Saalai Manikam, Managing Director of the Ghana-based Arima Group, represents a new generation of Indian-origin entrepreneurs contributing to the growing economic engagement between India and Africa through agriculture, enterprise development, and knowledge partnerships. Based in Accra, her work spans agriculture, MSME collaboration, mining support services, and education, reflecting a broader shift in India–Africa engagement from trade-led interaction to partnership-led development.

Arima Group operates with a strong focus on building community-linked economic models, particularly in agriculture. Through Arima Farms, the organisation works with farmers to improve productivity, introduce modern farming practices, and strengthen farm-to-market value chains. The emphasis is not only on increasing agricultural output, but on improving rural incomes, strengthening supply chains, and building sustainable agricultural systems.

One of Arima’s most significant initiatives has been its collaboration with Ghana’s CSIR–Crops Research Institute to support the development of wheat cultivation in Ghana. The project has focused on identifying suitable wheat varieties for Ghana’s agro-climatic conditions through multi-location trials, developing heat- and drought-tolerant varieties, and building the foundation for seed multiplication and future commercial cultivation. The broader objective is to reduce import dependence and strengthen domestic agricultural capacity, an issue of strategic importance for many African countries.

Under Ms Manikam’s leadership, Arima Farms has also promoted structured farming systems that include farmer training, aggregation models, and bulk processing. These initiatives help reduce price volatility, improve productivity, and create more stable supply chains. By combining research, training, and market linkage, the organisation’s work demonstrates how knowledge partnerships between India and Africa can support agricultural transformation.