because the improved income of their wives and the
take-home gari help to reduce the husbands' financial responsibilities
in the home.
5. Apart from its purely economic outlook, the women's group acts as
a social force in the village. Besides instilling discipline, love, dedica-
tion and respect among its members the group functions as a litera-
cy group. The group's executive secretary, for example, has benefited
from a workshop held in Kumasi for soap making. She has started
training her colleagues how to make soap.
Some of the women who have not joined the group have started
making gari on their own. It is hoped this demonstration effect will
spread to the nearby villages.

8
 CHAPTER 3

TECHNOLOGICAL ASPECTS OF GAR I PROCESSING

3.1 lyiACHINERY INPUTS FOR IMPROVED GARI

PROCESSING
The following pieces of machinery were installed at each project site
for the improved gari processing:
cassava grater
cassava press
gari roaster
milling machine
diesel engine
3.1.1. Cassava Grater
The mechanical cassava grater is belt-driven by a diesel engine. The basic
feature of the machine is the grating unit, which is of the vertical disc design.
It comprises a heavy disc with a perforated sheet metal welded onto the grat-
ing face.
The disc may measure 45cm in diameter. It is coupled to a vertically
mounted pulley to the side of the grater by means of a horizontal shaft.
The driven pulley of the grater and the driving pulley0 of the diesel engine
are connected by a flat belt.
The grating unit is in a housing beneath a hopper into which peeled cas-
sava tubers are fed. There is a discharge tube, below the grating unit, through
which the grated cassava (dough) passes into a receptacle.

3.1.2 Cassava Press

A parallel boards press is used in the extraction of iuice from the grated
cassava, it is a simple device and comprises a pair of horizontal parallel
boards worked closer together by a pair of vertical screws located near the
right and left ends of the boards.
Mini sacks of grated cassava (dough) are placed on the lower board and
the upper board is pressed on to the top of the sacks of dough with the aid
of the screws.
The whole arrangement is elevated on concrete blocks to facilitate the
pressing by a processor in a standing position. A receptacle for extracted
juice is placed below the edge of the lower board.
Also available is an SIS designed cassava screw press. This provides a more
positive pressure than the parallel boards press and can be used to press
grated cassava within 24 hours. However the resultant gari does not acquire
the desirable sour flavour achieved with a parallel boards press that can be
held in place for 2 to 3 days to achieve the desired degree of dough fermen-
tation. The screw press is more expensive and holding several in place to
handle six mini sacks of dough (as in the boards press) adds to the initial in-
vestment cost in machinery. The press cage of the screw press replaces the
sacks used to contain the dough in the parallelboards press.
 \s/Z~- nyfA
^ HANDLE

PRESSED SACK
PARALLEL BAORDS
SCREW

PARALLEL BOARDS PRESS

MOVABLE SCREW

TURN HANDLE

PRESS
TABLE

JUICE

CASSAVA SCREW PRESS

10
 SIS GARI ROASTER

1200

i\

CM PULLEY
1
600 DIA X 125 LONG
i 3MM
*" STAINLESS
CM STEEL
1i SHEET p

/
BRONZE 100 DIA 300 DIA X
BUSHING X 125 LONG 125 LONG
BEARING

ALL DIMENSIONS IN MILLIMETERS

3.1.3 Gari Roaster
The mechanical SIS gari roaster is a horizontal half-cylinder topped with a
rectangular section. The lower half cylinder and half of the upper rectangular
portion are made of stainless steel. This steel portion is heated by a suitable
fireplace below the curred bottom which is 120 cm long and has a diameter
of 70 cm.
The upper most rectangular section is made out of wood and measures
about 25 cm deep. This portion is not subjected to direct heatina from the
fireplace. . , . * -ru
There is a longitudinal stirrer within the steel portion of the roaster. The
simple strirrer comprises four metal bars welded onto a pair of spoked
wheels at the ends of the bars. The design is similar to the pick-up reel in
the front of a grain combine harvester.

