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NGO engages stakeholders on gender-responsive budgeting

By Charles Chedar, GNA

Wa, Nov. 18, GNA – The Ghana Trade and
Livelihood Coalition (GTLC) has engaged stakeholders in the Upper West region
on gender-responsive budgeting to discuss the needs and challenges of farmers
under the government flagship programmes.

The forum of the trade and agriculture
policy and practice advocacy and research organisation shared findings from a
data, which contained the views of male, female, youth and persons with
disabilities farmers for gender responsive national budgeting.

The programme, which was focused on the
Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) programme, provided a platform for the farmers
to engage duty-bearers towards enhancing gender equality in the government
agriculture policies.

This will go a long way to ensure that those
left behind would be captured.

Mr Emmanuel Wullingdool, Policy Officer of
GTLC addressing the forum said the organisation was aimed at assessing the
impact of the government policies and policy interventions.

He stated that there was the need to work
collectively towards an inclusive development agenda, by reducing economic
inequality in the government agriculture programmes.

“Ghana’s population is expected to
reach 30.5 million by 2020 at an annual growth rate of 2.36 per cent of which
the agriculture sector is expected to play a leading role in feeding the
population, providing income and employment opportunities along its
chains”, he indicated.

He added that the PFJ policy was launched to
mobilise access to both input and output markets and thereby directly
motivating farmers by providing adequate subsidiesed fertilizers, tractor
service, extension service, credit, and improved seeds to increase crop yields
and indirectly generate employment opportunities along the value chains.

Farming provides the lifeline for millions
of livelihood in the country by offering work and food.

Predominantly, about 75.29 per cent of rural
households are engaged in operating small farms and livestock, while about 22
per cent of urban households also engaged in agricultural activities.

Mr Wullingdool therefore appealed to the
government to implement modernised agricultural policies to strategically
enhance the transformation of the economy by focusing on gender-responsive
budgeting.

GNA

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