Stephen Nampoah, a 42-year-old farmer from Dambai old-town, a suburb from Krachi East Municipality has been crowned the Best Municipal Farmer at the 2024 National Farmers Day celebration.
He was presented with a certificate, a tricycle, two knapsack sprayers, five cutlasses, two pairs of Wellington boots, two insecticide agro- chemicals and two bars of key soap.
Mr Nampoah, cultivates 25 cares of yam, 30 acres of maize, 18 acres of cassava, 20 acres of cashew, 10 acres of groundnuts, two acres of okro, two acres of garden eggs.
The rest are,15 acres of palm trees, 5 acres of mahogany, 15 acres of teak tress, 472 cattle, 281 goats, 200 sheep and 260 local fowls.
Mr Nampoah, the award winner, made a compelling plea to the government to support farmers and make agriculture more attractive to the youth.
He urged the government to increase the salaries of field officers, specifically veterinary officers, and extension officers.
Mr Nampoah emphasised the need for the government to provide farmers with essential tools and inputs, such as tractors and combine harvesters to make farming more efficient and productive.
He proposed reviving school gardens to equip students with practical farming skills and encourage them to consider agriculture as a viable career path.
He told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) the initiative would help reduce the reliance on white-collar jobs and promote entrepreneurship in agriculture.
Mr. Charles Awuranyi, the assembly member of Dambai central has advocated for the government to subsidise farm inputs to increase their yield.
In all, six outstanding farmers in the Krachi East Municipality were awarded at the event.
The items presented were one tricycle, five bicycles, knapsack spraying machines, cutlasses, Wellington boots, flat screen TVs, key soaps, and insecticide agro-chemicals.
GNA