There is a longitudinal shaft for the stirrer and the shaft is driven through
a set of pulleys by a diesel engine. The roaster has a sturdy angle iron sup-
port.
3.1.4 Milling Machine

A conventional corn mill is used in the gari processing. The mill is used to
reduce the large lumps that are sieved out of the roasted gari into a finer
grade.
The cora mill has a hopper above the milling unit. The rough lumps of
roasted gari are fed into the hopper which is in the form of an inverted trun-
cated pyramid. There is a control wheel to the side of mill which is used to
adjust the milled size of the rough dough. The rough gari lumps are milled
^without closing the grinding stones.
Between the hopper and the milling unit is an agitator through which
material flows into the milling unit. The agitator helps to dislodge lumps of
roasted gari from the bottom of the hopper and hence ensures free flow of
material from the hopper.
The corn mill is belt-driven by a LISTER diesel engine.
3.1.5 Diesel Engine

Two LISTER diesel engines are used in driving the cassava grater and the
gari roaster. In either case, an 8 hp diesel engine is installed.
The diesel engine drives the grater or roaster through a flat belt The
LISTER engine is fairly compact. Its main components are: main body
(combustion chamber), fuel tank, air cleaner housing, exhaust, flywheel on
a shaft 11 cm dia x 11 cm wide on which rides the driving flat belt. The belt
length measures about 4 metres.

3.2 GARI PROCESSING

3.2.1 Traditional Gari Processing

Peeling In the traditional method of gari making, the harvested cassava
is peeled with a large knife. The peeled tubers are washed with water and

12
 HARVESTED CASSAVA

PEELS PEEL

REMNANTS WASH
TUBERS

DOUGH FOR DOUGH FOR

GARI ONLY
GRATE GARI AND
STARCH

PRESS WASH SACK OF

WASHED DOUGH
IN JUTE BAGS DOUGH IN DRUM
OF WATER

WE/GHT WEIGHT PARALLEL

ON ON BOARDS SEDIMENT
BASKET JUTE BAG PRESS

L
-i SIEVE STARCH

REGULAR
ROUPHAGE
DOUGH

ANIMAL
ROAST
FEED

H" KOKONTE SIEVE SIEVED

LUMPS
MILL

REGULAR
GARI

SCHEMATIC OF GARI PROCESSING

13
CASSA VA TUBERS, GROUPED ACCORDING TO
OWNERSHIP, READY FOR PEELING

CASSAVA TUBERS ARE PEELED WITH KNIVES PRIOR

TO GRATING

14
BOARD

NAILS

CURVED
GRATING
SHBBT

MANUAL GRATER

15
then hand-grated into dough. The peels are kept for animal feed,
Grating The hand-held grater isa curved, perforated galvanised sheet metal
nailed onto a wooden board. The sharp ridges of the perforations effect the
grating of the cassava. The grater is supported in an inclined position with
one hand while the tuber is held in the other hand and rubbed briskly on the
rough surface of the grater until the peeled tuber is nearly spent. The rem:
nants of the tubers are stored for animal feed or dried for preparation of
kokonte for human consumption.
Pressing The dough from the grated cassava is packed into a jute bag and
loaded at the top with, large stones, blocks or other suitably heavy objects.
The weighting facilitates the seepage of juice from the dough through the
pores of the jute bag. The weighting and the resultant juice loss last at least
overnight but normally two to three days, during which period the weighted
dough becomes moderately fermented.

Starch if starch is to be produced on the side, the bag of dough is first

washed in a drum of water to extract some cassava juice from the dough.
The sediment from the drum of water is used in the preparation of starch.
The washed bag is then pressed with heavy objects as described above. The
resultant gari does not rise well with water. * n

Sieving The pressed, fermented cassava dough is sieved into a large basin.
The sieving is effected with the aid of a raffia tray with a design similar to a
rectangular wire mesh.
The large raffia sieve is placed flat on the rim of the basin. Lumps of the
dough areTubbed by hand on the sieve, to separate the properly grated pro-
tions of the dough, which drop into the basin, from the roughage which
remains on the sieve. The roughage is put aside for animal feed.

