Nwawasua (B/R)-Ghana, Dec. 03, GNA – Nana Akosua Duaa Asor Sika Brayie II, the Paramount Queen-Mother, Sunyani Traditional Area, has implored agriculture extension agents to intensify their services to farmers to effectively apply modern technologies for improved and increased farm yield.
She said besides the farming industry being the mainstay of the national economy, the survival of the individual and families too would not be possible without the role of farmers.
Farmers, therefore, required constant and adequate support to be able to produce abundant foodstuff and cash crops for the country’s socio-economic advancement.
Nana Brayie made the appeal at a durbar to commemorate the 38th National Farmers’ Day in the Sunyani Municipality on the theme: “Accelerating Agriculture Development through Value Addition” at Nwawasua, a farming community in the municipality.
She commended farmers for their immense contribution to Ghana’s total food production, saying that could not be over-looked.
She encouraged farmers to work even harder to contribute to the rapid socio-economic development of the country.
Mr Ansu Kumi, the Municipal Chief Executive, said the use of basic technology in the agriculture sector did not promote high productivitynand that had put most farmers in a vicious cycle of poverty.
Value addition in agriculture was, therefore, necessary as it increased the profitability of the farmers to enhance incomes and reduce poverty.
Mr Patrick Dela Newman, the Sunyani Municipal Director of Agriculture, said value addition was the surest way to improve agriculture yield and place the sector in an enviable position as the backbone of the national economy.
He said low prices of raw farm produce was a key challenge in the sector, adding: ”a motor king full load of cassava cost GhC600.00, but the same quantity of cassava when processed into ‘gari’ will produce on the average 200 ‘olonka’ of gari , with an ‘olonka’ costing Ghc15 that translated into GhC3000.”
Mr Newman said under the Local Economic Development Project the Assembly, in collaboration with the Directorate of Agriculture and the Business Advisory Centre, had earmarked the processing of rice, maize and cassava into various products as growth poles to stimulate the local economy.
Mr Ezekiel Kwao, a 46-year-old farmer from Nwawasua and owner of New Era Farms, was adjudged the Municipal Best Farmer; Mr Kwasi Kukruyorm from Asuotia was the first runner-up, and Mr Yaw Nsowah of Jatokrom, the second runner-up.
Seven other farmers and staff of the Directorate of Agriculture also received prizes for their contribution to the growth of agriculture within the period under review.
