The National Youth Employment Programme (NYEP) has engaged 2,000 young farmers to undertake the cultivation of maize and rice in the Upper West Region this year. Each of the eight districts in the region will sponsor 250 farmers with seeds, fertilizer and a ploughing fee of 220,000 cedis per hectare, Mr Mohammed Abudulai Sidik, Regional Liaison Officer of the Programme told the GNA at Wa on Tuesday. He said all efforts were being made to ensure that the farming module of the programme took off smoothly in the region this year in contrast to last year when the late arrival of seeds delayed it and resulted in poor yields in some districts. Mr Sidik said districts where the topography was not good for the cultivation of rice had been given the option by the National Headquarters to cultivate other crops like groundnuts or soybeans. He said all the districts were making efforts to recover the amount of ¢515,000 that was spent by the programme on each farmer last year either through cash payment or its equivalent in farm produce. All districts that had an operational threshold (minimum operations account) of 75 million cedis in their bank balances had been directed to go ahead and till the land for their farmers, he added. On the Community Protection module of the programme, the Regional Liaison Officer said 50 youths had been recruited for the Wa Municipality on pilot basis and were currently undergoing training at Pwalugu Police Depot in the Upper East Region. Source: GNA