Your historic increment in cocoa price will encourage youth to go into farming – Mpasatia Zongo chief tells gov’t.
The Mpasatia Area President of the Council of Zongo chiefs . in the Atwima Mponua District of the Ashanti region, Chief Abdullai Mohammed has sent a message of congratulations to the government for the recent cocoa price increment from GH 800 to GH 1308 per bag.
He said apart from the price increment which would go a long way to help boost the morale of Cocoa farmers to take good care of their farms, it will also encourage the youth to gain interest to go into farming.
The president who also doubles as the Mpasatia Zongo chief made the assertion, when he was reacting to express his gratitude to the government for raising the price of cocoa.
President, Chief Abdullai observed that the government has done well for recognizing coco farmers and he was of the opinion that the move would encourage more Ghanaians especially the youth to gain interest and go into farming venture.
According to him, though the increment would cushion Cocoa farmers a bit, yet farmers still need support ranging from agricultural inputs, supplying of Cocoa nurseries and loans to enable them perform up to expectation.
On granting of loans to cocoa farmers, Chief Abdullai Mohammed indicated that, the government should go into terms with cocoa farmers who can meet the collateral conditions before granting the loans.
He charged Ghana Cocoa Board ( COCOBOD ) and Cocoa Extension Division not to repeat the mistakes that they did in this year in the coming years.
According to him farmers were not supplied with the nurseries this year but only supplied to farmers whose cocoa trees were old and destroyed by the government.
He reiterated that the situation caused frustrations as they were not told earlier else they would have made proper arrangements on getting their own cocoa seedlings to nurse their farms.
Chief Abdullai Mohammed further spoke against the notion that some parents who engage their children in cocoa farms are introducing their children into child labor but when the same children follow parents in market places to trade there’s nothing wrong with it.
He said the current cocoa farmers are getting old and “we need to nurture our children to replace us when we die or pass on else the future of the cocoa industry would be bleak.
