We Salute Our Farmers And Fishermen

Today is another first Friday of December, a day we have set aside to honour our farmers and fishermen, who cultivate the food, fish and meat to feed us and some of our sister and brothers in ECOWAS.

Our elders say in Twi that, Ayaase den na ye de shenn aben- It's a hard lower abdomen that we use to blow a horn. Meaning, it is when a man is satisfied with food that he could be most active. Those who wish to get philosophical about that will say, a healthy mind is found in a healthy body.

And we all know the merit of a well balanced diet to the cultivation of a healthy body.

The Independent therefore says, Ayekoo to all our farmers and fishermen. Farming and fishing are a whole way of life, a most worthy profession which our educational system, failed to teach most of us the educated to respect for the primal place it occupies in the affairs of men; thankfully that is gradually changing. Again, no matter where you turn, farmers and fishermen are faced with unimaginable difficulties.

Nevertheless, they have never relented in facing and overcoming the odds to cultivate enough food, fish and meat to feed us. Farmers and fishermen of Ghana, Ayekoo! The Independent (and Ghanaweb) salutes you.

It is in recognition of the awesome contribution they make to the economy that government, some eighteen years ago, instituted the Farmers Day and later made it a holiday.

Till today, eighteen best farmers have houses and hundreds of farmers who won awards all over the country have various forms of equipments and logistics to work with. Over the same period there has been massive improvements in the services the Ministry of Food and Agriculture extends to our farmers and fishermen.

In fact, since 2001 when Major (Rtd) Courage Quarshigah became the Minister for Food and Agriculture, there have been marked reductions in post-harvest losses and great boost in storage facilities.

That has been made possible by the government's wholistic approach to development as outlined in the poverty reduction strategy plan. Hence in some many farming areas, for example, the construction of good feeder roads has made it possible for farmers to bring their produce to market on time, get good price for them.

The availability of pre-mix fuel means fishermen will get fuel all the time and at the normal price to do their work.

Both could thus earn enough money to improve upon their personal lives and educate their children.

Yet a lot more needs to be done. Government policy to mass spray cocoa farms has enabled cocoa farmers to raise yield from 350,000 metric tones to 500,000 metric tonnes in two years. But recent reports that cocoa has been sitting in trucks at the Tema Port for over two weeks thus exposing it to the vagaries of the weather raises a lot of questions.
The bottom line is that if the cocoa goes bad at the ports the extra effort of farmers would have been in vain and the state would have lost so much in spite of all the resources thrown in to raise yield.
The Independent hears the Ministry of Food and Agriculture is going to unveil a new strategic plan for the coming years. This paper hopes it will bring for farmers an improvement in extension services, new improved and resilient varieties of crops that could withstand pest, better and cheaper preservation methods, cheaper and environmentally friendly fertilizers, a better meteorological service that will issue early warning to fishermen and farmer to enable them take necessary precautions against approaching storms or plague of insects and pests and avoidable damage during bad weather, affordable terms of payment for outboard motors, fishing nets, etc.
This paper further anticipates that the Ministry will take steps to help and encourage fish farming and non-traditional farming in snail, bee, mushroom, black pepper, etc. It is the firm conviction of The Independent that if the State sets up the necessary conditions for farmers and fishermen to work hard and enjoy the fruits of their labour, the direct outcome would be cheaper food on the market.

A properly fed population has the mental freedom to dream big and work hard to bring those dreams into reality. That means business would flourish and we could export more to earn more foreign exchange to help stabilize the cedi and improve our balance of payment position.

The Independent says Ayekoo to all our farmers and fishermen. We also say Ayekoo to all those who by various means provide various support services to farmers and fishermen and thus make their job less difficult than it would have been.
Kudos and more elbow grease to your effort.