Women Farmers Urged To Rely On Compost

A voluntary extension officer in Tarsaw, a community located in the Sissala East District of the Upper West Region, Rusah Ayuba has challenged women farmers to make use of compost and other organic fertiliser on their farms to ensure high yield. 

She said although the inorganic fertiliser is subsided by government accessibility becomes difficult as many of the women are unable to purchase them even at the subsidised prices. 
Mrs Ayuba made the assertion during the inauguration of a Women Platform for the Northern Ghana Governance Activity in Tumu. 

The Northern Ghana Governance Activity is a five year USAID sponsored programme aimed at ensuring responsive governance targeted at developing agriculture and addressing its related setbacks in 28 Districts in the Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions.

A key component of the project which is being implemented seeks to make resources readily available to women who according to its survey make up seventy percent of farmers in the country. Care International, Action Aid Ghana, SEND Ghana and the West Africa Network for Peace- Building are the implementing consortium. 

The voluntary extension officer while commending men for heeding to the several calls, by stakeholders to make land available to women said her colleagues should apply local strategies within their means to increase crop production.

She stated for instances the application of manure which they can easily get from the farm and domestic animals they rear rather than rely of fertilisers they cannot even afford.
The Coordinator for Women in Agriculture in the NGGA Project, Ruby Wuni introducing the rationale for prioritising women, said the consortium seeks to empower them to derive adequate benefit from agriculture.

The Sissala East NGGA Women Platform was inaugurated with members from the various existing women groups in the district. Similar inauguration will take place in all six implementing districts(Nandom, Sissala West, Sissala East, Jirapa, Wa East and Nadowli) in the Upper West Region.

GBC