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The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Clement Kofi Humado has stated that plans are underway for the completion of the new Longoro Irrigation Scheme located in the Kintampo North District of the Brong Ahafo Region. Mr. Humado said budgetary allocations have been made in the government�s 2014 Budget Statement and Economic Policy to finance the project. The minister said this when he appeared before the House yesterday to respond to questions by Member of Parliament for Kintampo North, Stephen Kunsu on the status of the New Longoro Irrigation Project. According to him, work on the project is 90 per cent complete and added that a consultant is currently assessing the work for the preparation of bidding documents, advertisement, and bids evaluation for the work to begin in March next year. He added that the New Longoro Irrigation Project has an area of 300 acres for 360 beneficiaries that is 299 males and 61 females and noted that �the scheme is a gravity irrigation scheme with its source of water being River Sameli. A diversion weir has therefore been built on this river to supply water for the irrigation.� Mr. Humado said beneficiary farmers have formed Irrigation Farmers Association which is registered with the department of Cooperative Irrigation Farming and Marketing Society Limited. Also, a contract for the construction of the scheme was signed in September 2002, but was terminated in June 2007 due to non-performance of the contractor; but a second contract was signed with SAT limited on January 2008 which ended in September 2009. He said head works, supply canal, secondary canals and bundling have been completed and noted that the major outstanding work is the clearing of the 300 acres land. The Food and Agriculture Minister further stated that despite the underdeveloped nature of the land, some farmers have been using part of the land to cultivate vegetables. He stated that �test cropping started during the 2011/2012 dry season with 10 acres of okro. In the 2012 wet season, the area was flooded so no planting was done. During 2012/2013 dry season, okro was planted on 70 acres of land. In 2013 wet season, 40 acres of land was cropped to produce okro, maize and rice. The crops are yet to be harvested.� But when other MPs followed up with more questions, the minister could not provide immediate answers to some of the questions such as the cost of the project and thus sought permission to provide the answers on a later date.