Roasting The sieved dough in the basin is roasted in a shallow earthen-

ware or iron pan over a medium-hot fire of a three-stone fireplace. The basic
technique of the roasting is a continuous brisk turning over of the dough
with the aid of a flat or moderately curved hand-held piece.
The roasting imparts a pale yellow colour to the dough which becomes
fairly dry and of a granular form.

Sieving Small hard lumps of gari form during the roasting and these
need to be sieved out of the roasted mass. The sieving is achieved with the
same technique for sieving the pressed dough. The sieved gari is stored for
market while the lumps are put aside for animal feed.

3.2.2 SIS Improved Technology

The stages of the gari processing where the Science Import Substitution
(SIS) technology introduces innovation include grating, pressing, roasting
and milling. Cassava peeling and gari sieving remain the same as in the tra-
ditional processing.

16
 PRESSED CASSAVA DOUGH BEING SUN-DRIED
BEFORE ROASTING.

SUN-DRIED CASSAVA DOUGH IS SIEVED BEFORE

ROASTING

17
 81

3 A3 IS liJVD IVNOIliaVtl

3IAIVyd
/V3000/VI 133HS
fylddVU
THE GARI IS STIRRED FROM SIDE TO SIDE OF SHALLOW
PAN TO ENSURE UNIFORM ROASTING OVER MODERATE FIRE

19
Improved Grating A diesel-engine-drlven cassava grater as described in sec-
tion 3.1.1 replaces the manual grater described in section 3.2.1.
Whole peeled tubers are efficiently grated and there are practically no left-
over pieces (of hand-held cassava) as in the traditional method. The SIS
mechanical vertical disc grater can process a maxi bag of peeled cassava
weighing 100 kg. in 15 minutes.
Improved Pressing The SIS parallel boards press is popular with the gari
makers due to its simplicity, ease of operation and low cost. It is described
in section 3.1.2. It may be used to press several mini bags of grated dough
simultaneously.
The parallel boards press is compact and^arovides a more positive uniform
pressure on the cassava dough compared with the traditional stones-on-sacks
approach.
After an initiaK accelerated loss of juice from the sacks of cassava dough
any resultant reduction of pressure on the dough can be corrected by tight-
ening the screws of the parallel boards. This positive approach to pressure
increase is an improvjement upon the traditional method in which the dead
weight of stones on the sacks remains constant during the press-fermentation
period.

SIS Roaster The application of the mechanical gari roaster eliminates

heat on the hands of the women processors during the roasting. The stirring
is positive and uniform and there is no spill over of gari during the roasting
as in the traditional method.
By a system of carefully designed speed reduction pulleys the fast running
diesel engine is able to rotate the stirrer of the roaster at an ideal, low speed.
The speed reduction is 1/6.
The mechanical roaster has a life span of 10 years and can handle 50 kg
of sieved dough between 45 and 60 minutes per batch.

Corn Mill The milling process, an integral part of the SIS technology,
improves the output of the gari processing. Lumps of gari sieved out of the
roasted mass is passed through a corn mill. The fine grade of milled gari is
mixed with sieved, pressed dough prior to roasting. In the traditional
approach, the sieved roasted lumps are discarded for animal feed.
The initial investment for the corn mill for the gari project is high, by
rural standards. Hence a way of avoiding the incorporation of a milling unit
is to thoroughly dry the cassava dough after the press-fermentation. The
well-dried dough is then sieved and roasted with minimal proportion of gari
lumps.

