Konongo (Ash), Dec 17, GNA- The Asante-Akim North District Assembly is to award scholarship to one selected child of each of this year's 19 district best farmer award winners in the area. Mr George Frimpong, the District Chief Executive said the measure was part of an incentive package to motivate farmers to increase their output and attract the unemployed youth into agriculture. He was delivering the sessional address at an ordinary meeting of the assembly at Konongo on Tuesday.

Mr Frimpong noted that there was a general increase in production of maize, cassava, yams, cocoyam and plantain this year. Cassava which is the leading food crop grown in the district recorded 62.8 metric tonnes as against 59.7 metric tonnes, the previous year.

He told the assembly that the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Presidential Special Initiatives (PSIs) has included the district in the Rural Enterprises Development Programme (REDP).

Projects earmarked include the provision of cassava flour processing machine at Konongo, tomato processing-plant at Agogo, reactivation of oil-palm processing machine at Konongo and expansion of cassava processing plant at Dwease-Praaso. Mr Frimpong hoped the programme when implemented would help reduce poverty in the district.

On the mass cocoa spraying exercise, the District Chief Executive said since the inception of the exercise a total of 35,000 hectares of cocoa farms had been covered.

He said apart from logistics in the form of spraying machines, Wellington boots, overalls, goggles and respirators, the government released a total of 252.6 million cedis to support the project