The Deputy Minister for Agriculture, Hon. Yaw Frimpong has indicated that phase II of the PFJ would provide crucial support to the women farmers with access to input that will require beneficiaries to register their lands with the District Directorate of Agriculture by the end of March 2024 to enhance agricultural productivity.
He revealed this at the 6th Annual Gathering of the Royals, organized by the Agrihouse Foundation under the theme “Seeds of Change: Cultivating Gender Equality in Agriculture and Honoring Women’s Advancement” at the GNAT Hall, Accra.
In a call to action, Hon. Yaw Frimpong urged Queen Mothers to play a pivotal role in facilitating access to land for the youth, particularly women, encouraging them to take advantage of the input credits to engage in commercial agriculture to address unemployment.
“I plead with the queen mothers to assist in providing lands to the youth and inspire them, especially women, to seize this opportunity to advance commercial agriculture to achieve self-sufficiency in food production and reduce importation by 10% to 20% by 2027”, the Deputy Minister emphasized.
“After reviewing the Planting for Food and Jobs initiative, we have identified several gaps, such as the need for financial assistance and recognizing the potential of women in agriculture. Therefore, we are giving access to input credits under Phase 2 of the Planting for Food and Jobs program”, He said.
“Beneficiaries will need to have land and register with the District Directorate of Agriculture to qualify from now to the end of March. The program will specifically target registered farms cultivating tomato, onion, pepper, rice, maize, soya, sorghum, plantain, cassava, yam, and poultry, which will be connected to aggregators who will provide agricultural inputs on credit through extension officers. At the end of sales, the cost of input will be deducted from the total revenue then pay you what is left”, the Honourable clarified.
He added that to alleviate the challenges of marketing and selling produce, off-takers will be appointed to purchase goods directly from farms and transport them to warehouses. This streamlined process aims to support farmers, relieve them of the struggle to sell their produce, and ensure the efficient distribution of agricultural products to consumers.
“An off-taker will purchase produce from the farms, relieving farmers of the burden of marketing and selling. Processors and breweries will be linked to warehouses to further enhance the agricultural value chain and vice versa”.
The Deputy Minister assured stakeholders of improved infrastructure, including road networks, to support agricultural activities effectively.
“We will ensure all roads are motor-abled and properly maintained as per request by the queen mothers to support agriculture practices”, Hon. Yaw Frimpong said underscoring the government’s commitment to enhancing the agricultural sector’s productivity and sustainability.
