Thirty-Six-year-old King Azure has been adjudged the overall Best Farmer in the Okaikwei North Municipality in the Greater Accra Region. Mr. Azure walked away with a tricycle (Aboboyaa), cutlasses, wellington boots, wheelbarrow and other farm equipments. He was optimistic his award will spur others on to aspire for greater heights in their various fields of endeavor. The best farmer expressed gratitude to the Assembly for selection him. Mr. Azure, the owner of King Azure Farms in Nii Boitown a suburb in the Municipality takes over from Mr. Simon Hatsi the 2021 best farmer. In an address, the Municipal Chief Executive (MCE) Honourable Boye Laryea, said the government of ghana President Akufo-Addo is committed to the development of agriculture in the Municipality. He said despite the ravages of the COVID-19 Pandemic, farmers in the country stood strong to provide the country with enough food to feed the citizenry. Celebrated under the theme “Accelerating agricultural development through value Addition”, Honourable Laryea noted that the government’s policy of planting for food and jobs with a strategic focus to ensure food security in the country, increase national industrialization through value addition and the creation of market-oriented economy with agriculture well defines the 38th Farmers Day Celebration.
According to him, the Programme has come to improve productivity and yield, stressing that through the programme, there has been subsidy of inputs such as seeds and fertilizers, farm implements, tractors among others.
He indicated that land is in limited supply in the Municipality and that even though farmers manage to find space, it is temporal because there are residential properties which prevent long term planning.
“Yet these men and women are able to make good use of these lands and spaces to produce food and meat for our local markets” he noted. The Municipal Director of Agric, Beatrix Brown-Quarshie, said the theme is in line with efforts aimed at complementing roles towards the attainment of Sustainable Development Goal 2 which is ending hunger. She disclosed that per the location of the Municipality, there is the potential to add more value to most agricultural produce as a way of business or home economics. The Charmian for the occasion, Emmanuel Wilson, Administrator of the Lapaz Community Hospital urged all to start backyard garden to support themselves.
He said farmers have been the backbone of the country’s workforce, producing food to feed everyone.
Other farmers who exceled in processing, livestock farming, poultry farming, crop farming and best extension officers were awarded with knapsack spraying machines, cutlasses, wheel barrows among other items. Present at the ceremony were Chiefs, Assembly Members, staff, Heads of Departments, agro exhibitors and other stakeholders in the Agricultural value chain.
