Regional, district committees for agric initiative inaugurated in Bolgatanga
Regional and District Technical Committees for the ‘Planting for Food and Jobs’ programme in the Upper East Region were last Thursday inaugurated in Bolgatanga with a call on the youth in the region to take advantage of the programme to improve on their incomes.
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The programme, which is a flagship initiative of the Akufo-Addo government, is targeted at creating more than 750,000 jobs nationwide in its first year of implementation.
The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, who gave the assurance in a speech read on his behalf at the inaugural ceremony, stated that the intervention would also help to ensure food security and improved incomes for farmers.
Support
Dr Akoto further intimated that both private and public institutions would be encouraged and supported to set up their own farms.
The programme will initially focus on four key crops - maize, rice, soybean and sorghum.
It is anchored on five pillars; namely, provision of improved seeds, supply of fertilisers, availability of dedicated extension services, marketing strategy and the infusion of an electronic platform to undertake all activities in food production.
"What is unique about this programme is the concentration of all the five pillars as a bouquet that would be a panacea for addressing the laxity and laissez faire approach previously adopted in the sector," Dr Akoto stated.
Database
The minister further indicated that a national farmer database would be created and linked to existing platforms at Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
Dr Akoto also stated that to address the challenges of inadequate credit facilities, all inputs that would be required under the programme would be subsidised.
He explained that at the initial stages, farmers would pay 50 per cent of the subsidised inputs upfront.
Responsibility
For his part, the Upper East Regional Minister, Mr Rockson Bukari, tasked the committees to come up with initiatives such as mobilising public and private sector actors to support the campaign and develop and implement operational and monitoring plans.