According to him, though some farms are still being affected by the fall armyworm, huge acres of infested farms have been recovered through government’s swift intervention of spraying the armyworms.

[contextly_sidebar id=”VIJFBrdKUXwk5y2H8IUB5UGfr0eEA7BI”]Dr. Bambangi disclosed this after visiting 114 acres of maize farms in the Bongo district of the Upper East Region.

He noted that, though records from the Ministry of Food and Agriculture indicated that, since the first case of fall army worm in April 2016, enough measures were not taken to curtail its negative impact on farms.

Nonetheless, the ongoing spraying exercise has led to the recovery of lots of the infested farms, he stated.

“So far, I am impressed by the performance of our spraying programme and that of the farmers. I have been to the Upper West Region and here in the Upper East Region, and have seen the signs of the fall armyworms in the past in a lot of these farms; but I can also see how these farms have recovered.”

Dr. Bambangi intimated further that, projection of a bumper harvest was proof the armyworms have been defeated.

“…we have conquered the fall armyworm because the essence is for us to ensure that the crops recover so if the armyworms have not been able to deprive us of the bumper harvest we are expecting, then we will say we have conquered the armyworms. But we know that there are still remnants of the worms in the system and so we are putting in place medium to long-term measures to avert any future occurrence of the invasion of our farms by fall armyworm.”

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By: Frederick Awuni/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post U/E: We’ve ‘conquered’ armyworms – Dept. Minister appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

According to him, the majority of residents are rice farmers and if the requisite attention was given to the Fumbisi rice valley for commercial rice production, it will have the potential, of meeting the nation’s food needs.

Speaking at the Assembly’s ordinary meeting in Fumbisi, Mr. Gariba said, rice farmers will no longer be exploited by middle men when a rice processing factory is finally constructed in the area.

“Under Government flagship policy of ‘One District One Factory’ the Builsa South District has put in motion plans for partnership with the private sector towards the setting up of a rice processing factory because of our competitive advantage when it comes to the cultivation of rice in the region. This we believe will create lots of jobs for the teeming unemployed youth in the district and also will increase farmers and households income”. Mr. Gariba stated.

Mr. Gariba reiterated the Assembly’s commitment to judiciously utilize its available resources to address critical problems of falling standard of education, poor health care delivery and bad road network in the area.

He hinted that the assembly has approved for the construction of Girls Model Junior High school to reduce the rising teenage pregnancy rates and improve BECE performance in the district.

Mr. Gariba indicated that, out of a total of 967 hectors of maize farms affected by the Armyworm invasion, 463 hectors have been sprayed and recovered while 172 hectares were destroyed.

He appealed to assembly members, technocrats and  key stakeholders in the district to work in synergy in giving the district a facelift.

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By: Frederick Awuni/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Rice factory critical to our development – Builsa South DCE appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Chairman of the Northern Regional Farmers Association (NorFA), Mohammed Adam Nashiru at a news conference in Tamale said the fall armyworms menace nearly affected the planting for food and jobs programme.

[contextly_sidebar id=”nhq9Mrfp1FebeIuc5WjWQL5PGytlAEM6″]“We commend government for effectively fighting the fall armyworms invasion of our farmlands which nearly dashed our hopes as beneficiaries of the planting for food and jobs programme.”

As a former national President of Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana, Nashiru Adam implied that government has so far demonstrated its commitment to boost the Agric sector.

“We appreciate government’s foresight and commitment to the development of the nation’s agriculture sector.”

He advised the nation’s farmers to take advantage of the planting for food and jobs programme and increase their yields.

“We need to collaborate with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) in the districts for more education and sensitisation on the fight against the fall armyworms menace.”

“We should always contact experts in our quest to fight the fall armyworms. The introduction and supply of insecticides such as K optimal, sumpifos and adepa by MoFA is yielding results.”

“The executives and members of the association are all beneficiaries of the Planting for Food and Jobs initiative. Farmers in the region have increased utilisation of fertilisers and seed in three folds due to this initiative. This shows that farmers’ yield in this season will equally increase hence the reduction of poverty among farmers in the region”, he intimated.

Mohammed Adam Nashiru assured government of the association members’ determination to produce enough foodstuff for domestic consumption and export.

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By: Abdul Karim Naatogmah/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Northern farmers laud gov’t response to Armyworm attack appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.