Youth urge to venture into agriculture to materialise the policy interventions- Sagnarigu MCE.

Youth urge to venture into agriculture to materialise the policy interventions- Sagnarigu MCE.

The Municipal Chief Executive of Sagnarigu, Mohammed Yakubu Ahmed has called on the youth to venture into agriculture to materialised the policy interventions that government implies in the agricultural sector and improve their income level.

He said agriculture was a dynamic and evolving sector that offers wonderful prospects for the country’s economic growth, sustainability, and social progress to support the youth.

He noted that the young generation possesses the energy, creativity, and resilience needed to redefine the country’s agricultural landscape.

“Providing the necessary tools, knowledge, and support would support the youth to succeed in agriculture”, he said.

Mr. Ahmed made the call at a youth policy dialogue to mark international youth day celebration on the theme “Promoting Agribusiness: Empowering Youth to take Agriculture as a Viable Business Opportunity.”

The youth policy dialogue seeks to enhance opportunities for vulnerable groups and the youth to participate in agriculture and contribute to Ghana’s agricultural policy processes.

It brought together students, youth groups, and civil society organisations among others.

The event was organised by Ghana Policy LINK, Ghana Market Systems and Resilience (MSR) Activity, Ghana Mobilizing Finance in Agriculture (MFA) Activity, and Centre for Agriculture Productivity and Policy at the University for Development Studies (UDS).

Mr. Ahmed stated that the government recognised the critical role of the youth in driving economic development through agriculture as the main vehicle that brought policy interventions in the agriculture sector.

He reiterated that when the youth take into consideration of the policy interventions it would go a long way to increase productivity and income level to support them in their daily activities.

“Agriculture is the backbone of Ghana’s economic but has the least attraction to the youth.”Mr. Ahmed noted.

He stated that the municipal was ready to engaging with stakeholders to establish agribusiness incubation centers to serve as hubs of innovation and learning and provide mentorship, training, and resources to young agripreneurs.

For his part, the Country Lead for Feed the Future Ghana Policy LINK, Yunus Abdulai said the agricultural sector is vital for the economic growth and food security of the country and provides opportunities to reduce poverty.

He explained that the sector faces a lot of challenges, including low productivity, negative impacts of climate change, limited access to finance and markets, and inadequate infrastructure and services.

“These challenges are deepened by the low participation and representation of youth in the sector, who often perceived agriculture as unattractive, risky, and unprofitable,” he said.

The Deputy Chief of Part for Ghana Market Systems and Resilience (MSR) Activity, Cecil Osei commended the Policy LINK Activity for the collaboration on the youth policy dialogue.

He said that the improvement of market functions for the various actors that participate in agriculture would support them in increasing the income level and reducing food insecurity in the country.

“Bring more focus on youth participation in agriculture for sustainability would support the country’s economic growth,” Mr. Osei said.