Develop affordable agric credits for farmers

Mr Delali Nutsukpo, a climate change expert, has called for a Climate Resilient Sustainable Agriculture (CRSA) as an alternative approach to addressing climate change within smallholder agriculture systems.

He said CRSA prioritised the concerns of the most vulnerable in society, including people’s rights, knowledge and vulnerability.

Mr Nutsukpo was speaking at a day’s civil society organization CRSA training workshop for policy makers in Accra on Friday.

The training was organised by the General Agriculture Workers Union (GAWU) in collaboration with ActionAid Ghana.

He said scaling up CRSA required committed and concerted efforts from a variety of stakeholders including government and donors.

“The National climate smart agriculture action plan provides entry point for the implementation of the CRSA in the country,” he added.

Mr Nutsukpo said the success of CRSA would require the support of stakeholders at all levels of government and civil society.

He said to roll out the CRSA, the national agriculture development policies and strategies must hinge on ensuring food security and addressing climate change.

Mr Nutsukpo said agriculture research and extension should be re-oriented to create “knowledge hubs” among small holder farmers in support to sustainable agriculture within a climate change context.

“Affordable agriculture credits with long payment period should be developed for farmers,” he said.

Mr Nutsukpo said there should be the promotion of community grains bank, biomass, seeds, fodder and storage facilities at the local level to ensure food security and food sovereignty.