Low consultation hampers agric initiative
The Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) has blamed the low enrolment by farmers under the Planting for Food and Jobs programme (PFFJ) on poor consultations with all stakeholders prior to its introduction.
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The Programme Officer of the PFAG, Mr Charles Nyaab told the Graphic Business that the agriculture sector was huge and the government should have consulted with various sub-sector stakeholders before rolling out the programme.
This, he said, would have helped more farmers to prepare adequately for the programme and subsequently enrol into it.
“From the onset, we at PFAG said consultations were poor and we were lambasted. There are issues with the policy in its current state that needed urgent attention and which include its targeted beneficiaries and at least five-acre land requirement,” he said.
Mr Nyaaba also said the late supply of inputs such as fertiliser and seeds could also be a reason for the low interest.
He explained that farming was time bound such that when the rains start and inputs were not ready, farmers will start their own activities.
“As we speak, most parts of the northern Ghana are yet to receive inputs. The invasion of the armyworms have also scared some farmers into farming,” he said.
He said farmers were beginning to lose trust on depending on government project due to politicisation of such projects, saying the PFFJ programme is over ambitious but it’s all due to political reasons.
“To me, farming is a business and we should let it be. If farmers see profit from the programme, they will go for it, else if we force them to go for it, repayment might become a problem,” he said.
Feeding the nation
The government introduced the PFFJ, designed to encourage all citizens, both urban and rural to take up farming as a full / part-time activity as the lead initiative geared towards feeding the nation.
It involves the production of maize, rice, soya bean, sorghum and vegetables and is anchored on five pillars, namely fertiliser supply, the provision of improved seeds, the provision of dedicated extension services, marketing and e-agric and monitoring.
However, the Minister of State in charge of Agriculture, Dr Nurah Gyiele, has said it had become difficult to register targeted 200,000 smallholder farmers targeted under the programme.
He said that so far, a little over 54,000 farmers have registered under the programme with 14,000 farmers in the Northern, Upper West Region 17,000 and Upper East Region, 23,559 farmers.
One needs to a Ghanaian,in possession of land and should be producing at least one of the crops listed under the programme.
Farmers are also required to pay 50 per cent of the subsidised cost of inputs and forward pay-in slip to the district agriculture officer for subsequent delivery.
For out growers, the number of farmers, location, farm size and payment of 50 per cent of inputs cost are considered for enrolment. — GB