Bolgatanga, Oct. 15, GNA – Mr Emmanuel Wullingdool, a development worker in the Upper East Region, has urged political parties to include nutrition and post-harvest losses in their manifestoes, to ensure a healthy economy.
He said a manifesto had to address the needs of common Ghanaians and hoped that COVID-19, which was a recent case would be used as a reference point to acknowledge the need to build the human immunity.
‘We cannot talk of a healthy economy without mention of a thriving agricultural sector and quality of food that should be churned out for citizens”, Mr Wullingdool said in an interview with the Ghana News Agency in Bolgatanga.
He stressed that so much junk food was patronized in the markets, putting the health of citizens in danger alongside increasing obesity and accompanying heart conditions.
He called for special attention to be given to Agriculture in the country as high nutritional value of farm produce stood a better chance to fetch more money through export.
He said the implementation of one district, one factory’, building of warehouses, agro-processing equipment, irrigation and mechanization and planting for food and Jobs among others were laudable interventions, but, more should be done to have a good impact on the rural farmers.
He said the Purdue Improved Crop storage sacks (PICS) under the agriculture subsidies would help smallholder farmers with less than five bags of farm produce to access PICS, which was tested and proved to be a successful storage bag for grains at home.
Currently the price of PICS range between GH¢ 12.00 to GH¢ 15.00, which he said was on the high side and put undue pressure on small scale farmers.
GNA