Even before the official launch of the collaborative agriculture project between the office of the vice president, CIEDOM - HOG International and the University Of Cape Coast School of Agriculture- to make the Agric sector attractive to the youth- some chiefs have pledged their unflinching support for the project.
The project carefully meshed with entertainment, dubbed the ‘Ultimate Farmer Reality Show’, seeks to tackle graduate unemployment and to encourage more youth into Agriculture.
The maiden edition of the show will be filmed in Ghana in a television reality show to display the interesting, exciting and profitable side of Agribusiness.
Happy about the concept however, the paramount chief of Kwamankese traditional area, in the Central region, Okakaben Idan Andoh X, and some other chiefs at Chereponi, in the Nadowli District of the Upper West region have promised to release huge acres of fertile lands to support the project.
The chiefs believe the project, if executed and given the needed support, would encourage the youth, particularly those in their respective areas into Agriculture.
Okakaben Idan Andoh X in an interview with this reporter explained that “we have always lived under the illusion that farming is an area for failures, thus people think if you have not been able to climb a certain academic ladder, or that you come from a poor home, then farming should be your area. We have done a great disservice to ourselves by not making Agriculture attractive. Farmers have over the years lost respect, we have not supported and encouraged them the way we should. I know Ghanaians, especially the youth have great passion for watching television, and the way this project has been carved, it will have a large viewer-base which will at the long run instill the spirit of Agriculture into them”, the chief underscored.
The chief bemoaned the situation where the youth are left to cater for themselves saying, “they need our support, we are the custodians of the resources in the country. It’s our duty to allocate some to the youth to also develop; I don’t think we expect them to it by force”.
Nana Akua Amponsema, the Apedwahema of Kwamankese, also adding her voice lauded the Vice President and his collaborators for the initiative.
During a visit to the Northern region last month, Francis-Xavier kumbutu, Assemblyman of Chereponi at the Nadowli District in the Upper West region, who also doubles as the Headmaster of Saint Augustine Senior High Technical School, speaking on behalf of the chiefs at a durbar expressed support for the project.
“On behalf of my chiefs and elders, we declare in good faith our support for anything good that will inure to the benefit of our youth, supporting agriculture with every bit of our resources is something we are always available for. We have enough fertile lands measuring in hectares to support this project. We know it will encourage our young men and women into agriculture, and as we gather here today and on behalf of my chiefs, I pray that this project becomes successful, and to the benefit of generations to come”.
The CIEDOM-HOG group, according to the project’s communications Director, Nana Dwomoh-Doyen, was still in meetings with chiefs and opinion leaders in some other parts of the country to lobby for the allocation of more resources to kick-start the project soon.
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