Chief Executive Officer of De Jordan Agro and Investments, Mr. Sheriff Jordan Owusu has lauded government’s Planting for Export and Rural Development, PERD program.
Mr. Sheriff Jordan Owusu who described the program as ‘a very good initiative’ on Rite FM’s Agric Forum said it will help create the necessary jobs and help meet the other essential demands from the agric sector.
“This is a very good initiative that will create jobs, shape the economy, improve industrialization as well as seek to find the solution to climate change in the country,” he said.
The Ministry of Food and Agriculture and the Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development in their joint effort to achieve government’s agenda to diversify the Ghanaian economy by repositioning the tree crop sub sector to drive export earnings and provide sustainable raw materials for the one district, one factory initiative, is rolling out the Planting For Export And Rural Development program to also create jobs in the cashew, mango, shea, oil palm, cotton, coconut, etc sectors.
The CEO however cautioned government on the need to first set up a board to manage or control the program to enhance its sustainability.
The board, he explained, should be responsible for overseeing the day to day activities and welfare of the program to ensure that the purposes and aims of the program are achieved and to also make sure that the farmers who are the primary targets of the program are well-informed on its operations.
“The government needs to promote the crops one after the other since the program entails several crops,” Mr. Owusu opined. “This is to ensure that the program meet its aims and objectives so that the promoted plants generate lot of income.”
He expressed concern over the “low education and the agric directors’ lack of knowledge” on most of the crops involved in the program which he fears can also be a factor likely to hinder the smooth implementation of the program.
By Austin Ofori Addo/ritefmonline.org/austinofori.addo@gmail.com
