Tamale, Oct. 5, GNA - About 70 smallholder farmers in the Northern Region have received training in good agricultural practices under the Purchase for Progress (P4P) initiative of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) being implemented in 21 countries. The capacity building aims at connecting farmers to amarkets to enable them to be competitive players in the value chain. It is being funded by the Millennium Development Authority (MiDA) through funding provided by the US government's Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC).

Speaking at a three-day training programme Mr. Samuel Adjie, P4P Programmes Officer, said under P4P, WFP works with a wide range of partners that provide smallholder farmers with technical expertise necessary to increase their yields, improve the quality of their crops and enable them t= o sell their produce at fair prices, including selling to WFP. He said over 1,300 smallholder farmers in low-income areas had already benefited in the first phase with 16 maize and cowpea producing farmer organization in Ejura-Sekyedumasi District of the Ashanti and Northern Regions identified for training in technical, business and organizational development.

The second phase will train extra 520 smallholder farmers in Tamale an= d provide them with modern farm implements to help them increase their production and ensure food security.

Mr. Adjie said in order to ensure that the P4P programme in Ghana was effective, WFP was working with the government and other partners including Millennium Development Authority, Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa, Japan International Cooperation Agency, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization and USAID Feed the Future Initiative to ensure the success of the programme.

Dr Wilson Dogbe, Head of Rice Programm at the Savanna Agriculture Research Institute at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, told GNA that farmers would be taught application of fertilizer, how to reduce post harvest losses, how to negotiate for fair price, collective marketing and how to keep accurate record.