6,000 acres PSI cassava ready for harvesting

A total of 6000 acres of cassava cultivated under the first phase of the President’s Special Initiative (PSI) is ready for harvesting.

The cassava, which have been planted in six districts including Ewutu/Efutu/Senya, Ga, West Akyem and Akuapem South, will be processed into starch at Bawjiase for the local market and for export. A ?2.4-billion starch processing plant which is the second of its kind in Africa has been imported from Denmark and will produce about 20,000 tonnes of starch annually.

The project which is being managed by Ayensu Starch Company Limited is estimated at $7 million. The cassava initiative is one of the four major initiatives the government is embarking on to provide jobs for the people and also boost exports and increase foreign exchange revenue.

So far, about 4,000 farmers have been engaged on the project and they also own a 50 per cent stake in the project. The co-ordinator of the PSI, Mr Osei Owusu-Agyemang made this known when the Ashanti Regional Minister, Mr Samuel Kwaku Boafo, paid a familiarisation visit to the project site at the weekend.

He said plans are afoot to establish similar projects in other regions with the exception of Upper East and Upper West Region where, he explained, the climatic conditions conditions do not favour cassava cultivation. Mr Owusu-Agyemang said the type of starch to be produced from the project could be used by the pharmaceutical companies, soft drinks and biscuit producers among others which depend on starch for their work adding that, there will be no need for these companies to import starch as a raw material.

Mr Boafo, on his part, said the Ashanti Region is preparing to cultivate cassava to beef up the supply from the six other districts.