Ghana: Boost for mango in five regions
ADRA will provide technical support to farmers involved in the project in the Upper East, Upper West, Northern, Brong-Ahafo and the northern part of the Volta Region.
The project, an initiative of EDAIF is aimed at providing financial resources to the agro-processing industry.
The Chief Executive Officer of EDAIF, Dr. Abdul Nashiru Issahaku, said the project would involve the establishment of mango belts in the regions to provide raw mango for exports.
He said the fund would provide financial resources for the development of the export sector and to the agro-processing industry.
Dr. Issahaku noted that EDAIF partnered with ADRA because of its experience and expertise the technical aspect of similar projects previously.
‘’ADRA would assess the resources needed to undertake the project, find out the challenges faced by farmers and also recommend ways to achieve the best results,’’ he added.
He explained that the partnership would help assess the needs of beneficiaries and provide technical training to beneficiaries farmers.
‘’Many farmers may be committed but they might not have the requisite skills to undertake effective farming practices, so the collaboration with ADRA is a laudable one,’’ he said.
Dr. Issahaku expressed the hope that the implementation of the project would provide foreign exchange for the country and also add value to agro products for exports.
Mr Samuel Asante Mensah, Director of Agriculture and Food Security Programmes at ADRA, expressed his delight about the partnership, and noted that tree crops were crucial to farmers to improve on their incomes even during periods of low rainfall.
He explained that ADRA had been working on similar projects and have had the opportunity to pioneer the cultivation of exotic mangoes in some areas in the Eastern Region and other parts of the Greater Accra Region.
Mr Asante- Mensah promised that his outfit would ensure the effective implementation of the project to increase the income of farmers and also provide foreign exchange to the country.
Source: The Ghanaian Times