Peasant farmers call for more extension services
The Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) has attributed the low yield in agriculture produce to inadequate access to quality extension services.
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Speaking at a policy review workshop on Agricultural Extension Delivery in Accra, the Programme Co-ordinator of PFAG, Mrs Victoria Adongo, said although the government was making efforts to enhance the activities of smallholder farmers, the current 2,068 Agriculture Extension Assistants at post were not enough to support the activities of the farmers.
The workshop, jointly organised by PFAG and SEND-Ghana, a non-governmental organisation, brought stakeholders from government agencies, including the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA).
Mrs Adongo said apart from the problems of inaccessibility of credit from banks, unavailability of land and infrastructure that posed a threat to the growth of farmers, the current ratio of one extension assistant to 1,500 farmers was a major headache of smallholder farmers in the country.
“The extension officers are the personnel who would inform and educate us on the best practices of farming. They introduce us to new and modern technologies in farming. If these people are in short supply, how can farmers enhance their production?” she lamented.
The Programme Officer of SEND-Ghana, Mr Daniel Adotey Akai, said poor access to extension services had led to poor agronomic practices, including post-harvest mismanagement, inefficient use of inputs and overuse of pesticides.
In order to improve agricultural extension delivery in Ghana, he said it was important to provide logistics for field staff to train, monitor and participate in the extension programme.
“Extension service should facilitate access to credit to enable small scale farmers to also take advantage of existing and new technological innovation,” Mr Akai emphasised.
By Dominic Moses Awiah/Daily Graphic/Ghana
