The Ministry of Agriculture has asked that farmers adopt the use of organic fertilizer to aid in growing their crops.
As the world faces hardship following the Russian-Ukraine war, which is affecting almost everything such as petroleum, and fertilizer, the Ministry has said that in order to mitigate the impact of the crisis, the farmers should turn to organic fertilizer usage.
Farmers on the other hand have been worried about the fact that they do not get enough fertilizer for production, and also that the prices of the available ones are not affordable. They have asked the government to address the problem.
The Public Relations Officer of the Ministry of Agriculture, Bagbara Tanko, said the Minister met with one of the biggest fertilizer companies in Ghana, Yara, and was told that due to the Ukraine-Russia war, there is a shortage in fertiliser.
The company noted that it has ordered quantities that would be enough for the country, but the prices may not be affordable.
“The way forward is just to adopt the use of organic products and the foliar fertilisers, so that is the campaign we want to embark on and as a result, we have made it part of the PFJ subsidy inputs. The Ministry is in talks with fertiliser supplying companies that they should try to get the quantities the country would need so that even if we do not increase production, we should at least maintain production.”
He added that the Ministry is thinking of producing more crops that do not need fertiliser at all or just a little to be an alternative for the low production of certain crops that may occur due to the shortage in fertilizer.
“As a country, we are lacking in terms of soya production which has led to the ban on its imports as it is a key ingredient in the poultry and livestock sector. So, in Northern Ghana, that is what we are looking at. We are going to increase the acreage of legumes which has the potential of fixing Nitrogen and may just need a little phosphorus.”
“The long-term solution for this issue is for Ghana to be able to produce its own fertilizer. Studies have been completed, and evaluations are done around the Atoabo areas which have proven that Ghana can establish a fertiliser production plant, the natural gas is there. The government is in talks with OCP of Morocco because they’re a giant fertilizer production nation to see how within the shortest possible time we can begin to establish our own. When we produce here, the problem of shortage and high prices will be a thing of the past, he concluded.”
