CRIG EDUCATES COCOA FARMERS (PAGE 20)

THE Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana (CRIG) at Akyem Tafo in the Eastern Region has embarked on an educational drive to make its research findings available to cocoa farmers in the region and other parts of the country.
Under the programme, which is aimed at increasing cocoa production to enable the country to meet a million tonne target in 2012, a number of radio stations have been engaged for a phone-in programme to educate cocoa farmers on modern farming techniques to enhance increased production.
The Senior Public Affairs Officer of CRIG, Mr Bishop Kabutey, who led a number of scientists from CRIG in the exercise, stated that it had become necessary to educate the farmers because most of them did not know the institute’s research findings that would boost the production of cocoa.
“CRIG is undertaking this exercise because a lot of the cocoa farmers are not aware of our research findings and how to implement them to boost cocoa production; we hope with this method of phone-in programme, during which farmers can speak directly to us on the issue, they will learn a lot to increase their yield”, Mr Kabutey stated.
Meanwhile, the management of SIDALCO Limited, a Tema-based agro-chemical manufacturing and distribution company, has donated a 15-seater Toyota mini bus to CRIG to support its cocoa farmer education drive.
Making the presentation, the Managing Director of the company, Mrs Gifty Lamptey, lauded CRIG’s pioneering role in finding lasting solutions to the numerous problems of the cocoa industry.
She said it was in that respect that SIDALCO had decided to acquire the bus with its profit to support CRIG to improve the cocoa industry.
The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SIDALCO, Mr David Lamptey, pledged more support for CRIG and advised its management not to relent in its efforts in conducting additional researches into the production of cocoa and other crops.
The acting Executive Director of CRIG, Dr Frank Manu, expressed his outfit’s gratitude to the management of SIDALCO for the gesture, and gave the assurance that the bus would be put to good use.