Small-scale farmers need support to transform economy - MCE

Aminu Mohammed Zakari, the Municipal Chief Executive for Ayawaso North has called for the support of small-scale farmers to become commercially viable to transform the economy.

He said about 80 per cent of the Ghanaian farmers were into small-scale farming and with the right support they could expand their farms and create job opportunities for the youth to make a living instead of relying on government.

Mr Zakari who gave the advice in an interview with the Ghana News Agency commended President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for the introduction of Planting for Food and Jobs and others, which he said would go a long way to reduce the unemployment rate and promote agribusinesses from raw agricultural production into processing and distribution, which would encourage the youth to venture into farming.

The Chief Executive said the Ayawaso North Assembly in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture had put in place a programme to sensitise and train the people in the municipality to undertake gardening to avert the challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is being done to complement the Planting for Food initiative, while encouraging agribusiness among households,” Mr Zakari said, and that the Assembly was giving support to farmers to undertake mechanized farming to boost their production.

He appealed to Ghanaians to renew the mandate of President Akufo-Addo and the New Patriotic Party in the December polls to continue with the good works.