General Secretary of the General Agricultural Workers’ Union, Edward Kareweh, has advised the public not expect a bumper harvest this year.
According to Mr Kareweh, several factors including shortage of fertiliser will significantly affect the produce of farmers. He explained that contrary to the Agric ministry’s assertion that there will be a bumper harvest, the “reality on the ground” tells otherwise.
“Apart from that we were told by the ministry itself too that the fertiliser was smuggled out… all these put together, certainly, one should not expect a bumper harvest. One should not expect a harvest to be as it was a year before or two years before. Well, we [can] hope that in spite of all these shortages and challenges that are before us, things will be good for us. But if you look at the signs of it one should not expect a bumper harvest.
“When you talk about the bumper harvest, it is very normal that during harvesting period prices will fall because food will be available at that time. But the whole essence of our policy is not about the bumper harvest, it’s not about good time. It’s about bad times. What do we do beyond the harvesting period? Do we have enough food?”
Mr Edward Kareweh
Consequences of fertiliser shortage
Mr Kareweh further revealed that the realities of the Agric situation in the country are “clear for all of us”. However, there are some who refuse to accept what the true situation on the ground is.
The GAWU General Secretary averred that due to fertiliser challenges, some farmers had to reduce the size of their output.
“Because based on the ministry’s own statistics and information that fertiliser supplies were constrained and that it was constrained because they were unable to pay suppliers of fertilisers their money… there [was] a very huge shortage of fertiliser in the market. It’s not just about analysis here, it’s about the reality on the ground.
“Some of the farms had to cut down their acreage because they do not have enough fertiliser to continue with their farming. The price in the market has also shot up too high. So, many farmers were unable to buy the fertiliser because they never prepared for it; you know the open market fertiliser”.
Mr Edward Kareweh
Ignore Mahama’s statement on food shortage
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Food and Agriculture has called on Ghanaians to ignore former President John Mahama’s comment on the country facing food shortage.
Contained in a statement, the ministry revealed that “PFJ is very much on course” and that Mr Mahama may be haunted by the long-held ‘incompetent’ title.
The ministry further assured Ghanaians that the country “will not face food shortage neither will it experience famine”.
“Ghanaians would recall that in 2017, the same party… predicted that Ghana was going to face famine, akin to that of 1983. But thanks to the vision and efficiency of the President Nana Akufo Addo-led administration, Ghana overcame the outbreak and recorded one of the highest productivity in the agricultural sector.
“We wish to assure the general public that the country will in fact experience a bumper harvest, despite the recent droughts experienced in the early part of the year as well as the challenges in supply of subsidized fertilizers”.
MoFA
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