3.3 COMPARISON OF IMPROVED AND TRADITIONAL

GARI PROCESSING

1. The mechanical cassava grater works faster than the hand operated
board-and-sheet metal used in the traditional method. The grater there-
fore handles a greater quantity (400 kg/hr) than the traditional method

20
ADHOC CONSULTANT DEMONSTRATES THE FLOW OF GRATED
CASSAVA THROUGH THE EXIT OF THE MECHANICAL GRATER
NOTE DRIVING MECHANISM TO THE LEFT OF THE GRATER

2t
 \ . ,
3MS

to
to

ADHOC CONSULTANT WORKS SCKliw niUHAWiM Uf

THREE MINI BAGS OF CASSAVA DOUGH IN A PARALLEL MECHANICAL PRESS FOR CASSAVA DOUGH
BROAD PRESS. NOTE SPACE ON LEFT OF PRESSED
BAGS FOR ANOTHER LOAD OF CASSAVA DOUGH
 (12kg/hr).

2'. Eiven though the mechanical grater has certain obvious advantages over
fe traditional method, it produces a rougher grade of grated dough.
This leads to a greater quantity of rough pieces that must be sieved out
and used for kokonte or animal feed.
3. There are the usual hazards associated with the operation of the mecha-
nical grater, just like any other machine. Whereas in the traditional
method, the women graters may get away nicks and cuts on the fingers,
they stand a greater danger in the routine application of the mechanical
grater. The injuries may arise out of loose clothing getting entanyled in
the belt drive, resting of fingers or hands on a rotating shaft or disc
while trying to dislodgp material from tight corners and flying objects
f^om the rotating parts.
In the case of an electric-motor-driven grater, the incidence of elec-
tric shocks should be guarded against.

4. The parallel boards press reduces the drudgery associated with the tradi-
tional stones-on-sacks method, it is a cumbersome experience to be
loading and unloading heavy stones on the sacks of dough in the tradi-
tional method.
Six stacks of bagged-dough can be pressed at the same time. In the
traditional method, there will be problems with heaping enough heavy
stones to achieve a comparable level of pressing for the six mini sacks
handled by the SIS press.

5; With a mechanised roaster, women can momentarily attend to other

pressing needs on the job, whereas in the traditional approach the pan's
contents need to be stirred continuously, requiring uninterrupted atten-
tion. The work load of six pan roasters can be handled by one mechan-
ised roaster.

6. The incorporation of the milling process saves a potential loss of 10 per-

cent of gari in the form of rough lumps. The lumps form due to non
uniformity in heat distribution in the roasting mass. In the traditional
approach, the discarded lumps of roasted gari are sold for animal feed
at a low cos't.

23
>.-;?

ADHOC CONSULTANT DEMONSTRATES USE OF CORN MILL

IN REDUCING ROUGHAGE FROM ROASTED GARI TOA
FINER GRADE

24
 CHAPTER 4

ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF IMPROVED SIS TECHNOLOGY

4.1 INTRODUCTION
Several economic benefits were envisaged under the gari processing pro-
ject. These included the creation of employment opportunities, raising the
productivity of rural Ghanaian women, increasing their income earning capa-
cities and equalising incomes between marginal and core groups within the
rural communities.
The attainment of thes^-targest were measured by ex-ante and ex-post
analysis of the economic situation of women in the selected communities for
the gari project. Of direct and immediate concern was the economic viability
of the project shown by cost benefit measures. Subsequent sections illustrate
the method for the cost assessment for gari processing accordlnn to the tradi-
tional and improved technologies.
We first compare the performance of-the traditional gari processes with
those of the SIS equipment as shown below.

4,2 PERFORMANCE FIGURES

The processes where mechanization saves much time and reduces the
drudgery of work are the grating and pressing. Indeed traditional grating
seems to set the limit on the operations of the traditional gari processors.
A family of four can at best grate 100 kg. j9fcassava within one day. This
will have to be fermented for five days. So that even when cassava is in
plentiful supply, a family can process only 40-50 kg. of cassava into gari
per day.

