Small-scale farmers declare a week

Accra, Oct. 25, GNA - The Ghana Trade and Livelihood Coalition (GTLC) has called on the Ghanaian small-scale farmers to contribute their quota not just to food security but also to the overall economic development.

Launching its first Farmers' Week, the Coalition shared the view that the Government alone could not tackle the challenges faced by farmers even though it had a role in ensuring that the environment was not detrimental to the development of the small farmer as an economic unit.

The Coalition in a statement said the Week was to precede the National Farmers' Day every year and this year's celebration would be launched at Okyereko in the Central Region.

It said the present trend of rewarding hard working farmers on farmers' days where cutlasses, household electrical equipments, tractors and vehicles were presented, did not solve the innumerable problems they faced.

'Moreover, the present low level of production by small-scale farmers and value addition is an indictment on the quality of leadership provided by successive governments, where our public officials have become defenders of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund liberalization policies rather than being touch bearers of national development.

"Instead of being at the apex of development after 50 years of independence we are still struggling with access to the basic necessities" the Coalition said.

The National Coordinator, Mr Ibrahim Akalbila said "the best way to reward farmers is to support them with protective policies, targeted investment and strict implementation policies".

The Coalition is to introduce a week in October every year where policy and practice issues on agriculture and their implications on livelihood would be raised.