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AGRICULTURE

Youth Must Take Advantage of Tomatoes Farming

The District Chief Executive (DCE) for Berekum West, Mr. Isaac Osei has urged the youth to take advantage of vegetable farming especially tomatoes, to better their lives instead of travelling to the cities for non-existing white color jobs.

Date Created : 1/17/2019 7:30:18 AM : Story Author : Alan T. Boakye-Yeboah

Addressing a farmers’ durbar at Fetentaa organized by the Vegetable Growers Association in the district, he encouraged the farmers and the youth to step up their farming activities from subsistence to the business level in order to earn more from their sweat.

In a response to an appeal, the DCE assured them of the assembly’s readiness to help them establish a tomato market center to create ready market for them and also to aid the assembly in its revenue mobilisation.

To drive home his commitment to support the farmers, he announced that the grading of farm roads in the area is to start, to ensure easy access to their farms and again make it easier to transport their produce to avoid them being locked up on the farms to rot, a situation he described as unfair to the hardworking farmers.

Earlier, the chairman for the association, Mr. Kwame Bamfo Kesse said the durbar is a means to interact with farmers and stakeholders on how to address various challenges facing them.

He cited low financial support, unavailability of ready markets for their produce and the difficulty in acquiring land for farming as some of the major challenges facing vegetable, especially tomato farmers in the area.

Adehye Panin of Fetentaa, Nana Effah Amankwaa appealed to the government to establish a market center for their produce.

He noted that the traditional council of Fetentaa had release two-acres for the market and appealed to the Assembly to support them clear and develop the area.

Nana Effah Amankwaa noted that the construction of the market would go a long way to support the farmers to pay off their loans.

“With a ready market we can determine prices of our produce and this would make the business lucrative” he stated.