Table 4.1. Performance Figures for Traditional and SIS

Methods of Processing 10 kg of Cassava

Operation Time required for 10 kg. Yield of the Process

of Cassava (min) Output (kg/hr)
Traditional SIS Traditional SIS

Peeling 34 34 17.6 17.6

Grating 100 1.5 6 400
Pressing 360 60 1.6 10
Sieving 100 100 1.6 1.6
Roasting 180 30 3.3 240

4.3 TRADITIONALAND IMPROVED INVESTMENT COSTS

25
 To start a gari processing business by the traditional method, a women's
group needs an initial outlay of only 5,650.00. Due to the simplicity of
the traditional equipment, the investment costs for the traditional method
are understandably low.

Table 4.2 Investment Costs for Traditional Gari Processing

Life Span Total Cost Depreciation

Equipment Number
Required t C

3 450 150
Knives 3
100 100
Baskets 2
720 720
Flour Bag 6
400 400
Jute Sack 2
500 500
Grater 2
400 400
Sieves 2
1 5 2,000 400
Large basin
5 1,000 200
Small basin 2
1 80 80
Calabash 2
1 0 2,000 200
Roasting Pan
5,650 3,150
Total

Table 4.3 Investment Costs for Improved Gari Processing

Life Span Total Cost Depreciation

Equipment Number
Required (Yrs) t t

3 1,350 450
Knives 9
1 300 300
Baskets 6
1 2,160 2,160
Flour bags 18
1 1,200 1,200
Sieves 6
5 6,000 1,200
Big tray 3
5 3,000 600
Small trays 6
5 30,000 6,000
Grater 1
2 6,000 3,000
Boards presses 2
10 35,000 3,500
Roaster 1
10 80,000 8,000
Corn mill 1
8 201,600 25,200
Diesel engines 2
20,000
Installation
25,000
Shelter
41,161
Contingency

452,771 51,610
Total

26
 The investment costs for the improved SIS gari processing makes it pro-
hibitive for an individual female cooperator to own the processing equip-
ment. The total cost is more than 80 times the capital outlay for the tradi-
tional method.

4.4 ANNUAL FIXED COSTS

On the basis of the investment costs we obtain the annual fixed costs
below.

Table 4.4 Annual Fixed Costs for Gari Processing by the

Traditional Method

Item Costs (C)

Depreciation 3,150.00
Interest on fixed capital 565.00
Maintenance and Repair Costs 282.50-
Permanent Labour
Interest on Working Capital 6,412.00

Total Fixed Costs 10,410.00

Table 4,5 Annual Fixed Costs for the Improved SIS Gari
Processing

Item Cost(C)

Depreciation 51,610.00
Interest on fixed capital 90,554.00
Maintenance and repair 22,639 00
Indirect labour 20,000.00
Interest on working capital 88,704.00

Total Fixed Costs 273,507.00

Variable costs were estimated on a weekly basis and aggregated according

to the number of weeks worked in a year. Tables 4.6 and 4.7 below show
how the various cost items were estimated in order to obtain the tota! annual
variable costs.

27
4.5 VARIABLE COSTS

To arrive at the variable costs, it is necessary to explain the methods

of traditional gari processing. Most women pay for the cassava on the farm.
The measurement used is 20m x 20m which is sold at 3,000:00. The area
of 400 m2 under very good conditions will yield 3 bags of cassava weighing
150 kg. It has been noted that a family of four can grate at most 100 kg of
cassava a day and process that for the week.
Other variable costs are based on the processing of 50 kg per schedule.
The main variable inputs are cassava, firewood and labour for the various
nrocesses.

