Solomon Kusi adjudged 2020 National Best Farmer; takes home 570,000 cash prize

Solomon Kusi took home GHC570, 000 cash prize - equivalent of a two-bedroom house - as the National Best Farmer.

Solomon Kojo Kusi, a 55-year-old farmer, from the Jomoro District of the Western Region, has been adjudged the national best farmer at this year’s National Farmers’ Day celebration at Techiman in the Bono East Region.

He was presented with a GHC570,000 cash prize – equivalent of a two-bedroom house.

Kusi, who was the best farmer at the district level in 2015, currently employs over 220 workers and has been farming for 10 years now.

He is currently married with nine children and owns a number of farms in the Western Region.

The 36th edition of the National Farmers’ Day was under the theme: “Agribusiness Development under COVID-19; Opportunities and Challenges.”

The rst runner up position went to Nana Ko Drobo IV of Wenchi in the Bono Ahafo Region. Mahmoud Mohammed Awal of Zabzugu in the Northern Region came third at the national level.

Speaking at the event, President Akufo-Addo told the gathering his government has made inroads in the agricultural sector, thereby creating food sufficiency in the country.

“Today our nation has banished the disgraceful spectre of importing tomatoes and plantain from Burkina Faso and Ivory Coast respectfully. We are now a net exporter of food and our youth are venturing into full-time agriculture,” AkufoAddo stated.

He added: “Let me highlight a few of the successes achieved over the last four years to buttress these points; the food crop module, under this module yields of selected staples, have increased appreciably, for example maize and rice have increased by 110 percent and 48 percent respectively from 2016 to 2019.

“Currently, local production of rice accounts for 50 percent of domestic demand up from 32 percent as at 2017, the target is to become self-reliant in the selected crops under this module, and we are firmly on course.”

What is the Farmers Day about?

The Farmers Day in Ghana is celebrated on the first Friday of December each year to recognize the contributions of farmers and fishers in the country.

However, in election years, the celebration is moved to the first Friday in November.

The holiday is designed to pay respect to the importance of the farming and fishing industry in the socio-economic growth of the country.

It was instituted in 1985 by the then government after the industries showed a 30 percent growth in 1984.

Source: Asaase Radio