At Least 1,116 Individual Farms undergoing Rehabilitation in the Juaboso Agricultural Divisional Zone have been completed and ready to be handed over to their owners.
The situation thus clears the backlog of rehabilitated farms over the years in the District since its inception a couple of years ago.
Agricultural officers in the District disclosed this to ghananewsonline.com.gh in an exclusive interview last week. According to them the rehabilitated farms were to have been handed over to their rightful owners about two months ago.
Messers Samuel Otabri, District Cocoa Officer and Marven Amega Etego, Rehabilitation Coordinator of the Cocoa Health and Extension Division of the Juaboso Cocoa District stated that but for the farmers plea, the rehabilitated farms would have been given out in the last two months as all the back lock in that respect had been cleared.
According to them, some of the rehabilitated farmers are situated at Bonsu Nkwanta, Africa, Amankwaakrom, Afere, Atiamokrom, Open The Gate, Juaboso Nkwanta, New Brekum, Mansokrom ,ProsoKofikrom, Adiembra, Boinzian, Manlyia, Akwasiaddaikrom, Jato, Juaboso, Dangermu, Helehele, Adwumawura, and many more.
Back ground
According to the Agric Officers, following the influx of the viral swollen shoot disease in the cocoa growing regions in the country. Some five years ago, cocoa production in the area dwindled considerably.
Subsequently, that enclave, that used to provide the country with over 40% output of national cocoa production, dwindled to about 10% in the years under review.
As a result, the Ministry of Agriculture in conjunction with COCOBOD advised that all affected cocoa trees should be cut down and the affected farms rehabilitated.
They maintained that due to large acreage (hectares) of the many farms involved, the exercise kicked a hindage due to the numerous challenges it confronted.
The officers stated that in order to arrest these challenges, they involved KUMAD Afarenick Company ltd to produce plantain suckers as well as cocoa seedlings to farmers whose farms had been cut for rehabilitation. They indicated that the plantain suckers are to provide shade for the cocoa seedlings, and thousands of them had been provided so far.
They stated that technical expects are out there on the to- be- rehabilitated farms, to supervise over the timely, weeding, planting, replanting and the application of fertilizers and insecticides to avoid the previous failed experience, and to ensure the success of the new regime started in 2018.
They said that ever since, the exercise has improved tremendously leading to the subsequent rehabilitation of over 1,116 farms. Some of these farms, they maintained had started bearing fruits.
However, since the stems of the cocoa trees had not matured sufficiently, their production was low.
They indicated that, with all things being equal, cocoa production in that enclave will pick up in the next three to four years so that cocoa production there will far exceed the original 40% output.
By S.O Ankamah, Sefwi Juaboso, WN/R