The Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) has asked the government and the various political parties to strategically incorporate and prioritise agriculture policies aimed at investing in irrigation infrastructure in their 2024 general election manifestos.
It said in the midst of climate change impacts leading to erratic rainfall, prolong droughts and perennial floods which were adversely affecting food production, there was the need for climate-smart and adaptive agriculture to address threats of food insecurity.It said investing in viable irrigation infrastructure would not only help to promote all year farming but would propel smallholder farmers to remain in business and contribute to achieving sufficiency.
Dr Charles Nyaaba, Chief Executive Officer of Akuafo Nketewa, a Business Unit of PFAG, made this call during the Inaugural Peasant Farmers Day Celebration held at Navrongo in the Kassena-Nankana Municipality of the Upper East Region.
The celebration was organised by PFAG in collaboration with the Akuafo Nketewa and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture on the theme: “Deepening the Role of Smallholder farmers in Promoting Food and Nutrition Security in the Midst of Climate Change and Global Crisis.”
Dr Nyaaba explained that the agriculture sector played a critical role in the socio-economic growth of the country and there was the need for political parties seeking to govern the country to prioritise and advance policies that would attract the youth to the sector.
“One cannot do meaningful farming today by just relying on rain fed farming. Across the globe, irrigation is being prioritised as a keen catalyst for agricultural development.
“We plead with government and all political parties to re-invigorate interest in constructing the Pwalugu Multi-purpose dam, re-engineering and desilting all our silted dams including the one-village one dam and supporting the youth with one household, one borehole to help them to do dry season farming,” he said.
Dr Nyaaba explained that the PFAG was committed to collaborating with the government and other private sectors to improve food production and contribute significantly to ensuring food security and reducing poverty in Ghana.
“We cannot do that without commitment from our policy makers in ensuring comprehensive policies and initiatives that prioritise agricultural investment, modernisation of agriculture and the welfare of our farmers,” he said.
Apart from the high cost of production due to high cost of inputs, Dr Nyaaba indicated that lack of access to markets for food produced in Ghana had been one of the major challenges facing smallholder farmers.
“One of the biggest challenges we have identified is corruption and politisation of agriculture policies and it is not only one government, when government brings inputs, tractors and any support for farmers, those who are not farmers are the ones who are benefiting, so apart from calling on the political parties to come out with agriculture policies, we want to see their commitment to fighting corruption,” he said.
Mr Wepia Awal Adugwala, President, PFAG, said the smallholder farmers produced most of the food consumed in Ghana, however, they had not been given the needed support since 2021 and there was the need to address challenges such as high cost of inputs, mechanisation services, among others to help them increase productivity.
The occasion was also used to launch the Peasant Farmers Cooperative Credit Union, Pension and welfare scheme for peasant farmers, training for farmers on agro-ecological practices whilst some farmers received awards.
