Esoko refutes allegations of thwarting Planting for Food and Jobs project

Esoko, a Ghanaian private company, says it is not thwarting government’s Planting for Food and Jobs project under a contract to register farmers.

It explained: “The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) contracted Esoko to take on the data collection activities of the Planting for Food and Jobs programme in March, 2017.

“We can confirm we have completed the first phase of the project and the Ministry is satisfied with the work done so far.”

Reacting to media reports alleging that its agent in the Dormaa Municipality was registering farmers outside the approved list and was thus thwarting the Government’s Planting for Food and Job initiative, Esoko said: “As the story suggests, MoFA provided Esoko with a validated list of eligible farmers to register for the programme.

“However, further direction was given by MoFA to also register farmers who are interested in the programme but not on the list.

The Company explained in a statement, signed by Simone Fugar, its Communications Manager, that it could, therefore, not be accused of thwarting the Initiative.

An official of the Agric Ministry in the Dormaa Municipality had complained about the coverage of the registration, to the GNA in an interview.

However, an Esoko supervisor in the area rebutted the official’s claim, in an interview with the GNA, saying Esoko was working within its mandate.