By Anthony Adongo Apubeo
Bolgatanga, Sept. 19, GNA – Journalists have been called upon to intensify public education and sustained reporting on the threat posed by Striga (witchweed), a parasitic weed that affects cereal crops and contributes to food insecurity in farming communities.
Mr Sumaila Saaka, the Executive Director of the Forum for Natural Regeneration (FONAR), an environment and agriculture-focused organisation, said the media had a critical role to play in creating public awareness about Striga and ensuring that farmers had access to accurate and practical information to help control the weed.
Mr Saaka made the call at a day’s sensitisation forum for media practitioners on Striga control in Northern Ghana, held at Kumbosgo in the Bolgatanga East District.
The forum was organised by FONAR in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture and the Upper East Regional branch of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), with funding support from the Awaken Trees Association of Austria.
Striga, commonly known as witchweed, is a parasitic root plant that attaches itself to the roots of staple cereal crops particularly sorghum, millet and maize, depriving them of water and nutrients and weakening their growth.
Mr Saaka described Striga as a “silent driver of hunger in Northern Ghana” and said the problem required sustained attention from government, farmers, development partners and the media.
He said every season that Striga was left unchecked, thousands of hectares of farmland, particularly in the Upper East and Upper West regions, suffered significant yield losses, with some affected farms losing up to 80 per cent of their yields.
He said the situation had implications for household food security and incomes, stressing that the problem should not be treated merely as a private burden on farmers.
Mr Saaka urged the media to use their platforms to educate the public on the causes, effects and control measures for Striga, while also holding relevant institutions accountable for interventions aimed at addressing the problem.
“A single well-researched broadcast can reach many farming households that no extension officer or field visit ever will,” he said.
He said FONAR viewed Striga as a symptom of declining soil health and advocated the restoration of degraded agricultural lands alongside conventional approaches to controlling the weed.
Mr Saaka said practices such as Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration (FMNR), climate-smart agroforestry and integrated soil fertility management could contribute to healthier soils and more resilient agricultural production.
“Striga is not simply a farmer’s misfortune. It is a signal, a signal that our soils are tired, and a signal that our attention as a society has, for too long, been elsewhere,” he added.
In a speech read on his behalf, Alhaji Zakaria Fuseini, the Upper East Regional Director of the Department of Agriculture, urged journalists to deepen their coverage of Striga and provide farmers with accurate information on how to prevent and control the weed.
He said reports from agricultural extension officers across the region continued to identify Striga as a recurring challenge confronting farmers, noting that the department through its Directorate of Agricultural Extension Services, had been working with farmers on the problem through improved seed varieties, agronomic advice and the work of Agricultural Extension Agents.
He said the experience of farmers should remain central to media reports on Striga to ensure that policies and interventions reflected the realities on the ground.
Mr Albert Sore, the Upper East Regional Chairman of the GJA, said agriculture deserved sustained media attention beyond the reporting of floods, drought, rising food prices and other major crises.
He said sustained reporting on the effects of striga infestation would enable the media to contribute meaningfully to agricultural development and bring the concerns of farmers to the attention of policymakers, development partners and the public.
The forum also included technical presentations on the biology of Striga, its persistence, recommended control measures and a field visit to an affected farm to enable journalists to interact directly with farmers experiencing the problem.
GNA
Edited by Caesar Abagali/Kenneth Odeng Adade
Reporter: Anthony Adongo Apubeo
Reporter’s email: [email protected],gh