Yendi (NR) Sept. 19, GNA – Lack of extension
officers in the Yendi Municipal Department of Agricultural is making the work
of the Department to sensitize the farmers difficult.
The Yendi Municipality has a population of
117,780, made of 58,920 male and 58,860 female and 60 percent of them are
predominantly farmers who produce large quantities of food crops including
yams.
The Yendi Municipal Director of Agriculture
Madam Abiba Musah announced this when she addressed a consultative forum to
collate citizens’ inputs into 2019 composite budget organised by SEND GHANA and
Northern Ghana Governance Activity (NGGA) project and funded by USAID for
farmers in the Yendi Municipality at Yendi in the Northern Region.
Madam Abiba said the department has only five
Agricultural Extension Agents and two of them are Veterinary Officers who have
recently joined them to carry out the work of the Agricultural Extension
Agents. She indicated that the monitoring staff in the office have also left
their monitoring duties and have also joined the Agricultural Extension Agents
on the field to sensitize farmers on government objective of improving farming
activities through the flagship farmers’ initiative, “Planting for Food and
Jobs (PFJ) programme.”
According to the Agriculture Director from
January to February 2017 farmers were sensitized on PFJ programme but in 2018
the programme changes because they had to issue coupons to farmers to buy NKP
and UREA fertilizers and at subsidize price.
She noted that the department also organized
demonstration on rice extension programme and formed farmers groups to check
the army worms in their farmers.
Touching on grant recovery, she said only 61
percent of the payment had been recovered and noted that the department was are
encouraging defaulters to pay.
Mr. Jonathan Dery Project Officer of SEND
GHANA/NGGA indicated that the forum was organized for the citizens to
contribute their inputs for the 2019 budget.
Mr. Dery said every year the government and
the Assembly take funds from the central government to provide services to
people, adding that at the end of the day the budget must reflect on
Agriculture, Health, and Education among others.
He said USAID is funding the project for SEND
GHANA / NGGA, to implement.
Mr. Abdul-Rahaman Adam Yendi Municipal Budget
Analyst said the broad frame work for the preparation of the 2019 – 2022 budget
is the National Medium Term Development Policy frame work (2018 – 2021) which
is informed by the President’s coordinated programme of Economic and Social Development
Policies (CP) 2017 – 2024 which is to create the conditions for the private
sector to thrive in order to propel growth and create employment opportunities,
especially for the youth.
He indicated that the Medium Term Agenda for
2019 – 2022 is anchored on restoring the economy, transforming Agriculture and
industry.
According to the Budget Analyst in line with
the Medium – Term Focus of government, priority has been given to the areas of
infrastructure for poverty eradication programme, intervention programmes in
key sectors of Education and Health, such as the Free Senior High School and
Road and Rail Development.
GNA