The fall armyworms menace and Fulani Herdsmen activities dominated a two-day roundtable conference on the 2017 government’s input subsidy program and the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana’s (PFAG) annual report presentation held in Tamale.
The event was sponsored by the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). The participants implored government to double its efforts in the fight against the fall armyworms menace.
They also impressed upon the various district assemblies to strictly enforce laws restricting the stray movement of Fulani Herdsmen cattle in farming communities.
The PFAG National President, Abdul Rahaman Mohammed, commended government for resurrecting the planting for food and jobs initiative saying, “.We propose one district one warehouse project to complement the planting for food and jobs programme.”
“The fall army worms caused havoc in 2017, and we are therefore calling on government to put in pragmatic measures to curtail its future recurrence,” he underscored.
He said government should place premium on access and utilization of quality seeds needed to increase yields.
He cited climate change, modern markets, harvest and post harvest losses as some serious threats to food security, and pleaded with government to encourage financial institutions to support peasant farmers.
A Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr. Sagri Banbangi, assured the PFAG leadership that government will immediately address their concerns.
He encouraged them to take advantage of the planting for food and jobs programme to readjust to agribusiness.
Northern Regional Director of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), William Boakye Acheampong, appealed to government to lift the embargo on public sector employment with emphasis on the agric sector.
“The freeze on employment in the agric sector contributes to the decline in numerical strength of agric extension officers. There are even some areas particularly in the Upper West Region where there are no district officers.”
William Boakye Acheampong disclosed that, the Tamale Metropolitan Area could boast of only 12 agric extension officers, while Zabzugu Tatale district has none.
He chastised some beneficiaries of government’s subsidized fertilizer and chemicals meant for spraying the fall armyworms for using the wrong methodology.
“Some of the farmers are not cooperating with MOFA officials to fight the fall armyworms menace. Those who have undergone training on how to spray their farms with government’s subsidized chemicals are not doing the right thing.”
The participants from across the country represented associations including the Fertilizer Importers Association, Ghana Agri-Input Dealers Association (GAIDA), and the National Seed Trade Association (NASTAG).
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By: Abdul Karim Naatogmah/citifmonline.com/Ghana