A 63-year-old farmer who practices mxed farming , Mr. Bernard Sarfo Asamoah, has been adjudged Overall Best Farmer for the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) at this year’s Farmers and Fishers' Day celebration in Accra, taking home a tricycle as his prize.

Mr Asamoah, cultivates cassava, plantain, cocoa, tomatoes, and eggplants.He also processes cassava into gari and operates one of the cleanest and best-managed goat farms in Accra.

The awards ceremony, held to mark the National Farmers and Fishers'  Day within the Accra Metropolis, brought together the Mayor of Accra, Hon. Michael Kpakpo Allotey, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Odododiodio, Hon. Alfred Nii Kotey Ashie, Assembly Members, staff of the AMA, traditional rulers from the Ga State, religious bodies, community leaders, members of the fishing and farming communities and the media.

Hudu Abdul Mumuni, who was adjudged Best Climate Smart Crop Farmer for nearly three decades of vegetable production received a 3-inch water pump, four bags of fertiliser, a wheelbarrow and a knapsack sprayer, while John Blavo, founder of Gokens Farm,  won Best Environmentally Friendly Livestock Farmer for his poultry, small ruminant and dog enterprise took home a big deep freezer, a wheelbarrow and three bags of layer mash.

Faustina Sowlana, a 62-year-old widow, was also honoured and given a poly tank, a bag of fertiliser, a blender, a pressing iron, a knapsack and two watering cans as Best Female Farmer for her work in melon seed (agushie), groundnut, beans, okro, pepper and plantain cultivation.

Sarah Norkor Okaijah, a Chorkor-based mother of seven named Best Fish Processor after more than 40 years in the trade, was presented with a deep freezer; Simon Yaw Ayivor, a 68-year-old security officer recognised as Best Backyard Farmer for turning unused space into a productive urban farm, received a poly tank, a bag of fertiliser, a knapsack and a wheelbarrow; while Azuma Noah, a market enumerator honoured as Best Agricultural Extension Agent, took home a small freezer.

In addition, Accra Academy and AME Zion 'A' Basic School were recognised as the Best Senior High School and Best Junior High School respectively in Practical Agriculture, with each receiving dustbins, knapsacks, watering cans, wheelbarrows, spades, compost, fertiliser, a water hose, hoes and wellington boots for their school farm projects.

Chairing the function, Abola Mantse, Nii Ahene Nunoo III described the day as a celebration of the foundation of Ghana’s survival, culture and future, noting that the theme, “Grow Ghana, Eat Ghana, Secure the Future,” was not just a slogan but a call to action anchored in the daily efforts of farmers and fishers whose hands tilled the soil and sustained the nation.

Mayor Allotey, in a keynote address, announced the establishment of a new Education Support Fund dedicated to the children of farmers and fishermen in the metropolis with seed money of GHC 50,000.

 He explained that the fund was aimed at supporting school fees and scholarships for their wards so that no child would be denied education because their parents were engaged in farming or fishing.

The MP for Odododiodio, in a statement, said the event was not just a moment of ceremony but an opportunity to offer a profound and heartfelt salute to the men and women whose labour sustains the country.

The MP added that efforts were underway to secure investment to fully operationalise the Jamestown Harbour and expand its capacity by introducing fabricated boats to improve fishing efficiency, as well as establishing a mini fish-processing plant in Odododiodio to add value to the catch and help fishers obtain better prices.