Mr Henry Quartey, the Greater Accra Regional Minister, has highlighted the massive transformation the Greater Accra region had chalked in Agriculture under the Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) programme.

The region, under the PFJ initiative, received a total of 20.25 metric tons of OVP maize seeds, 57.08 metric tonnes of Hybrid maize seeds and 24.75 metric tons of improved rice seeds, which were supplied to farmers under the project.

“Also, 15,317 sachets of tomato seeds, 3,210 onion seeds, 2,777 sachets of lettuce seeds, 5,415 sachets of cabbage seeds, 1,309 sachets of chilli pepper seeds, 3,410 sachets of cucumber seeds and 150 sachets of carrot seeds were given to farmers in the year under review,” he said.

These were contained, in a speech read on his behalf by Madam Felicia Dapaah, Chief Director of Greater Accra Regional Coordinating Council, at the ongoing 37th Farmer’s Day agro-Fair at the Adisadel College Park in Cape Coast.

The five-day Fair is a prelude to the Farmer’s Day event on Friday, December 3.

The event to be held on the theme: “Planting for Food and Jobs – Consolidating Ghana’s food systems,” will recognize and celebrate farmers and fishermen nationwide for their immense contribution to national growth and development.

Mr Quartey said farmers in the region had also received a variety of fertilizers under the Fertilizer Subsidy Programme of the PFJ.

He said the implementation of the Government Lockdown Policy offered them the opportunity to invest in value addition to increase the shelf life of their agricultural commodities.

He also revealed that through the E-Agriculture, technical and advisory services were rendered to stakeholders in the Agricultural value chain.

“COVID-19 was an eye-opener for inhabitants in the Greater Accra Region to stop depending solely on others for most of our agricultural supplies”.

The Minister commended farmers in the region for the tremendous achievements made in irrigation schemes that had produced exotic vegetables for local markets and export.

Speaking on challenges, Mr Quartey disclosed that the sector faced some challenges but encouraged the farmers to continue their hard work.

The challenges include inadequate input in all the 29 MMDAs, poor germination of rice seeds at the Asutsuare Kpong Irrigation Scheme and unavailability of varieties of vegetable seeds preferred by most farmers.

The rests are a shortage of fertilizers at some critical periods of the production calendar and prolonged drought at the beginning of the 2021 farming season.