Wa, July 19, GNA – Some farmer groups have benefited from a Seed Fair organised by the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research- Savanna Agricultural Research Institute (CSIR-SARI) in the Upper West Region.
The Seed Fair was an Innovative Platform organised as means of showcasing various technologies developed by the CSIR-SARI and also to foster linkages between farmers and agro-input dealers for mutual benefits.
It was one of six editions held in Savannah and Upper East Regions.
The platform is an intervention under CSIR-SARI’s Partnership for Agricultural Research Education and Development (PAIRED) project, which aims to encourage the establishment of an innovative scaling framework for agro-input technologies and innovation to promote the use of quality agro-inputs in West Africa.
The PAIRED project, sponsored by CORAF and supported by the United States Agency for International Development, seeks to sustainably improve agricultural productivity, food security and alleviate poverty in the northern part of the country.
It would foster a progressively conducive policy environment for technology generation and dissemination to boost agricultural production and productivity to enhance food security.
Through the Platform, beneficiaries are introduced to Village Savings and Loans to create a strong financial capital base through a self-help initiative to mobilise financial resources to cater for agricultural production and other off-farm related expenditures, which would have required borrowing from micro-finance institutions or banks.
Mr Rahaman Sulley, Field Officer for Antika Company, an agro-inputs dealer in the Upper West Region, who participated in the Seed Fair was happy to have exhibited his Company’s products to prospective clients.
He said, “It is a very helpful event for myself and my organisation because it helped us promote awareness and brought the inputs closer to the users.”
He added that “We were not expecting to have sold so many of our products. We managed to make up to a week’s profit in just one day.”
Mrs Adisatu Pienaar, Chairperson of Wogu Tietado Co-operative Farming and Marketing Group at Wogu Community in the Upper West Region, expressed gratitude to the organisers of the event, saying it would enhance the relationship between farmers and agro-inputs dealers for improved mutual benefits.
GNA