Farmers in Ahanta West to benefit from subsidized palm oil seedlings - DCE

Farmers in the Ahanta West District of the Western Region would from next year start benefiting from highly subsidized palm nut seedlings.

The District Chief Executive for the area, Mr Joseph Dofoyenah said this on Friday at this year’s District Farmers Day celebration at Apemenim.

He said in view of the proliferation of inferior oil palm seedlings in the District, the Assembly had decided to undertake the cultivation of about 30,000 quality oil palm seedlings next year and sell them under subsidized prices for farmers.

Speaking on the theme: “Grow more food; Strengthening Farmer Based Organisation (FBOs) to Enhance Bargaining Power at the Market Place”, the DCE entreated all unemployed youth to consider undertaking farming activities as it is very profitable.

Mr Dofoyenah said all the great nations in the world have successfully transformed their local economies through sustainable agriculture mechanization programmes and improved marketing strategies adding that as a developing nation we need to re-focus our attention and set our priorities right.

“We can achieve a lot as a people if we collectively resolve to change our attitude on what we grow, what we eat, and what we wear and be more nationalistic in building a better Ghana”, he opined.

The DCE said government had taken a number of interventions towards sustainable agriculture including payment of bonuses to farmers, provision of subsidy on fertilizers, mass cocoa spraying, supply of agriculture inputs as well as the introduction of modern techniques of farming and new varieties of drought resistant cereals.

Mr Dofoyenah said the district agriculture directorate in collaboration with other donor partners is undertaking studies on cassava flour for bread making, local poultry improvement programme, cassava multiplication and pig-feed environmental projects to improve the local economy.

He said farmers acting collectively in strong producer associations or cooperatives would be able to take advantage of many opportunities including access to markets, strong bargaining power and better economic conditions.

Mr Ofori Acheampong, the District Director of Agriculture, said 28 farmers in the District were selected for various awards in this year’s District Farmers Day for their meritorious service and contribution towards the sustenance of food security.

Some of the award recipients received cutlasses, sewing machines, mobile phones, wax prints, spraying machines, wellington boots, animal feeds, among others.

Mr Andrew Asamoah, 45, from Kanfakrom was adjudged the overall best district farmer. He took home a pair of wellington boots, 4 cutlasses, mobile phone, bicycle, spraying machine, animal feed, radio cassette and a certificate.