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The cashew industry is expected to bring in $ 2.5 billion to the nation in the next five years, said Augustine Collins Ntim, Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development.
He said that the government had allocated 1 billion GH to the establishment of the Arboreal Crop Development Authority, which is responsible for regulating the cashew industry and reorganizing the sector in order to make a significant contribution. to the gross domestic product (GDP) of the country.
Mr. Ntim, responsible for rural economic development and agriculture, has mandated the Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMD) to bring together the 100,000 cashew seedlings targeted under the Plantation Program for Agriculture and Rural Development. Export Development and Rural Development (PERD) to achieve this goal.
Cashew seedlings would be provided free of charge to farmers registered under the PERD program for planting.
He added that PERD was there to stay and that the government was considering involving unemployed youth in the planting of cashew plants for farmers.
In interacting with the department heads and staff of the Pru East District Assembly in Yeji, in the Bono East area, the Deputy Minister stated that the successful implementation of the Planter programs for the Food and Employment (PfFJ) and PRDE depended mainly on the MMDAs.
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He added that the PERD, PfFJ and other social intervention programs put in place by the government all focused on job creation and poverty reduction.
Mr. Ntim said documentation and reliable data collection were essential as they were a key indicator for measuring the impact and success of PfFJ programs and he called on the bademblies to wake up to improve collection. of data.
He called for effective collaboration between ministries and agencies within MMDAs to implement PfFJ and PERD to enable the government to achieve the desired results.
Mr Ntim said that PfFJ and PERD have enormous potential for job creation and rural poverty alleviation in order to stimulate rapid socio-economic growth and development, and have advised Ghanaians to subscribe and support these programs.
He stated that the government was ready to provide agricultural inputs and equipment to expand the scope of the programs; and the MMDAs were therefore forced to enroll more farmers and make the programs attractive to unemployed youth.
Mr. Joshua Kwaku Abonkrah, District Director of Pru East, said access to agricultural land was very difficult in the region due to leadership disputes and land disputes, hindering the implementation of PERD. and PfFJ in the district.
He said many farmers in the region were registered under the PERD and wanted to start the commercial cashew plantation, but access to farmland was a major challenge.
Mr. Abonkrah advised traditional authorities to bury their differences and release land to allow interested farmers to participate in the programs.
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