Sing (UW), Dec. 15, GNA - The eight districts in the Upper West Region on Friday had their turn in the celebration of this year's National Farmers' Day, which was rescheduled to allow their farmers to participate in the national event that took place at Wa two weeks ago. In each of the districts, 18 farmers were honoured for their hard work and took home prizes that included bicycles, Wellington boots, wax prints and machetes.
At the Wa Municipal event, which was hosted by the Sing community, Mr Abudulai Yakubu, a 45-year-old farmer from Bamahu was adjudged the best farmer.
Mr George Hikah Benson, the Upper West Regional Minister, presented him with a certificate, a Yamaha Motor bike, a full piece of GTP wax print, two pairs of Wellington boots and five pieces of machetes. Mr Benson said the combined effect of floods and drought that struck the Region this year, would be food shortages during the lean season and urged the government, benevolent organizations and agencies to support the Region with food items to avert a famine. He urged farmers to join hands in curbing the menace of bush fires that had already started destroying the vegetation in all parts of the Region, saying it was a potential threat to their survival. Mr Benson, who is also the Acting Wa Municipal Chief Executive, announced that the Assembly was giving practical meaning to the agro-business concept by constructing three agro-processing factories at Chegli, Wa-Sombo and Wapaani communities in the Municipality. Mr Morris Sinkari, Municipal Director of Agriculture, noted that although agricultural production had increased over the years, much more could be achieved through the provision of irrigation facilities since the rainfall pattern had become more erratic.
He, however, advised farmers to utilize the few irrigation dams available fully in order to justify the need to increase the number of irrigation dams available in the Region from the current 19 compared with 68 in the Upper East Region.
