By Yussif Ibrahim
Obuasi (Ash), Nov. 30, GNA – AngloGold Ashanti Obuasi Mine, has donated items worth GHC 400,000 to eight districts in the Ashanti Region to support this year’s National Farmers Day celebrations.
The beneficiary districts are Obuasi Municipal, Obuasi East, Adansi Asokwa, Adansi North, Adansi South, Adansi Akrofuom, Amansie Central and Bekwai Municipal Assemblies.
Items donated to the assemblies included eight 40 -inches LED TV, eight motorised tricycle (Aboboyaa), 24 pairs of Wellington Boots, 96 pieces of GTP wax print, eight boxes of Key soap, 32 Knapsack sprayer, 120 machetes and eight boxes of Sunphosate Glyphosate Weedicide.
The items were specifically to support the overall best farmers and the best female farmers in the beneficiary districts.
Mr. Edmund Oduro Agyei, Head of Stakeholder Engagement and Land Management of AngloGold Ashanti who presented the items on behalf of the company, said AGAG had consistently sponsored farmers’ day as part of their commitment towards the development of agriculture which was a key component in their 10-year Socio-Economic Development Plan.
He said the company appreciated the tremendous contributions of farmers to the development of the country hence the need for the company to step in to contribute to motivate them to make agriculture attractive especially to the youth of the country.
“As a company that is much concerned about making communities we operate in better, such donations are made with a firm conviction that agriculture is the mainstay of our people.
We believe this will go a long way to encourage our farmers to do more,” he noted.
Dr. Maurice Jonas Woode, Chief Executive for the Akrofuom, lauded AngloGold Ashanti for the annual gesture of supporting the districts to successfully organise the farmers’ day awards.
He said the donation would go a long way to relieving the Assemblies of some of the financial burdens involved in organising such programme.
The Akrofuom DCE praised the government for rolling out phase two of the Planting for Food and Jobs Programme (PFJ).
Targeted at building on the successes of the initial programme, the second phase of the PFJ is a five-year master plan for the transformation of agriculture in Ghana through modernisation by the development of selected commodity value chains and active private sector participation.
This, Dr. Woode explained, would further boost agriculture, and make it attractive especially for the youth.
Mr. David Mensah, the Adansi South District Director of Agriculture also commended AngloGold Ashanti for the support, adding that the company had demonstrated its resolve to support agriculture in its operational areas.
He said farmers’ contribution called for the support of all stakeholders to encourage them to produce more for the country’s development.
On challenges facing agriculture, Mr. Mensah said the activities of illegal miners continued to destroy arable lands and called on traditional leaders of communities to help protect lands for agricultural purposes.
This year’s Farmers Day celebration, which is the 39th edition, will be held on the theme “Delivering Smart Solutions for Sustainable Food Security and Resilience.”
GNA