A 71- year –old farmer, Opanin Kwasi Addo, from Gomoa Potsin, was adjudged the overall best farmer for this year’s farmer’s Day Celebration in the Gomoa East District and took home for his prize a tricycle, 4 Cutlasses, Wellington boots, knapsack sprayer and others.

The 1^st runner-up Dora Amoah, from Gomoa Esiwukwaa, had a chest deep freezer, 3 cutlasses, wellington boots, knapsack sprayer and the 2^nd runner had a 43’’ TV, 3cuttlasses, wellington boots, knapsack sprayer and others.

The Member of Parliament (MP) for Gomoa East, Hon, Desmond Degraft - Paitoo through a representative commended farmers for efforts in working hard to move the district forward and also providing food to feed people in the Country.

The District Chief Executive (DCE) for Gomoa East, Hon Solomon Darko-Quarm, disclosed the District Agric Department, provided fruits trees to farmers in the district under planting for Export Development, about 20- tons of rice have also been harvested in the district through planting for Food and Jobs and some outboard motors were procured and subsidized for some fishermen in the district.

He said, the district has also benefited from 1D1F with 6-factories which some are agro processors and a cassava processing factory is under way in the district at Ojobi and appealed to traditional authorities to make enough land available to farmers in the district

The District Agric Director for Gomoa East, Madam Hasnau Hashim, disclosed several extension technologies have been disseminated to farmers in the 52 communities in the district which includes farmer sensitization, education, training and demonstration with some farmer groups trained on value addition to their produce from its raw state.

She said her outfit in collaboration with government of South Korean Republic trained Okyereko rice farmers on rice value chain to boost rice production in the district and bemoaned their main challenge being mobility, adding the department with a staff strength of 30 has only 10 motorbikes.

 She appealed to the MP and DCE to assist in establishing one agriculture mechanization services and engineering Centre in the district to help address the various mechanization challenges faced by the farmers.