Amansie West DCE urges youth to grab agriculture as lucrative venture

As a country, that is traditionally agricultural, its citizens depend exclusively on agriculture for livelihood.

Agriculture can never be left out of Ghana's development agenda since the basic survival and progress as a nation depends on Agricuyltire.

Due to that, every first Friday of December is set aside to reward farmers in Ghana.

The District Chief Executive for Amansie West District, Hon Nii Ollenu Lartey has urged the youth to take benefit of the government's numerous interventions and assess farming as a lucrative venture.

Government interventions are Planting for Food and Jobs, Planting for Exporting and Rural Development, Rearing for Food and Jobs, Modernization Agriculture in Ghana, Acqua -Culture for Food and Jobs, Establishment of Mechanization Service Centers, One Village One Dam and Green House Technology among others.

The DCE noted that government is already on course in expanding the industrial base as envisaged in the One District One Factory policy to add significance to raw materials before exporting them to earn more foreign exchange and safeguard the country's balance of payments.

"When the youths are involved in agriculture they would receive support from the District Agric Department," he stated.

According to the District Director of Agriculture, Mr. Juantuah Adusei Anthony also added that the Government provides a total of 10,000 bags of granular inorganic fertilizers and 5,024 litres of organic wich have been distributed to the farmers.

This he said has inevitably aided in the increase in yields.

He added that free chemicals for control of fall Armyworms were distributed to about 609 farmers.

Mr. Juantuah Adusei Anthony mentioned that Amansie West District (Antoakrom) pruned the largest acreage of Cocoa farms in the entire country covering an area of 30,340 Ha. According to him, this was made possible through the 850 motorized spraying and slasher machine supplied by government of Ghana through COCOBOD.

"The Cocoa Rehabilitation program through COCOBOD has assisted farmers whose cocoa trees were affected by the CSSVD disease to cut down their cocoa trees and afterward replanting for them. The five communities benefited in the district are Manso Nkwanta, Nkaasu, Netware, Essuowin and Pakyi Abonfunso," he stressed.

This year Farmer's Day, 200 farmers were awarded items such as spraying machines, cutlass, weedicide, cloth and more.

A 68-year-old man who hails from Pakyi no_1 Mr. Samuel Asamoah through his hardworking was adjudged the 2022 overall best farmer in Amansie West District. He received GTP wax, a Napsac spraying machine, fridge, motorcycle, a radio, a weedicide and a certificate.

Mr. Asamoah Samuel thanked the government and DCE for the award. He encourages the youth to venture into agriculture as a lucrative business.