All should be concerned about climate change - Minister

Mr Samuel Sarpong, the Ashanti Regional Minister, has said it was important to adopt better approaches towards reducing the effects of climate change on agriculture.

He said it was necessary to focus on applicable technologies that would help improve crop yield and productivity.

Mr Sarpong said although capital inputs and human resources are vital for agriculture production, climate was the overriding factor.

That determines the type of crops that could be grown in certain geographical areas and that is why beans, millet, guinea corn and groundnuts survive better in the north than in the southern part of the country.

Mr. Sarpong was speaking at a day’s regional climate-smart agriculture and technology profiling workshop held in Kumasi.

The goal was to sensitize stakeholders on the vulnerability of agriculture and food system to climate change and the need for action.

It was organized by the Animal Research Institute (ARI) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research of Ghana (CSIR) with support from the Ghana Climate Change and Food Security (CCAFS) and brought together 70 participants made up of local farmers, researchers and policy decision makers.

Mr. Sarpong spoke of the determination of the government to make the agricultural sector more vibrant to achieve national food security.

Dr. Naaminong Karbo, Chairman, Ghana CCAFS, said they were working to strengthen science-policy exchange platforms to mainstream climate-smart agriculture into national and sub-national agriculture and food security policy plans at all levels.