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Farmers in UW region benefit from GIZ’s easy access to certified agro-inputs forum
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The Market Oriented Agriculture Programme in North West Ghana (MOAP-NW) under the Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) has facilitated a forum for farmers to have easy access to certified agro-inputs in rural communities of the Upper West Region
The annual forum which was initiated in 2021 was facilitated in 42 locations across the MOAP-NW operational area, aimed at ensuring that at least 15,000 smallholder farmers had access to agro-inputs and also received education on good agriculture practices from experts.
The forum targets farmers and members of the Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs) in the 11 districts of the Upper West Region, 2 districts in the Savannah and Mamprugu-Moagduri in the North East Region
Addressing journalists at one of the forums at Fian in the Daffiama-Bussie-Issa District of the Upper West Region, the MOAP-NW Input and Crop Protection Specialist, Mr Emile Aman said over the years, the forum had yielded impressive results and expanded farmers’ access to certified seeds and inputs leading to quality production.
He explained that it provided a platform for farmers, input dealers, researchers and other stakeholders to meet and discuss issues such as crop production techniques, soil fertility management, pest and disease control, irrigation and post-harvest management to enable them learn and network
‘’As inputs has become more expensive, affecting farmers income and productivity, so as advise on the right and efficient use of inputs become even more important, hence, to curb this challenge, advisory services and agro inputs are brought to the doorstep of farmers to complement every budget”, he said.
Mr Aman said the forum also aimed at facilitating linkages between MOAP trained input dealers and the VSLA groups who were mainly famers to create a platform for experts to educate them on health and how to apply fertilizer to their farms.
He advised farmers to buy inputs from certified input dealers who had the capacity to educate them on how to apply them on their various farms
The MOAP-NW Monitoring and Evaluation Expert, Madam Fadila Ahmed Tijani said access to farm inputs in the rural areas had become a challenge to farmers and stressed that the fora were therefore to enable farmers have access affordable inputs at their doorstep.
She urged farmers and other actors in the agriculture industry to deepen their linkages to improve agricultural production in the region.
According to her said this year’s forum was organized by the inputs dealers themselves and the VSLA group and facilitated by MOAP-NW and expressed hope that it would be maintain in the project area even after the project existed.
A farmer in the Fian community, Madam Evelyn Naazie acknowledged the impact of the fora on their farming activities stressing that it helped to increase their access to inputs without any stress
The inputs dealers at the forum also highlighted some of the benefit of the initiative and promised to ensure its sustainability in the area.
The Forum was organized in partnership with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) through the Department of Agriculture and the Plant Protection and Regulatory Service Directorate (PPRSD).
FROM RAFIA ABDUL RAZAK WA
General Secretary of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Justin Kodua Frimpong, has filed his nomination to contest the position of General Secretary again as the party begins its rebuilding efforts ahead of the 2028 general elections.
He was accompanied by party stalwarts and supporters who were in high spirits, expressing confidence that he is the right person to hold the position.
Speaking after filing his nomination, Mr Kodua Frimpong assured the rank and file of the party that he would not disappoint them.
“I can assure you that the faith the rank and file of the party have had in me, I will never disappoint them,” he said.
He also pledged to run a clean campaign devoid of personal attacks.
“I can assure you that our internal campaign will be devoid of personal attacks,” he told his fellow contestants and the rank and file of the party as he seeks to retain his position.
His tenure has seen the party through the 2024 general elections, where the NPP lost power to the National Democratic Congress (NDC) after eight years in government.
The party is currently in a rebuilding phase, with internal elections scheduled to elect new national executives to lead its reorganization towards the 2028 polls.
The General Secretary position is considered one of the most influential in the party’s administrative structure, responsible for the day-to-day running of the party secretariat and implementation of party decisions.
By Edem Mensah-Tsotorme
The University of Ghana Medical Centre (UGMC) has disputed claims made on social media by comedian Michael Blackson concerning the treatment given to his late mother, saying a review found that the allegations did not accurately reflect what happened during her stay at the hospital.
In a statement issued in Accra on August 5, 2026, the management of UGMC expressed condolences to Mr. Blackson and his family over the death of his 83-year-old mother, who died at the facility on July 16, 2026.
The hospital said it had taken the concerns raised by Mr. Blackson seriously and conducted a thorough review in line with its clinical and administrative procedures.
According to the statement, the facts presented by Mr. Blackson on social media contained “numerous inaccuracies” and did not accurately reflect the medical care provided to his mother.
UGMC explained that she was referred to the facility from another hospital and received treatment there from May 27 to July 16, 2026, a period of about eight weeks.
The hospital stated that it would not release details of her diagnosis, treatment, medical records or other aspects of her care because it had a duty to protect patient confidentiality, even after death.
It said the decision was intended to respect the dignity of the deceased and the privacy of her family.
UGMC further stated that all clinical decisions at the facility are made by qualified healthcare professionals based on medical judgment, established standards of care and the best interests of the patient.
The statement added that such decisions are made in consultation with authorised family representatives where necessary and that billing and financial procedures are governed by institutional policies and are separate from clinical decision-making.
The hospital noted that it values feedback from patients and their families and considers both positive and negative comments important for improving the quality of care.
Mr. Blackson had earlier used social media to criticise the care his mother received at UGMC, prompting the hospital’s response.
By: Jacob Aggrey
