More and more, the Asante-Akim North District of Ashanti is establishing itself as the Ghana’s strategic hub for the production and export of some food crops to neighbouring countries, Togo and Burkina Faso in particular.
For the past six years, growers in the district with Agogo as its capital, have been exporting their plantains and water melons to the two countries.
This could be realised through an effective blend of improved agronomic practices supervised by agricultural extension officers and increased government investments in agriculture, coupled with the extraordinary hard work of farmers in the area.
According to ghanaweb.com¸ statistics on plantain export provided by the District Directorate of Agriculture indicate that about 11,996 tonnes of the crop were transported to Togo and Burkina Faso in 2015, 13,445 tonnes in 2016, 29,567 tonnes in 2017 and 32,188 tonnes valued in 2018.
Eric Dwomoh, the District Director of Agriculture briefing the Deputy Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, said food crop production had registered a tremendous increase following the advent of the government’s agricultural flagship programme of Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ).