Anyaano (W/R), Dec. 13, GNA – After being crowned the 2021 Best Farmer in the Ahanta West Municipal Assembly (AWMA), Mr Urias Eshun from Anyaano, opened up on his journey in the agriculture sector.
As a former worker of the Ahantaman Rural Bank, he decided to venture into farming because his parents were once farmers. Following his dream, he resigned from his job and went into farming after realizing that white collared jobs paid less.
Mr Eshun revealed that his years of venturing into the sector since 2017 has seen progress and impacted a lot of lives.
Currently, he can boast of 45 acres of plantain farm which comes with the cultivation of pepper, tomatoes, maize, and garden eggs, and 50 acres of rubber plantation in other towns which seek to employ more young people in that area.
The 56-year old farmer who dreams of being named as the next Regional and National Best Farmer can also boast of a huge number of workers including 35 women employed in his farm.
He acknowledged how the governments’ flagship programme of Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ) has been helpful to the agriculture sector asserting that the Agric Extension Officers have aided farmers over the years with advice on proper methods of farming.
Mr Eshun was of the opinion that the officers were limited in numbers and more should be employed to facilitate the activities of farmers
Touching on challenges that came with the vocation, Mr Eshun told the Ghana News Agency that the cost of weedicides and delays in the supply of fertilizer was a major setback in the sector.
He recounted that fertilizers used to be supplied by the Agriculture Offices where coupons were issued to farmers, but things have changed where farmers now have to get it directly from dealers making it expensive.
Mr Eshun also touched on the unwillingness on the part of financial institutions to offer loans to farmers as the loans came with high interest which deterred them from accessing the banks.
Mr Eshun was, however, thankful that his farm has access to a good road network where farm produce could be transported easily onto the market.
He recounted some of the blessings from the farming and said he has been able to give his children better education and had mansions to this credit.
Advising the youth, he entreated them to go into farming as it has enormous rewards to it. He also suggested to the organizers of the Farmers’ Day to include more agricultural tools to the awards to boost the production of food crops.