Accra, June 15, GNA-A 900,000-dollar Tomato Processing Promotion Centre is to be established at Techiman in the Brong-Ahafo Region. The facility, a joint collaboration by the Government of Ghana, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Italian Government, would be ready by the end of the year.

It is to help address post-harvest losses of tomato in the Techiman district which is a leading producer of the crop in the country. An agreement to that effect was signed in Accra on Tuesday at the offices of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.

The sector Minister, Major (retired) Courage Quashigah, appended his signature for the Government of Ghana, while Mr Basilio Toth, Charge d' Affaire at the Italian Embassy initialled for his country, with Mr Anatolio Ndong Mba, Deputy FAO Resident Representative in Ghana signing for the organization.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Maj Quashigah stated that over the years, post-harvest losses had been a major problem facing the ministry. He, therefore, expressed the hope that with the facility in place to address the problem, the price of the crop would be stabilized. Mr Toth expressed optimism that by giving employment to majority of the people in the district, the project would help give real meaning to the government's poverty reduction strategy.