Table 4.6 Variable Costs for Traditional Processing of Gari

Cost per processing Annual cost of an

Item of 100 kg of cassava estimated 28 weeks
in 1 weeK of processing

t t
Cassava on the farm 2,000.00 56,000.00
Uprooting of Cassava 200.00 5,600.00
Transportation to worksite 120.00 3,360.00
Peeling of 100 kg cassava
(6 man hours) 160.00 4,480.00
Grating of cassava
(4 man-days) 800.00 22,400.00
Sieving of cassava
(4 man-days) 800.00 22,400.00
Roasting of cassava
(2 man-days) 400.00 11,200.00
F i rewood 100.00 2,800.00

Total variable costs 128,240.00

Total fixed costs 10,410.00
Total production cost 139,650.00
Total output 1,167 kg
Unit cost per kg 118.80
Total man days per year 302
Output per man day in kg 3.86

The increased scale of operation which results from the SIS improved
technology for gari processing has one main advantage, in terms of gari out-
put. Output per man day measured in kilogrammes of gari is 67 for the SIS
technology and 3.86 for traditional method. The increase in output is more
than 17 fold.

28
 There is one clear economic advantage to be gained from the increased
scale of operation. The mechanical grater can process 400 kg of cassava com-
pared to 5 kg for the traditional hand grater in one hour. The increased scale
of operation will generate more income for the women. There will be
backward linkages in the demand for more cassava leading to greater areas
being cultivated for cassava production.

Table 4.7 Annual Variable Costs for the Improved Gari Processing

Cost per processing Annual costs at an

item of 2.4 tonnes of estimated 28 weeks
cassava per week (C) of processing ()

Cassava on the farm 48,000.00 1,344,000.00

Uprooting of cassava 4,800.00 134,400.00
Transportation to worksite 2,880.00 80,640.00
Peeling of 2.4 tonnes cassava 3,840.00 107,520.00
Grating of cassava 2,880.00 80,640.00
Sieving of cassava dough 19,200.00 537,600.00
Roasting of cassava 9,600.00 268,800.00
Milling of roasted gari 1,440.00 40,320.00
Firewood 2,400.00 67,200.00

Total variable cost 2,661,120.00

Total fixed cost 273 507.00
Total production cost 2,934,627.00
Total output of gari 28 tonnes
Unit cost per kg f 04.81
Total man days per year 420
Output per man day in kg 67

29
 REFERENCES

1. Wdhwa Gari Plant

Technical Brochure. RAJ1C0 Engineers (PVT) LTD.

New Delhi, 1985.

2. Texaco Star

Nigerian Agricultural Development is Advanced by TEXAGARI

Topic, Issue No. 124 pp. 45-51.

3. Doku.E.G.

Cassava m Ghana
University of Ghana Press, 1969.

4. Date-Bah, E. Y. Stevens

Rural Women in Africa and Technological Change, Some Issues

in Labour and Society; 1981

5. ILO

Improved Village Technology for Women's Activities.

AWnual for West Africa, 1984.

6. U. M. Research Series

Women Workers in Ghana, Kenya and Zambia, 1979.

30
 APPENDIX 1

GARI PROCESSING MACHINES

Item Source Unit Cost (C)

1986
Cassava Grater SIS Engineering
P.O. Box 45, UST,
Kumasi, Ghana 30,000.00

Parallel Boards Press - do - 3,000.00

Gari Roaster - do - 35,000.00

Corn Mill (optional) Imported (U.K.) 80,000.00

Diesel Engine LISTER, U.K. 100,800.00

31
 APPENDIX 11

SELECTED STATISTICS OF GAR I PROCESSING

T. Yield: 2.4 kilogrammes cassava yield 1 kg gari

2. Average moisture content: cassava 65 percent

gari 16 percent

3. Cassava peelingAyvoman: 12 kg in 30 45 minutes

4. Cassava grating: traditional 12 kg in 1-2 hours

mechanised 400 kg/hr

5. Cassava dough fermentation : 1 5 days

6. Dough sieving/woman: 12kgin2hrs

7. Gari roasting: traditional 10 kg in 2-3 hrs

mechanised 50 kg in 45-60 mins
8. Firewood for roasting: 3 kg/1 kg gari

Sources: 1. ILO Report (I LO/NOR/78/RAF/27); 1984

2. SIS Engineering, Kumasi, Ghana.

32