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Deputy Agric Minister calls for empowerment of disabled women in agriculture
The Deputy Minister for Food and Agriculture, Mr Yaw Frimpong Addo has called for the empowerment of more women, especially the disabled to thrive in agriculture by providing them with the needed support.
According to him, women played significant roles in agriculture, and stated that the country was currently enjoying food security due to the contribution of women in the sector.
“Women make up more than half of Ghana’s agricultural labour force with many engaged in ploughing, planting seeds, harvesting, processing foods, selling and cooking. If not for our women, we will be very hungry in this country and so it is important to give them the maximum support to enable them thrive and I believe will have significant impact on the nationl,” he stated.
Mr Addo was speaking at the 5th Women in Food and Agricultural Leader Training Forum and the Gold in the Soil Awards organised in Koforidua by Agrihouse Foundation in collaboration with World Food Programme, Global Affairs Canada and Yara Ghana.
The forum and awards, on the theme: “Overcoming Barriers of Women in Agribusiness: The Role of Stakeholders” awarded 13 women in different categories, who have made significant strides in farming and its related value chain.
The winners received equipment and machines to enable them improve their work for their benefit and for society.
Madam Margaret Agyei received the Ultimate Gold in the Soil Award and was given a tricycle, farming equipment and agriproducts.
The others winners included Naana Felicia Akyeamah who won the Passion for Farm Award, Change Champion Award, Mrs Dzidzinyo Fianu, Princess Carla Award, Enerstina Osei Tutu, Outstanding Woman in Extension Services Award, Delali Esi Agyeman, Feed to Food Award, Lydia Gyebi Asare and Development Partners Award, Global Affairs Canada and World Food Programme.
The others were She-Operates Award, Hajara Mohammed, She-innovates Award, Abigail Ghama, Climate Smart Award, Doris Opoku Hagan, Diamond in the Rough Award, Adwoa Agyeiwaa, Star Woman Agripreneur Award, Faustina Mamle Nartey, and Royal Agro Award, Nana Obaapanin Konadu Kontie II
Mr Addo noted that as part of ways to support women in the agricultural sector, the government has reviewed the Planting for Food (PFJ)initiative to include women who would receive financial and logistical support.
“The women and youth would be asked to register with an Aggregator and after that all farm inputs would be given till harvesting,” he revealed, adding the new programme under the PFJ would be launched soon.
He congratulated the winners and called on them to mentor and encourage the youth into the sector to ensure continuous development of the sector for the benefit of the whole country.
The Director and Head of Cooperation at Global Affairs Canada, Kathlyn Flunn-Dapaah stated that Agriculture continued to be the backbone of Ghana’s economy, where many women were employed but faced several challenges including inadequate access to financing and agricultural inputs to increase their yields and incomes.
She said empowering women in agriculture could improve the sector significantly and called on government to ensure their policies including PFJ favour women to excel in agriculture and agribusinesses.
For her part, the Executive Director of Agrihouse Foundation, Alberta Nana Akyea thanked the sponsors for their support over the years and stated that Agrihouse would continue to make significant impact on improving the lives of women farmers and people with disabilities in the agricultural value chain.
She said the winners would be engaged to help in mentoring others especially the youth to encourage more women into agriculture and revealed that the next awards edition would occur at the Bono East region.
From Ama Tekyiwaa Ampadu Agyeman, Koforidua
Ghana Tourism Authority is leading Ghana’s participation at ITB Berlin, which opened in Berlin with a vibrant national pavilion highlighting Ghana’s rich cultural heritage, tourism destinations and investment opportunities.
March 5 has been designated as Ghana Day, a special platform to promote Ghana’s languages, cuisine, Kente, festivals and business prospects to the global tourism community. The stand has already drawn strong interest with traditional arts and crafts displays, immersive multimedia presentations and popular Ghanaian snacks.
Seven private-sector players are exhibiting alongside government officials as part of efforts to deepen trade partnerships, expand market access, and attract investment across the hospitality, heritage tourism, ecotourism, and creative arts sectors.
Ahead of the official opening, the Ghana delegation also engaged young Ghanaian investors in Germany in collaboration with V Afrika-Verein and the Ghana Embassy, strengthening diaspora investment linkages and highlighting opportunities within the tourism value chain.
Ghana’s coordinated presence at ITB Berlin 2026 reinforces its strategy to position the country as the Gateway to Africa and a competitive destination for leisure travel and global investment.
The Member of Parliament for Nsawam Adoagyiri, Frank Annoh Dompreh, has expressed concern over delays in the release of the District Assemblies Common Fund, warning that the situation is stalling development across the country.
On his facebook page, he described as a matter of urgent national importance, the Minority Chief Whip pointed to what he sees as a growing crisis of unpaid contractors, abandoned projects, and halted infrastructure works in many districts.
He noted that several communities are grappling with half completed schools, unfinished health facilities, abandoned markets, deteriorating roads, and stalled sanitation projects.
According to him, many contractors who have executed projects for district assemblies have not been paid, forcing some construction firms to demobilise from sites while workers lose their jobs.
He stressed that the District Assemblies Common Fund is not a discretionary allocation but a constitutional requirement under Article 252 of the 1992 Constitution, intended to support development at the local level.
In his view, years of delayed releases and accumulated arrears have weakened district development financing and disrupted projects meant to improve living conditions in communities.
He further argued that some payments made in recent years were largely the settlement of old debts rather than funding for new or ongoing projects, a situation he believes has affected contractor confidence and local economic activity.
He described the issue as more than a budgetary challenge, characterising it as a development emergency and a governance concern.
He therefore urged the appropriate authorities to pay outstanding DACF arrears, settle contractors who have completed their work, and ensure that transfers to districts are automatic and predictable.
He maintained that decentralisation can only succeed when district assemblies receive adequate and timely funding to carry out development projects.
He emphasised that stalled projects directly affect ordinary citizens, since they rely on such infrastructure for education, healthcare, transportation, sanitation, and economic activities.
He called for renewed attention to grassroots development, insisting that national progress should not be concentrated only in major cities but extended to all communities.
By: Jacob Aggrey
