Yara Ghana begins distribution of fertilisers to farmers
Yara Ghana Company Limited, has begun the distribution of 18,000 tonnes of high-quality YaraMila Actyva fertiliser worth $20 million to 100,000 smallholder farmers in food growing areas across the country.
The initiative, which is under the "Grow Ghana" initiative is expected to see each farmer receiving 50 kilogrammes of NPK.
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The first five articulated trucks loaded with 1000 bags of fertiliser left the precincts of Yara Ghana Company Limited last Fraiday (August 12) to begin the distribution to farmers.
The intervention by the company is to provide farmers with free bags of YaraMila Actyva fertiliser to help reduce the average fertiliser cost incurred by smallholder farmers by one-third.
The goal of the programme is to help smallholder farmers to have access to enough but affordable fertiliser to sustain food production to enhance the country's food security.
Launch
The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, who launched the initiative to officially commence the distribution commended Yara Ghana Limited for the initiative.
He said the donation could not have come at any better time than this considering the harsh economic conditions of the Russian-Ukraine war.
Dr Akoto said due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian-Ukraine war, the prize of fertiliser had increased.
He said that the free fertiliser would enhance agriculture and the Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) programme.
“Yara Ghana Limited has been a good partner of the PF] and we are happy the company is distributing free fertiliser to farmers across the country in view of the difficulty farmers are facing in accessing fertiliser due to the Russian-Ukraine war,” he said.
He further appealed to other companies selling fertiliser in the country to emulate the gesture of Yara Ghana Limited.
Contribution
For his part, the Managing Director of Yara Ghana Limited, Danquah Addo-Yobo, said the free fertiliser distribution to farmers formed part of the contribution of the company, to enhance food production and security in the country.
He said the programme would help provide access to fertiliser by smallhoder farmers across the country to boost food production and enhance food security.
Mr Addo-Yobo indicated the fertiliser was to be sent to some selected distributors numbering 115 for onward distribution to farmers.
He said smallhoder farmers cultivating five hectares of land and below were eligible for the free fertiliser programme.
Also, the Minister of Food and Agriculture was taken round the 50,000-tonne fertiliser processing facility of the company.
