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New opportunities for  people of Ekumfi as President launches one-district, one-factory
New opportunities for people of Ekumfi as President launches one-district, one-factory

New opportunities for people of Ekumfi as President launches one-district, one-factory

They were all beaming with smiles; young and old, great and small, royalty and the subjects, everybody.

They danced to music from Lucky Mensah, Agya Koo, Praye, the Police and Fire Service bands.

Hundreds of people from all over the Ekumfi District in the Central Region with happy faces gathered at Ekumfi Eyisam last Friday to be part of the official launch of the one-district, one-factory initiative by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo’s young government. They were joined by traditional authorities from the other districts of the region as far as Yeji and many government officials.

The Ekumfi District

The Ekumfi District is one of the new districts in the Central Region carved out of the Mfantseman District in 2012 when the late President, Prof John Evan Atta Mills, a son of the Ekumfi land, by an Executive Instrument carved it out of 46 new districts.

The district, according to the 2010 Population and Housing Census, males stands at 52,231 with 42,102 and 28,129 females.

It is located along the beautiful coastline of the Central Region bounded to the west by the Mfantseman Municipality, the east by the Gomoa West District and to the north by the Ajumako Enyan Essiam district.

The district has Essarkyir as its capital but has some popular communities like Essuehyia, Otuam, Nanabin, Narkwa, Eyisam and Abor.

Other communities in the district include Ekumpoano, Srafa Kokodo and Immuna.

The Ekumfi District and its traditional communities are not as vibrant economically as some communities in the Central Region such as Assin Fosu, Swedru, Dunkwa and Mankessim.

There are no significant businesses in the area compared to other districts in the region.

Though the district is known for vegetable cultivation, salt production and fishing along its coastal communities, one thing it is predominantly noted for is the cultivation of pineapples. Indeed, the Daily Graphic gathered that the land responded better to pineapples.

Almost every family has someone producing pineapples.

However, the cultivation of the fruit in the district has failed to make the needed impact in the lives of the people.

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No value added

This is because no value was added to the pineapples.

Farmers had to sell their produce at giveaway prices to women who came to buy them.

“We did not have an option. We either sold them at give-away prices or got them all rotten on the farms,” Mr Kwesi Dadzie, a pineapple farmer, said throwing light on their plight.

Obviously delighted with smiles on his face, Mr Dadzie said he was happy about the fact that farmers would have ready markets and reasonable prices for their produce.

The young masses who leave the communities in search of non-existent jobs will now have reason to stay.

One happy pineapple farmer, Mr Ibrahim Sagoe, buttressed the fact that the successful completion and commencement of work at the factory would positively affect the lives of the people and improve living conditions.

“We have been looking forward to a factory like this for far too long and we are happy today that we are seeing it come to pass.
So their happy faces were justifiable. President Akufo-Addo had come to cut the sod for the first project under the one-district, one-factory programme at Ekumfi Nanabin.

The factory

The factory tonnes the said, the President had the capacity to process 80 tonnes of fruits per day and a total of 25,600 of fruits per year.

It will employ a total of 250 people, with over 5,000 direct and indirect jobs to be created.

Farmers Appeal

Excited as they were, the farmers appealed for financial support to enable them to expand their bussinesses.

They said with the necessary inputs such as fertiliser, pineapple suckers and access to financial credit. they could expand their farms.

“We are ready to support to make the factory survive and thrive to provide jobs for the youth. We are ready to expand our farms with a little support,” Mr Sagoe added.

They praised the government for providing training for the farmers and called for more training on how to maximies yields and ensure prudent farm management practices.

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The youth

The youth of the area were also full of praise for the government.

Mr Luke Mohammed is a student and a citizen of Ekumfi Nanabin and said he was more hopeful than ever of getting a job after school.

“I don’t need to be stranded on the streets of Accra looking for a job after school,” she added.
Mr Owusu Agyemang, a student, also thanked the President for making efforts to fulfil his campaign promises to the people.

They both pledged to support the factory to make it work.

The District Chief Executive, Mr Bernard Bright Grant said the factory would promote economic activities in the other districts as well.

He called on land owners to provide land to interested farmers to help expand their farms.

Nana Idun VI

The acting President of the Ekumfi Traditional area, Nana Idun VI, called on all citizens of Ekumfi to invest in the area to boost economic activities and enhance livelihoods.

He further thanked President Akufo-Addo for honouring the people of Ekumfi with the factory

For the people of Ekumfi, especially the youth, it is a new dawn, a ray of hope for new beginnings and opportunities.

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