Chairman of the farmers, Shaibu presenting the money to the chief and elders of the community
About 275 farmers made up of 25 women, who are into irrigation farming at Weija Irrigation Farms in the Greater Accra Region, have appealed to the government, through the Ghana Irrigation Development Authority (GIDA), to provide new pumping machines to the farming groups to replace the old and obsolete ones.
The co-operative farmers, led by their chairman, Shaibu Agboh, made the appeal when they paid homage to the chief of Krokrobite Langma and Tackieman, popularly known as Tuba, Nii Arde-Nkpa VII and his elders.
They also donated some food items and unspecified amount of money to the chiefs for accommodating and supporting them in their farming activities as owners of the land.
The chairman of the co-operative farmers said that the area could become the food basket for the Greater Accra Region if the proper incentives and support are given to the farmers.
According to him, the obsolete pumping machines provided by the government were negatively affecting farming activities while electricity bills given to farmers from the two pumping stations serving the farms are too astronomical and also affect their incomes as farmers.
He therefore appealed to government to give them special dispensation in the electricity consumed by the pumping stations and reduce the tariffs for them.
The head of the Nii Arde Nkpa Stool Family and owners of the land, Daniel Nii Arde Tagoe, commended the farmers for the gesture.
He asked government to give priority to farming activities on the Weija Irrigation Farms since they have employed a number of people in the Greater Accra Region in the areas of farming, harvesting, packaging to marketing.
He said the farmers are mainly into cultivation of vegetables such as tomatoes, pepper, garden eggs, okro, cabbage, as well as rearing of animals and so the huge land covering over 444 acres has become virtually the food basket of the Greater and Central Regions.
He said government should come to the aid of the farmers and inject more capital into expanding the farms and providing more jobs to the youth of the area.
He also appealed to government to ensure that compensations are paid to the land owners who forfeited their lands for the Weija Irrigation Project.
“We want the government to come to our community and support us. We need a market to provide ready market for farmers at Weija Farms, as well as a community hospital to serve the health needs of our people.”
By Thomas Fosu Jnr