Member profile
Mr. Haruna Adam
Organization:
Partners in Rural Empowerment and Development (PARED)
Country:
Ghana
Field(s) of expertise:
I am working on:
Agriculture Technology Transfer (ATT) project of the International Fertilizer Development Center (IFDC) where farmers are schooled on the use of improved seed varieties of maize and soya beans, integrated soil management and other good agronomic practices using demonstration fields and video shows in some selected communities in the East Mamprusi district of the Northern Region of Ghana.
Mr. Haruna Adam
Is there a role for modern technologies, including Information and Communication Technologies, in sustaining capacity development initiatives? Yes. Modern technologies plays an important role in sustaining capacity development initiatives. For instance in the project am currently working on in the East Mamprusi district of the Northern Region of Ghana, we have adopted the use of video screening in reaching out to communities and educating them on the use of improved seed, comparing the performance of farmer saved seeds to that of the improve varieties and good agronomic practices. This gives us the opportunity to educate many farmers within a short period. Also, the use of Information and Communication Technology in information dissemination via mobile phones messages to some farmer’s areas such as weather forecast and prices of produce in the local market will help the farmers in planning their activities.
Mr. Haruna Adam
It is a great opportunity to be part of this forum and to share to the word the issues of agriculture and the youth. Yes it is true that Africa is naturally endowed with abundant land yet its youth are crying over unemployment. Before venturing into any business, the issue of job security and sustainability needs to be assessed and guaranteed. In Africa in general and Ghana in particular, many of the youth have the knowledge and skills in going into agribusinesses but the problem of ready market to farm produce and prices of produce is one key factor that scare many away. The youth look at the peasant farmers, the stress they undergo and the price of goods sold out and that alone demoralizes them. So for the youth to engage in active agricultural activities, there should be a ready market for produce with its accompanying good price. Youth interested in agriculture activities should also be supported financially with accompanying monitoring and supervision on the use of funds.