Ghana marks World Food Day

18-10-08
Page 18


GHANA and 39 other African countries have benefited from a $28-million package from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) to address problems associated with the global rise in food prices.
The money, which was made available through the organisation’s Technical Cooperation Programme, is to enable countries to carry out short-term measures, particularly distribution of essential farm inputs to farmers.
The FAO’s Representative in Ghana, Ms Helena Semedo, announced this yesterday at a Flag-hoisting ceremony in Accra to mark this year’s World Food Day celebrations.
It was on the theme: “World Food Security: the Challenges of Climate Change and Bio-energy”.
She said the day, which was celebrated in 190 countries, provided the organisation and its member countries the opportunity to reflect on the chosen theme and undertake efforts to attain food security and eradicate hunger in the world.
“Ghana has made significant strides to reduce hunger and poverty and is regarded as one of a few African countries that are likely to achieve the first Millennium Development Goal by 2015. This positive outlook may be derailed by climate change, among many other factors, including soaring food prices,” she said.
The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Mr Ernest Akubuor Debrah, said although climate change affected everyone, the worst-hit was the hundreds of millions of small-scale farmers, fishermen and forest-dependent people who were vulnerable and insecure food-wise.
“By affecting the availability of land, water and biodiversity, the price of food will continue to rise as demand increases and the increasing demand for biofuels produced from crops will adversely impact on the availability of food for the poor,” he said.
To address the problem, he said, it behoved all to stop destroying the environment by adopting good farming methods, adding that farmers should abide by the advice of extension agents of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
Mr Debrah said the ministry had made it an objective to ensure universal food security and improved growth in agricultural incomes by adopting policies that would enhance and facilitate efforts by all stakeholders to increase productivity.
“As a result, we have in place several strategic interventions like improved irrigation to small holder farmers, distribution of improved seeds and seedlings, provision of inputs to farmers and provision of storage facilities for international marketing,” he stated.
The Minister of Fisheries, Ms Gladys Asmah, in a speech read on her behalf, said pressures had been exerted on fisheries resources, thereby making it impossible to scientifically manage the country’s fisheries resources.
“Our seas, lakes and rivers have been over-fished and exploited. Fishing is no longer a way of life but an intense commercial activity with heavy investments and capital outlays,” she said, adding that while the country required nearly 800,000 metric tons of fish annually, the country’s total annual fish harvest stands at 400,000 metric tons,” she stated.
The Director General of the FAO, Mr Jacques Diouf, in a message, said the number of hungry people had increased from 75 million at the end of last year due to the soaring food and energy prices.
“This crisis is due to decreasing investments in agriculture in the poorest countries during the last 30 years. The share of agriculture in public development aid declined from 17 per cent in 1980 to three per cent in 2006,” he said.