In a ceremony at Tordzinu in the Volta Region, the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr. Bryan Acheampong, handed over the Emergency Support to Rural Livelihoods and Food Systems (ESRF) infrastructure projects and food processing equipment to beneficiary communities across the country.

The event marks a significant milestone in the government's efforts to transform Ghana's agriculture into a viable and competitive sector.

The ESRF project, funded by the Government of Ghana and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), was conceived in response to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change.

The project aims to safeguard smallholder farmers' and vulnerable communities' livelihoods, incomes, health, and resilience.

Dr. Bryan highlighted that the government's commitment to agriculture is evident in the launch of Phase II of the Planting for Food and Jobs campaign, which targets achieving self-sufficiency in major staple crops such as rice, maize, soybean, cassava, yam, plantain, tomato, pepper, onion, and poultry.

The ceremony saw the handover of infrastructure development interventions and food processing equipment worth millions of dollars. These projects include:

- Farm tracks: 33.5 km constructed in different regions

- Water harvesting schemes: 200 ha constructed for smallholder farmers

- Boreholes: 51 drilled in different regions

- Drying platforms: 47 constructed for smallholder farmers

The Minister also announced that 229 Processing Groups and individual smallholder farmers, particularly women and youth groups, have received over $1.72 million of livelihood equipment. The equipment includes rice mills, cassava graters, soya kebab mills, pepper processing machines, and chicken processing equipment.

The Minister emphasized that these interventions will improve access to market centers for farmers and boost their productivity by facilitating the smooth transportation of their agricultural produce. He commended contractors for a good job done and supervising agencies for providing effective supervision.

Dr. Bryan expressed gratitude to IFAD for their support in making these projects a reality and called on FBOs and individual farmers to actively use, maintain, and own these facilities to transform agriculture.

The Sector Minister reiterated his optimism about the significant impact these interventions will have on the lives of smallholder farmers and beneficiary communities. He emphasized that these projects not only equip them with tools for agricultural success but empower them to withstand challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change.

"With these milestone projects, the government is committed to building a resilient and sustainable agricultural sector that propels Ghana towards prosperity," he said.