Stories by Bernice Bessey
Food insecurity continues threaten the country due to lack of mechanisms to reduce post-harvest losses, according to the Chief Executive (MCE) of the Ga East Municipal Assembly, Abokobi, John Kwao Sackey.
The head of the assembly explained that 30 per cent of the produce of farms goes to waste due to wrong harvesting methods, packaging and transport.
The MCE expressed the concern during the celebration of the 9th Municipal and 29th National Farmers Day on Friday, during which fifteen farmers were awarded for contributing immensely to the food basket of the Greater Accra Region.
The theme for the celebration: “Reducing-Post Harvest losses for sustainable food security and Nutrition,” according to him, was in the right direction, because post-harvest losses were having a negative effect on the nation.
He noted that if care was not taken to address the problem of post-harvest losses, access to food and its availability would be a major headache for all in years to come.
“The main purpose for our daily struggle is for our daily bread, since it is a fact that man cannot live without food, as it is a great source of energy and strength,” he noted.
The Millennium Development Goal advocates for the 21st Century as a century to halve the proportion of hungry people in the world: “There is, therefore, the need for food security to be able to achieve the desired results we anticipate,” he stated.
John Kwao Sackey said the nation must pay attention to food produce to prevent the circumstance of food insecurity and malnutrition it faced in the early 1980s.
The Municipal Chief Executive further called for the protection of land and water resources due to rapid development of farmlands by estate developers: “If many tenant farmers are out of business, food production levels will fall.”
The Overall Best Farmer went to T. K. Farms and youth award to 18-year old Samuel Mensah of St. Johns Grammar School.
Mr. James Botchway,(r) T.K. Farms recieving his award of sertificate for avorall best farmer, from Mr. John Kwao Sackey, M. C. E. of Ga East. Pix by Eric Owiredu.
Samuel Mensah, winner for the best youth farmer pose to camera standing beside his awards and holdig a certificate for his hard work done. Pix by Eric Owiredu