Tempane: Adapt climate-smart farming practices — Farmers told

The District Director of Agriculture in Tempane in the Upper East Region, Ibrahim Jamal-deen has called on farmers nationwide to accept climate change as real and adopt climate-smart farming practices to tackle the impact.

He urges farmers must conform to the adaptation and mitigation capabilities to cope with the variations in the weather patterns as witnessed in this year's drought.

Framers across the northern sector this year experience droughts amid a shortage of fertilizers. Most farmers this year could not buy much fertiliser since they were not subsidised.

The prices of the few available fertilisers that were on the market were exorbitant hence the low yields this year.

Speaking at this year's Farmers' Day celebration, Mr Ibrahim Jamal-deen has said the extension services in the district have improved with wide coverage in the district.

He noted that technologies are disseminated to farmers through home and farm visits demonstrations, field days, visits to farmer-based organisations and village savings and loans associations, and radio and telephone calls.

Mr Jamal-deen however called on the government to provide incentives for the youth to venture into agriculture as a business.

According to him, the youth need farm equipment and financial support to engage in meaningful agriculture to improve their livelihood.

In all 37 farmers were awarded certificates and other agricultural inputs. The best physically challenged farmer went to Kombat Jonathan. He went home with Wellington boots, 1 cutlass and a knapsack sprayer.

The best female farmer went to Madam Haruna Mamata from Zansiribulga. She went home with a motorbike, a pair of Wellington boots and other farming inputs.

The overall best farmer went to Akpenib Atiig, from Nintabugsug community. He went home with a motor king, Wellington boots, knapsack sprayers and other farming inputs.