Peasant Farmers' Fertilizer Watchdog Looks Out for Smugglers

By Cyndi Ofori

The Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) is alarmed that "bags of subsidised fertilizer are being smuggled out of the country to Burkina Faso and Togo."

The PFAG said in a statement issued last week that according to some members of its fertilizer security watchdog committee, the commodity can be seen in some shops located on the border towns that share boundary with Ghana.

"This is unfortunate especially after all the assurances our farmers received with regards to the fact that, this year the fertilizer will be made available for the Ghanaian farmer only."

In a statement signed for Abdul-Rahman Mohammed, National President and Board Chair of PFAG, by Ms. Victoria Adongo, Programme Coordinator of PFAG, the association said "Our farmers will be disadvantaged if this practice is not checked and stopped now."

Consequently, "we wish to draw the attention of state actors and the security agencies along the borders and suggest that, a more practical proactive step be adopted to address the situation.

"We are of the view that, if our security agencies work closely with our watchdog members, the situation can be brought under control."

Meanwhile, the PFAG said that "The fertilizer watchdog committee members will continue to monitor the movement of subsidised fertilizers across neighbouring countries and report such perpetrators to the security agencies for arrest and prosecution."

The PFAG is the apex farmer-based non-governmental organization in Ghana with the mandate to advocate for pro-poor agriculture and trade policies and other issues that affect the livelihoods of smallholder farmers.

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