First tele-agric centre in Africa to be established in Kumasi
A tele-agric consultancy centre is to be constructed in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region to serve as an agricultural information hub for farmers.
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When completed, the centre, which is expected to be ready in three months, will be the first of such facilities in Africa.
Ghana will become the second country after India to have such a facility to make information available to farmers to ensure best practices.
It is being constructed by the Millennium Promise Alliance (MPA), a USA-based NGO, and the Kuapa Kokoo Farmers Union.
Centre
The Country Director of the MPA, Chief Nathaniel Ebo Nsarko, who announced this in Kumasi, explained that the facility would offer farmers the opportunity to call directly to the centre from their farm locations or communities for any information on agriculture they needed to improve on their farming activities.
He said the centre would be equipped with state-of-the-art equipment and staffed with technical and experienced officers.
The tele-agric centre is part of the Kuapa Kokoo Sustainable Development Programme which seeks to introduce technology-driven, climate-smart agriculture to sustainably improve cocoa production and contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of achieving food security, ending hunger, attaining gender equality and ensuring healthy lives and well-being.
Chief Nsarko said the initiative was being supported by Prof. Jeffrey Sachs, a special advisor to the UN Secretary General and Board Chair of the MPA.
Purpose
He indicated that the centre would serve as a link between cocoa farmers and relevant agricultural technical service outlets, including input and output markets.
Other services to be offered by the centre include receiving complaints from farmers and providing workable solutions for such challenges.
There would also be periodic data analysis and report generation to improve agricultural services to farmers for improved yields.
A repository of reports and best practices will be shared with agricultural technical groups for decision making and system improvement.
Advantages
The centre will contribute to the reduction of diseases and pest infestation associated with cocoa and other crops, reduce the cost of providing extension support services for farmers and enhance timely access of inputs and market information to farmers.
And it is expected that in the long term, the tele-agric centre will foster technology development, research and innovation to add value to cocoa and food crop production.
