By
Jerry Azanduna, GNA
Zebilla (UE) July
22, GNA – About Two hundred and seventy eight people living with various forms
of disabilities have been registered under the planting for food and jobs to
participate in this year’s farming activities.
The PWDs including;
the physically challenged, the deaf and dump, hearing impaired and the blind
and visually impaired registered with their families to secure some farm inputs
such as seeds, fertilizers and some agro-machinery to help them to prepare
their farms for cultivation.
The PWDs come under
the programme with support from the District Assembly’s Common Fund (DACF) to
enable them to have access to all the necessary privileges under the programme
to enable them to support the response against food insecurity.
Mr Elias Atimbire,
Bawku West District Director of Agriculture, said “Apart from 35 women groups
supported by the Toede Rural Bank and some community based organisations
including; the Banaba Area Community Health (BACH) project that supported 180
farmers in the district, the Anglican Diocesan Development Relief Organisation
(ADDRO)also supporting about 200 farmers to cultivate varieties of food crops,
the PFJ had brought big relief to farmers, especially those suffering some
forms of disabilities”.
Mr Atimbire said
this in an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Zebilla said about
250,000 farmers registered with the PFJ programme to cultivate farms on
subsistence bases, and indicated that the directorate had supplied 55,000 NPK
and27,000 Urea fertilizers to about 45,000 farmers.
Mr Atimbire
indicated that even though the demand for fertilizer coupons were high, the
directorate was expecting about 22, 500 bags of fertilizer, but had so far
received 10,000 bags.
He mentioned that 25
bags of hybrid maize seeds had been secured for 125 acres of farm land, while
75 bags of ordinary maize, termed “Obaatampa” had been assigned to 200 acres of
farm land in the district.
According to Mr
Atimbire, 44 bags of soya bean is ready for distribution to a number of farmers
to cultivate 125 acres of farm land.
Mr Atimbire urged
the farmers to adhere to advice from the agricultural extension officers on the
methods of cultivation in order to get the expected yields and called on the
farmers to be prepared to buy the chemicals for the fall army worm in case the
directorate runs out of stock.
Madam Vivian Ayamba,
District Chief Executive for the area warned against the smuggling of
fertilizer across the borders of Ghana, warning that culprits would face the
rigours of the law and urged them to be vigilant and report any person who may
indulge in smuggling it.
GNA