The Research for Development and Innovation Agriculture and Learning (ReDIAL) has launched a soil fertility map to help access improved fertile soil.
The project which was launched in Yendi in the Northern Region attracted participants made up of farmers, input dealers, Ministry of Agriculture staff, Yendi Municipal Assembly staff, People with Disabilities (PWD) Multi Stakeholders Dialogue Members, Traditional Authorities, and Assembly Members amongst others.
Mr. Kyereh Boateng, Lecturer of Natural Resources at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), launching the project, said data on soil fertility parameters is a prerequisite for soil fertility management.
According to Mr. Kyereh Boateng, site measurement and laboratory analysis of soil fertility parameters before and during crop cultivation, remain a big challenge to farmers in Ghana and addressing it would enhance proper farmer decisions and policy formulation on crop nutrient management to profile soil fertility maps in the Yendi Municipality.
Mr. Kyereh Boateng explained that it would generate soil fertility maps for the municipality using the levels of Nitrogen (N) Phosphorus (P) and Potassium (K). He noted that it is the first time a soil fertility map was launched in the region.
Mr. Israel Boateng Yeboah, Lecturer at KNUST, Kumasi, on his part, also explained alternative ways for improving soil fertility in the Municipality. He admonished the farmers to practice crop rotation to economize land and gain nutrients from previous crops.
Mr Israel Boateng Yeboah noted that the long-term application of synthetic fertilizer affects the physico-chemical properties of the soil and the application of organic fertilizer to the soil enhance soil properties and increase crop yield.
Only Few Farmers Use Organic Fertilizers
The lecturer opined that in Ghana, only a few farmers use organic fertilizers, giving some alternative soil improvement materials such as agriculture waste crop residue (Proka), e.g. maize stover, maize husk, rice stalks, groundnut pods, cowpea pod, wastewater from fish ponds. Mr Israel Boateng Yeboah added that animal manure, sheep and goat droppings amongst others, are also useful.
Alhaji Abubakari Mohammed the Yendi Municipal Director of Agriculture intimated that they do not have money to buy airtime from the FM stations in the Municipality to educate farmers on the ReDIAL project on agriculture. He thus appealed to Friends of the Nation, KNUST and Tropenbos Ghana to sponsor airtime for agriculture programmes to educate the farmers.
Alhaji Shamrock Mahama Yelzoli Tamalnaa thanked the EU for funding the ReDIAL project and requested it to be extended to the area and appealed to them to also extend the project date to 2026 instead of 2024 in the municipality.
Prof. Emmanuel Acheampong, another lecturer at KNUST, urged the participants to impact what they learnt during the launching to their communities to also benefit from the soil fertility programme.
Mr. Acheampong who facilitated the programme reminded them that the specific objective is to foster innovation in improving soil fertility in the municipality by generating scientific knowledge and data while applying innovative technology to improve and achieve better results.
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