Bolgatanga, May 10, GNA- The Executives of the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) have met in Bolgatanga in the Upper East Region to strategize for this year’s farming season.
Key among the discussions the executives considered were the input sector, cost of fertilizer and in view of the global crisis, how fertilizer access challenges could affect food production and the way forward for the new farming season.
The meeting, which was attended by PFAG district executives in the Upper East Region also discussed increased efforts to operationalize the regional administrative structures put in place by PFAG to ensure increased networking among farmers and to improve access to marketing and funding for small holder farmers.
In attendance was Dr Charles Nyaaba, Executive Director of PFAG, who commended the farmers for their hard work despite challenges and called on them to adopt organic farming and agro-ecology in view of the growing difficulties in fertilizer access.
He noted that with the emerging problems, farmers needed to consider individual strengths and produce the number of acreages that could be best managed in terms of input supply.
Mr Isaac Prabia, the Regional Focal Person of PFAG and also the National Secretary to the Board of PFAG who spoke in an interview with the Ghana News Agency, noted that access to credit and marketing continued to be a challenge to small holder farmers and hinted that PFAG had started plans to put in place a credit union to assist the farmers to have timely input for their farming activities.
On advocacy issues, he said PFAG would put in place a communication team to help in consistent and professional advocacy issues.
To promote organic farming, Mr Prabia said some agro input companies such as Agenkwa Agro products among others had started introducing some of their products that could help farmers to improve production, in view of the shortfall in global fertilizer.
Some five aggregators and producers of sorghum from the districts were recognized and presented with awards for their hard work in producing 17,000 bags out of a target of 40,000 bags in the last cropping season, for Guinness Ghana Limited.
They included Hajia Mariama Karim and Hajia Memuna Issah among others and were also advised to more.
Some of the farmers who shared the difficulties involved in marketing their produce, called for investors to support small holder farmers to sell their produce.
GNA