Minister for Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, has said that President John Mahama is committed to transforming Ghana’s agricultural system from rain-fed farming to irrigation-based production to ensure year-round food security.
Speaking in an interview on Asempa FM’s Ekosii Sen show, Mr. Opoku explained that the move has become necessary following last year’s drought in northern Ghana, which destroyed large quantities of crops and affected many farmers.
“Last year, the northern part of Ghana experienced a severe drought, which caused all the crops that were planted to spoil. In response, the government provided support to the farmers in various ways. We face challenges whether it rains or there is a drought. Therefore, we needed to find solutions to transition Ghana from rain-fed agriculture to irrigation-based agriculture, which is a priority for the president. Consequently, we will allocate most of our resources to irrigation,” he said.
The Minister revealed that the government, with support from development partners including the French government, the EU, and the African Development Bank, has secured €47 million for irrigation-related projects.
He added that 25 additional boreholes have been donated by the Canadian High Commission to support secondary school farming programmes.
“The French government, the European Union, and the African Development Bank (AFDB) have provided us with €47 million for irrigation-related projects. I recently met with the French ambassador to discuss our collaboration on this initiative. We plan to construct ten new small dams to improve water flow and repair eight existing dams in the northern region.
“Additionally, we will install 47 solar-powered boreholes for farmers, as well as 44 boreholes for secondary school farming. Out of the schools we evaluated, 23 qualified for this initiative, and drilling has already begun for those locations. Furthermore, we presented our plan to the Canadian High Commission, which agreed to fund 25 solar-powered boreholes,” he said.
Source: Farida Seidu| Adomonline
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