Government has been called upon to as a matter of urgency speed up a promise of increasing the budgetary allocation of the One Village, One Dam (1V1D) programme.
Several complain have been raised by Civil Society Organizations, the media and the beneficiary communities about the poor execution of many of the 1V1D projects.
The government made a promised to increase the initial budgetary allocation of the Ghc250, 000.00 to help improve and expand the dams with irrigation facilities to effectively enhance dry season farming.
The call was made by farmers in a communiqué issued at Bongo in the Upper East Region, after a District Level Stakeholders Engagement Forum on 1V1D Programme. The forum attracted a lot of farmers from the area including government functionaries from the Agriculture sector, the District Assembly and the Media.
It was organised by the Northern Patriots in Research and Advocacy (NORPRA), to demand accountability from duty bearers on the quality of dams constructed in the communities.
The communiqué which was signed by the leader of the farmers group, Mr. Akuure Azure, stated that the dams when re-worked on well would help increase agricultural productivity and eradicate poverty and hunger in the Bongo district and the entire beneficiaries’ communities in Northern Ghana where the programme had been initiated.
The farmers also underscored the need for proper engagements and consultation of all stakeholders when expanding the dams to help meet the development priorities, needs and aspirations of the beneficiary communities.
The communiqué added that to ensure improved quality of the dams for sustainable agricultural activities for improved livelihoods, beneficiary communities want government to engage the Irrigation Development Authority (IDA) which has high level of technical capacity to design standards for irrigation infrastructure.
In a brief presentation, the Executive Director of NORPRA, Mr. Bismark Adongo Ayorogo, pointed out that research in Ghana has shown that public investment in agriculture has the highest returns as every cedi invested in agriculture has GH¢16.8 returns which is more than GH¢8.8 for feeder roads and GH¢1.3 for health. He stated further that the five regions in Northern Ghana have 8 million hectares of agricultural lands with suitable soils for wide range of crops left unused or underutilized and only 15.6% of arable land is cultivated.
He said prioritising the building of irrigation infrastructure in northern Ghana is key to accelerating agricultural-led transformation of northern Ghana and for eradication of poverty and hunger to achieve the sustainable development goals in good time.
The District Chief Executive of the Bongo District Assembly, Mr. Peter Ayimbisa who addressed the forum and also responded to the concerns raised by participants stated: “Nana-Addo led administration is a listening government and would consider the concerns and views of participants to improve the quality of 1V1D programme to improve the lives of the people through increased investment in agriculture.”
The District Director of Agriculture, Mr Edgar Dra, called on the youth of the district to embrace the 1V1D programme to better their lives through livestock and vegetable farming which, he noted, were in in high demand in the dry season.
The paramount chief of the Bongo traditional area, Naba Aleemyarum Baba Salifu, who chaired the forum, advised owners of livestock in the district not to allow their animals destroy farmers’ crops.
He urged the District Assembly to pass a byelaw that criminalizes the deliberate act of allowing livestock on free-range to destroy other farmers’ crops.
Story filed by Emmanuel Akayeti.
