By Razak Baba
Cocoa farmers in the Ashanti Region want a renewal of the just-ended GIZ-SMS Covid-19 response project which is aimed at mitigating immediate health and economic impacts on cocoa smallholder farmers. At a closing ceremony in Kumasi, farmers recounted how the project helped in shaping several communities.
With the onset of COVID-19 and the social restrictions put in place by the Government, the German Agency for International Cooperation, GIZ in collaboration with the Sustainable Management Service, a subsidiary of ECOM Agrotrade Limited implemented measures to continually support farmers’ livelihoods while keeping their safety and health a priority.
A health information module on COVID-19 was introduced to constantly update over five thousand cocoa smallholder farmers on the novel virus and safety protocols. Technical Advisor for develoPPP, GIZ, Madam Esenam Afewu said the project anchored on development of immediate health and economic impact of COVID-19 among farmers.
The Project Manager of Sustainable Management Service at ECOM Agrotrade Limited, Mr Francis Ahiamata explained that over five thousand smallholder cocoa farmers in the country have benefited from the OVID-19 Response project.
A farmer, Paul Nyamah, said the project did not only ensure that farmers follow the COVID-19 protocols but the myth surrounding the novel virus, especially in the hinterlands was also diffused.
The initiative was implemented in five regions, 15 districts, and 208 communities across the country. The regions, he said, were Ashanti, Eastern, Central, Bono and Western-North. The regions, he said, were Ashanti, Eastern, Central, Bono and Western-North. So far, over 5,000 smallholder cocoa farmers in the country have benefitted from the “GIZ-SMS COVID-19 Response Project”.
They received items ranging from nose masks, hand sanitisers, hand washing facilities, soap, Wellington boots and gloves. The objective is to encourage the increased adoption of COVID-19 health protocols and safety measures that mitigate the risk of spreading the virus in rural communities.