The Nabdam District Director of the Department of Agriculture, Rasheed Imoro, has called on farmers to adopt intercropping using improved seeds to increase yields and ensure food security.
According to him, the adoption of intercropping and the use of modern technology by farmers would not only curtail food insecurity but would also empower them financially.
“It is time we move away from the traditional way of farming, and with the variety of seeds we have in Ghana, we can do better because we have the potential, our lands are fertile, and all we need to do is change our attitude and adopt modern technology“, he stated
Mr. Imoro noted that the continued growing of traditional crops using outmoded farming methods is not only depriving farmers good yields, despite the hard work they put in but also makes them financially unstable to even acquire farm inputs to help them on their farms due to low yields.
With the combination of improved panea maize and favour soya beans, using within-row method of sowing, he said farmers are assured of a bumper harvest with the right application of inoculant or NPK.
He revealed this when he was speaking to farmers at Sakoti about the Sustainable Soyabean Production in Northern Ghana (SSPiNG) Project being implemented by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) with support from Yara Ghana and Excellence in Agronomy.
Through demonstrations, the farmers were taken through maize-soya intercropping, which resulted in some of the maize cropping about two to three in one single plant.
The project is aimed at building the capacities of farmers to enable them to adopt the strategy of intercropping by ensuring proper site selection, adequate land preparation, plowing, the selection of certified seeds, and sowing techniques, among others, to improve food security.
He called on Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), philanthropists, and well-meaning individuals to invest in agriculture in the area, adding that the land is fertile and has the potential to cultivate soya beans, maize, and sorghum to contribute greatly to the country`s food basket and ensure food security, given the needed support.
Sakoran Zanbok Kom, the Tidan (land owner) of the Sakoti Traditional Area, expressed his gratitude to the organizations, adding he was inspired by the innovation and appealed for the continuation of the project to boost the capacity of farmers to ensure food security.
Source:A1radioonline.Com|101.1MHz|Gilbert Azeem Tiroog|Sakoti
