By Florence Afriyie Mensah
Ejura (Ash), Nov. 21, GNA – The Research for Development Innovation and Agriculture and Learning (ReDIAL), has as part of activities to climax its project objectives, commissioned and handed over a solar powered grains and cereals thresher at Ejura in the Ashanti Region.
The thresher, which harnesses solar energy to thresh crops such as maize, rice, cowpea and soyabeans, will aid in the shift from fossil fuels to power threshers to a cleaner source of energy.
It will eliminate the emissions associated with threshing, promote sustainable renewable energy use that is climate friendly and to further reduce the cost of operation.
The new gadget would thresh several bags of harvested crops within a day, which hitherto would have taken farmers several days to work on.
Throughout the Ejura enclave, a number of single crop threshers are in use, powered by fossil fuels.
Mr. Donkris Mevuta, ReDIAL Project Coordinator, speaking at the ceremony, said the agricultural gadget would contribute to the collective pursuit of sustainable agriculture and climate action.
The REDIAL Project, he noted, a collaborative effort co-funded by the European Union, Friends of the Nation, Faculty of Renewable Natural Resources of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and Tropenbos Ghana, had been instrumental in introducing innovative solutions for smallholder farmers.
He urged smallholder farmers to leverage the facility to enhance livelihoods and communities and invest in additional skills the ReDIAL project had exposed them to in promoting eco-friendly farming practices, reducing carbon footprint and building a resilient future.
Mr. Mevuta, who is also the Executive Director of Friends of the Nation, said through the project’s span (2020 to August 2024), it had empowered farmers in the implementing zones, Yendi, Sefwi Wiawso, Donkorkrom, Techiman and Ejura Sekyedumasi with sustainable skills.
During the commissioning, other assets were handed over to the Post ReDIAL Management Committee.
They included three farm sense soil testing kits, an easy-to-use soil nutrient testing technology that measures soil nutrient and soil deficiencies to help farmers know the nutritional needs of the soil before planting.
Others were a fossil fuel powered multi-crop thresher, organic composting site and public address systems.
Mr. Paul Amo Korang, Ashanti Regional Director of Agriculture, commending the ReDIAL Project for the initiative, requested that similar energy efficient technologies be built at other farming enclaves to ease the workload on farmers.
He believed these could also bolster the agricultural value chain and attract a ready market for crops, especially cereals, grains and legumes.
Madam Ayeshetu Salifu, Chairperson for the Post ReDIAL Management Committee, pledged to ensure that the gadgets and technologies were put to good use and sustain the gains of the ReDIAL Project.
GNA