37th National Farmers’ Day celebration: Ada West District Assembly awards 7 farmers

The Ada West District Assembly in the Greater Accra Region has replicated the National Farmers’ Day Celebration theme awarding hardworking farmers and fisherfolk in the district on Friday, December 3, 2021 at Adokopey a suburb of Sege, the district capital.

The criteria for the award of the various honours was based on individual participation in community activities, effort in imparting in the life of others in their communities and the quality and level of farm produce among others.

This year’s Farmers’ Day Celebration is dubbed, “Planting for Foods and Jobs-Consolidating Food Systems in Ghana.”

District Chief Executive for Ada West District, Sampson T. Kpankpah who addressed the gathering on the theme said, food security and production of raw materials for both local industries and export are vital for rapid development of every country upon which all other sectors are built.

He noted that government in the year 2017 lunched ‘Planting for Foods and Jobs’ to encourage the citizenry to invest in the production and processing, distribution and consumption of agriculture produce by every Ghanaian citizen.

Mr Kpankpah has therefore called on the farmers and the community folks to invest in the agriculture and the fisheries sector making them profitable to attain the goal. “In order to achieve this aim, there is the need to adequately invest in the agriculture and the fisheries sectors to make them more viable and attractive,” he said.

He opened that, the youth in the district must see agriculture active as not primitive and therefore embrace it as a lucrative job to earn a living. He said, both young and old should change their negative perception about farming, allowing themselves thereby exploring the noble benefits that can be derived from the agriculture sector.

Sampson T. Kpankpah added that, government is ready to revamp the agriculture industry by providing the needed logistics.

“His Excellency Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo is therefore determined to revolutionalize the informal agriculture sector through the provision of improved seeds, fertilizers as well as seeds to increase production and enable farmers farm all year round,” he said.

Category of awards.

The various category of efforts awarded at the celebration include, overall district best farmer(s), best livestock farmer, physically challenged farmers, best district fisherman, best crop farmer and best agriculture extension officer.

The overall district best farmers in the year, Madam Emelia Amatey Lalimley commended the district assembly for realizing the efforts of farmers in the district.
She advised women in the district to actively involve in the farming activity adding that farming is not mend for men alone but individual commitment makes one successful.

Madam Emilia, 42 years, has also bemoaned recent sand winning activity in the district as a major threat to farming hence, she called on the district assembly to take step to halt this devastating act.

For the first time, the district has introduced a new award for any physically challenged person who is committed to farming. Mr. Eric Maoko Torwo was presented the first honour in this category as physically challenged farmers in the district.

Some items presented to the award winners include motorbikes, sprayers, wellington boots, cutlasses, chemicals for spraying.