Make agriculture more attractive-National Best Farmer 2012

Mr Lemuel Quarshie Martey, National Best Farmer 2012, has called on the government to put in measures to make the agriculture sector look more lucrative and attractive to investors and the youth.

He said the Ministry of Food and Agriculture should have a well-structured policy to be executed by people who are knowledgeable and committed to the cause of national food security.

Mr Martey, who was speaking to the Ghana News Agency, appealed to the government to officially assign best farmers the responsibility of promoting the cultivation and marketing of crops for which they were honoured.

He appealed to the government to help establish processing plants to turn raw products into finished goods at strategic agricultural areas or clusters to help farmers and local authorities generate income.

Mr Martey said certain areas such as Ada, Dodowa and Sege in the Greater Accra Region are well noted for the production of onion, pepper and tomato and therefore government should encourage the building of vegetable processors to save farmers in the area from post-harvest loses.

He appealed to local investors to direct their resources to local producers for them to create jobs.

According to him, some of the challenges farmers face are lack of funding, inadequate market for the farm produce, encroachment on their lands by estate developers and harassment by land guards.