The Department of Agriculture of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA), has embarked on programmes to promote backyard agriculture, enhance food security and job creation through innovative technologies in the Effia-Kwesimintsim Municipality of the Western Region and beyond.
These innovations include the use of pots, buckets, plastic and wooden containers as well as soilless (sawdust) medium to cultivate crops.
The department has also introduced rearing of catfish in tarpaulin ponds, quails and rabbits in cages.
To date, the department has cultivated and harvested orange flesh potatoes,carrots and ginger, Turmeric and trellised Cucumber in black poly bags, sacs and wooden boxes.
Others are garden eggs, tomatoes, red pepper, spinach, maize, plantain sucker multiplication and mushroom production and spices such as basil plant, dill and celery.
In an interview with the Ghanaian Times on Friday, the Municipal Director ofAgriculture, Mr Kwamina Gyimah, explained that, land, finance, labour and the environment, were four critical factors to promote agriculture in any society.
However, he noted, that arable lands, had over the years, lacked in urban areas like Effia-Kwasimintsim Municipal Assembly (EKMA), due to limited space and population increases, thereby hampering the prospects of backyard farms.
Mr Gyimah said in February, this year, the Department organised a meeting to seek views from stakeholders including farmers, input dealers, bankers, research scientists and agriculture extension agents, as to how to address the issue of land, hence the new innovations.
On the plantain innovations, Mr Gyimah said, the humid chamber(an ‘A’ frame wooden structure) covered with white polythene, was used to multiply plantain suckers.
He said, the chamber was filled with sawdust, a growing medium, then the mother plantain, with the growing point (epical meristem)destroyed, to activate the dormant buds to allow it to sprout into plantlets(suckers).
“It is necessary for it to grow and harden and then ready for transplanting.” the agriculture expert added.
Mr Gyimah said EKMAwas carved out of the Sekondi-Takoradi Metropolitan Assembly and established in April, 2018.
Since then, EKMAhad always aspired to promote urban agriculture to create jobs, income growth and improve the living standards of the people.
The department, he stressed, created the innovation to embark on serious climate smart agricultural activities to reduce the effect of climate change on the sector and also help with greening the environment of the municipality.
“Additionally, the department has carried out activities to compliment the government’s agenda of creating jobs within the agricultural space.” Mr Gyimah told the Ghanaian Times.
He indicated that, the new innovations were very convenient and could be done even with the limited space at home.
The EKMA, through the department of Agriculture, he said, was poised to improve the capacity of farmers in the industry to effectively and efficiently produce crops like carrots, to improve the shell life.
This, he added, would complement programmes to improve incomes and reduce unemployment especially among the youth and even pensioners.
Mr Gyimah encouraged the private sector to tap into the innovations and that, so far, the public particularly, the military and some public officials had shown keen interest in urban farming.
“The responses had been positive and great. It is the hope of the Department of Agriculture – EKMA that majority of the youth in the municipality, unemployed women and retirees will take advantage of these innovations and follow-up to the agriculture office located at Abenbebom, New Market – Apremdo.
“We are ready to provide more practical and hands-on experience and skills in these demonstrated enterprises to enhance their income levels and reduce unemployment in the municipality,” he revealed.
FROM CLEMENT ADZEI BOYE, ABENBEBOM
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