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AGRICULTURE

WENCHI: Gov’t to introduce program to produce poultry feed locally

The Deputy Minister for Local Government and Rural Development, Augustine Collins Ntim has hinted for the first time that government will soon introduce a program in the poultry industry which will see to the production of poultry feed locally.

Date Created : 8/13/2019 3:51:46 AM : Story Author : E. D. K. Tottimeh Jnr/Ghanadistricts.com

He said his Excellency the President was not very happy with the importation of over 40 thousand tons of feed yearly to feed poultry birds.

He disclosed this when he visited Wenchi Municipal Assembly as part of a nationwide working visits his ministry was embarking on to “find out how Metropolitan Municipal and District Chief Executives across the country are working to deliver the Presidents mandate” he noted.

He disclosed that 50 Metropolitan and Municipal Assemblies which Wenchi was part have been identified to take part in this new program coming up.

The Deputy Minister mentioned that under the program, each of these selected Districts would be expected to rear not less than 400 thousand birds each year to sustain the feed production industry.

He said he personally could not fathom why the nation was blessed with arable land but was still importing over 40 thousand tons of poultry feed yearly.

Mr. Collins Ntim noted that agriculture employed about 70% of the total population of the country hence the President’s numerous support to improve human development in the sector.

“The rural communities are the areas where all our foods are coming from and as a result the President had introduce all these interventions to help them move from abject poverty” he stressed.

He explained some of these interventions as subsidy in cost of fertilizer, maize, cowpea etc. all under the Planting for Food and Jobs program, Planting for Export and Rural Development, 1 District 1 Warehouse among others.

On the Planting for Export and Rural Development (PERD) he said a total of 9.3 million seedlings have been cultivated across the country on pilot bases and therefore charged Assemblies to take up the project seriously as it was doable he added.

Mr. Collins Ntim further stated that the decentralized tree crop farming had Cashew, Shea, and Oil palm, Coconut, Rubber and Coffee as its main plantation.

He said the vision that drove the project was to mitigate climate change and also provide jobs for the Youth.

Departmental heads of Education, Health and Agriculture took turns to give presentations on their outfit’s outputs so far this year. He advised all civil servants to adhere to their code of ethics and work diligently to help raise mother Ghana. He also requested of staff of various departments to be time conscious in the work they do since time lost could not be regained.