ADB supports poverty reduction project

Page 47, Dec 6 2007
Story: Musah Yahaya Jafaru
National attention will switch towards Wa in the Upper West Region tomorrow as Ghanaians celebrate farmers,the men and women who constitute the backbone of the national economy.
It will be the 23rd in the series of the ‘Farmers Day’, a day specially set aside for Ghanaians to stand united to recognise and decorate farmers from all corners of the country, for the important role they continue to play in the national economy.
The first national Farmers Day was celebrated on Friday, December 6, 1985 at Osino in the Eastern Region. The package for the first best farmer comprised only two machetes, a pair of Wellington boots and a preset radio. The value of the awards has improved from year to year, moving from the very first one to bicycles, power tillers, tractors,pick-ups and finally to a three-bedroom house since 2002.
Now, the overall best farmer receives a three-bedroom fully-furnished house, the second best farmer takes a double cabin pick-up while the third best farmer gets a tractor and its accessories, in addition to cash prizes.
For tomorrow’s event, President John Agyekum Kufuor will deliver the keynote address on the theme, “Ghana@50: Progress and Challenges of Sustainable Agricultural Development”.
The theme, according to the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Mr Ernest A. Debrah, seeks to give policy makers, fishers, farmers and other stakeholders the opportunity to take stock of the developments in the agricultural and fisheries industries since independence 50 years ago.
The Nandom Naa, Naa Dr Chiire Puobe Puoure VII, will chair the function, while the Catholic Bishop of the Wa Diocese, Rev. Dr Paul Bemile, the Regional Chief Imam, Alhaji Issahaq Yakubu, and the Teng Dana of Wa are to respectively usher in the event with Christian, Muslim and traditional prayers.
The day will be marked at various places in the other regions and districts in honour of the hardworking farmers there.
Several organisations have donated items and cash worth millions of cedis towards the celebration.
When the Daily Graphic visited the Ministry of Food and Agriculture yesterday, some officers had already left for Wa while others were packing the remaining items, including refrigerators, television sets, machetes and Wellington boots, into a truck ready to leave for Wa.
Farmers and fishermen are to satisfy certain requirements before they are selected as best national farmers and fishermen by Agricultural Extension Agents who monitor and assess their activities at the district and regional levels.
Diversified and integrated farming operations, scale of operation, knowledge of husbandry practices, environmental awareness and relevant practices and identification of farming problems and innovation are some of the criteria considered.
Other criteria include good records keeping, adaption to new technology, farmer’s role in his community and general impression of farmer and farm.
For fishermen, their knowledge of the fisheries laws, safety at sea, conflict management, post-harvest activities and environmental management are some of the criteria used in selecting them for the position of best fishermen.
Thereafter, the selection committee tours the regions and visits the farms and fishing communities from one region to another. A regional best farmer and a regional best fisherman and their respective two runners-up are selected for each region. From the best farmers and best fishermen of the 10 regions, the National Best Farmer/Fisherman is selected after thorough screening.
Ghana’s agricultural sector is still the largest sector of the Ghanaian economy since independence. For instance, the agricultural sector employed about 56 per cent of the economically active population and contributed about 36 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 52.8 per cent of export earnings in 2006.
The agricultural sector contributes 10 per cent to government revenue, provides adequate food and raw materials to meet growing demand of the economy and plays a very crucial role in controlling inflation, according to a Ministry of Food and Agriculture document.
There are four main sub-sectors, namely crops and livestock, cocoa, fisheries, forestry and logging. It is estimated that the crops and livestock sub-sectors contribute 63 per cent to the agricultural GDP, the cocoa sub-sector 15 per cent, while the forestry, logging and the fisheries sub-sectors add the remaining per cent.
Agriculture is a labour-intensive sector and continues to be the backbone of the Ghanaian economy. However, the country still depends on the small-scale farmer, whose productivity regarding the size of acreage is low.
The government is putting measures in place to change the trend and launch the 'Green Revolution’, which has transformed agriculture in some countries in the world.