Involve us in policies to promote our welfare; Farmers
Farmers associations are calling on the government to put farmers at the centre of policies that seek to promote their welfare.
According to them, although successive governments had formulated some policies that sought to improve their living standards, they were not really involved in the implementation of the policies.
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They expressed these concerns at a meeting organised by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) yesterday to discuss the exhibition schedules for the upcoming National Farmers Day.
The meeting was attended by farmer groups, including the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG), Ghana National Association of Farmers and Fishermen (GNAFF), National Farmers and Fishermen Award Winners Association of Ghana (NFFAWAG), Concerned Farmers Association of Ghana (CFAG) and potential exhibitors.
NFD
National Farmers Day is marked every year to honour farmers and fishers for their pivotal role in providing food for the country and for contributing to national development.
This year’s event will be held in Tamale in the Northern Region from November 29 to December 7.
It is being held on the theme “Agriculture: moving Ghana beyond aid.”
Ahead of the event on December 7, a nine-day exhibition has been scheduled for exhibitors in Ghana and from neighbouring countries in the agriculture value chain to showcase their wares.
Arrangements
An exhibition consultant for the Farmers Day, Ms Alberta Nana Akyaa Akorsa, said that the number of days for the exhibition for this year had been increased to pave the way for all regions to have adequate time to partake in the event.
She added that arrangements had also been made for interactive sessions with farmers during the period of the exhibition.
Concerns
The President of CFAG, Nana Oboadie Opambour Boateng Bonsu II, called on MoFA to pay particular attention to the plight of farmers, especially during the planning of activities for the Farmers Day.
He underscored the need for the officials of the ministry to be accountable to farmers on the expenditure on the celebrations.
The Chief of Akyem Sekyere in the Eastern Region, Nana Barima Owusu Takyi, expressed worry that farmers were not being taken seriously by MoFA.
He said it was about time farmers were put at the centre of policies and initiatives that were targeted at them.
