Birim Central is self-sufficient in food – Ahiamatah

Mr Francis Ahiamatah, Management Information Services Officer of the Birim Central Directorate of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA), has promised that the Municipality was self-sufficient in food production this year.

He indicated that, food production for the year was better than last year, adding “We do not have any food challenge.”

Mr Ahiamatah was interacting with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Akyem Oda.

“Prices of food crops have not risen for the past three years, with cassava price even dropping by 20 percent”.

Mr Ahiamatah mentioned some major challenges facing farmers in the area, as high cost of fertilizer, high cost of labour, poor road network to the farms , unpredictable rainfall, and soil erosion among others.

He noted that some of the progress the directorate made last year had retrogressed due to high cost of transportation.

“Adoption rate in technology reduced because of high cost of fertilizers, so farmers had to improvise,” he indicated.

Mr Ahiamatah further disclosed that due to high cost of transportation, market women were reluctant to go to remote farms to purchase foodstuffs, thus leaving the items to rot on the farms.