The President of the National Farmers and Fishermen Award Winners Association of Ghana (NFFAWAG), Philip Abayori, has observed that the mass importation of agric produce into Ghana is pushing the nation’s farmers and fishermen into poverty and joblessness. In a statement to commemorate the 25th anniversary celebration of the national farmers’ day, which was held in Tamale, Northern Region last Friday, Mr Abayori said: “the harder Ghanaian farmers work, the lesser they earn and the poorer they become.” He recalled that in 1970s, agriculture was the backbone of the Ghanaian economy, adding that the Northern Region in particular was the rice-producing basket of the country. “As I speak today, the cotton industries that used to employ a significant number of the population in the northern part of the country are at a brink of collapse. Rice and other important industries are nowhere to be found,” Mr Abayori stated, stressing that the situation had created a vacuum as far as employment was concerned. The NFFAWAG President therefore called on the government to implement decisions that would benefit the agric sector so that Ghanaian farmers and fishermen would come out of their predicament. “If we fail in our core responsibilities to reverse this situation and create jobs for our people, we would not only be doing a disservice to mother Ghana but posterity would also judge us,” he cautioned. Mr Abayori further noted that farmers and fishermen find it extremely difficult to access credit and appealed to government to reverse the trend. “Even with the least credit, we sometimes get it in a blue moon, the interest rates are so exorbitant, making it a disincentive to our farmers to take loans. Even if they do, repayment often becomes difficult,” he lamented. Consequently, the NFFAWAG President suggested to the government to consider setting up an agric fund, which would be generated from the taxes on imported food items as specified in the 2010 budget. He said the World Bank had already announced plans to set up an agric fund to boost agriculture in developing countries with an initial capital of $1.5 billion. Mr Abayori urged government to implement the CAADP Principles in order to create the necessary partnership and consensus with private sector. Source: Daily Guide