COCOA REHABILITATION PROGRAMME ON PILOT IN A/R

-

Solidaridad West Africa, an international non-governmental organization concerned with improved and increased agricultural productivity initiatives in the West Africa sub-region, has embarked on a field trip to assess progress of its ongoing Cocoa Rehabilitation and Intensification Programme at two project sites at New Edubiase in the Ashanti Region and Assin Fosu in the Central region.

 The Cocoa Rehabilitation and Intensification Programme for Ghana, CORIP-Ghana, is a four-year project which was rolled out in 2013 with the objective of contributing towards the intensification of cocoa production systems in Ghana to further translate into sustainable productivity enhancement and economic returns for cocoa farmers.  Correspondent Enoch Kofi Saarkwah has the rest of the story. 
 
The 20 million Euros programme is being coordinated by Solidaridad West Africa in partnership with the International Fertilizer Development Company, IFDC, Ghana Cocoa Board and seven local and international private companies, with funding by the Dutch Embassy and the Sustainable Trade Initiative. 

After visits to two project sites at New Edubiase in the Adansi North district of Ashanti and Assin Fosu in the Central region, the Programmes Manager of Cocoa Rehabilitation and Intensification Programme for Ghana, Eric Agyare explained that the programme is being rolled out through Rural Service Centres, which provide variety of agricultural productivity enhancement services and technical training packages for interested farmers at standard costs.

 He said there are 20 of these centres currently operating across cocoa producing districts in the Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Western and Central regions which by design are expected to become self-financing and sustainable businesses by completion of the programme. 

Mr. Agyare noted also that each of the Rural Service Centres is expected to impact about two thousand cocoa farmers to particularly re-orient them to acceptable productivity enhancement and sustainability practices to change the traditional outlook of their agricultural activities into viable and profitable business modules.

 This, he emphasized has the potential to increase cocoa production from the current 250 kilograms per hectare to about 500 kilograms per hectare, while reducing poverty to improve livelihoods of cocoa farmers and attracting the youth to venture into the sub-sector. 

Mr. Agyare further mentioned the identification and usage of quality fertilizers among other inputs by beneficiary cocoa farmers as well as access to a wide range of technical services as some key successes of the programme realized so far. 

Ten beneficiary farmers who through the Rural Service Centres financial literacy had increased the amount in their respective savings account were awarded with knapsack sprayers, machetes, fertilizers and stationery.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

JUTE FACTORY IS BACK

-
Image
the administrative block under rehabilitation At long last, the much talked about defunct GIHOC Fibre manufacturing Company popularly known as the Jute Factory, is to be back in operations very soon.  Ashanti Today can confirm that work is feverishly ongoing towards the revival of the once golden sacks manufacturing company with the first production expected in the first quarter of next year.  It is a public-private partnership with a wholly Ghanaian company, Jute Mills Ghana Limited being the operator and has already sunk about five million Ghana Cedis to revamp the company.  The Jute Factory is located within the industrial area of Kaase.  It has been on divestiture for about 20 years now with successive governments paying lip-service to revamp it.   The old machinery at main factory to be replaced soon  It is one project that is dear to the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu, who has used almost every opportunity with bus...
Read more

THE STATE OF KUMASI'S 'INDUSTRIAL AREA

-
The once Industrial enclave of the Ashanti region within the Kumasi metropolis is fast losing its status as the nerve centre of jobs for the people.     This is due to the collapse of most of the companies in quick succession in  the last few years for various reasons. Background Industrialization was a key component of the first wholly indigenous government of Ghana led by Osagyefo Dr. Kwame Nkrumah. The Ashanti region was not left out in this drive which was meant to create decent jobs for the residents, particularly the youth.  Asokwa, Ahinsan, Kaase, Atonsu and Kyirapatre were the communities that became what is known as the ‘Industrial Area’ of Ashanti from the early 60s.  The christening of this enclave as the ‘Industrial Area’ was the people’s appreciation of the numerous state and privately owned companies that were sited there.  These communities fall within present day Asokwa Constituency whic...
Read more

KWAMANG SHS NEEDS URGENT HELP

-
Image
New Campus of the Kwamang Presby SHS The Kwamang Presby Senior High/Technical School in the Sekyere Central district of Ashanti needs an urgent external intervention to address some of its pressing basic needs to function very well.  A visit by Ashanti Today to the school’s premises revealed that the school does not have an administrative block to administer affairs of the school for which reason the Headmistress, the Bursar and another staff are sharing one room which has been partitioned, while the Assistant Headmaster, the rest of the Accounts staff among other administrative officers are also working from an improvised classroom. Anybody who visits the Kwamang Presby Senior High Technical school for the first time will unavoidably take it for a basic school.  This is more so when it appears to be perching on the premises of the local Junior High School as its old site.  The school is wallowing in a myriad of challenges that are seriously milit...
Read more