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The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Hon. Eric Opoku, has cut sod for the construction of the 175-hectare Anunuso Water Conservation Scheme (AWCS) at Anunuso Valley near Brofoyedru in the Sekyere East District of the Ashanti Region.
The project is being implemented under the West Africa Food System Resilience Programme (FSRP), a World Bank-funded initiative being executed in collaboration with ECOWAS across nine West African countries. In Ghana, the programme covers 57 districts in 10 regions.
Speaking at the sod-cutting and site possession ceremony, Mr. Opoku said the scheme forms part of government’s efforts to reduce farmers’ dependence on unreliable rainfall and promote year-round food production.
He said the project is aligned with the Feed Ghana Programme’s “Irrigation for Wealth” module, which seeks to improve water management and create conditions for more productive farming.
According to the Minister, the facility will add 175 hectares of irrigable land and benefit at least 220 members of the Anunuso Rice Farmers’ Cooperative. Technical projections show rice yields could double from 2.5 metric tonnes per hectare to 5 metric tonnes per hectare.
With two cropping cycles per year, the scheme is expected to produce about 1,750 metric tonnes of paddy annually, translating into about 1,100 metric tonnes of milled rice.
The project is also expected to create about 100 jobs during construction and about 2,500 jobs across the rice value chain when fully operational, including land preparation, harvesting, milling, transportation, input supply and trading.
Mr. Opoku urged the cooperative to work closely with extension officers and buyers to ensure production is guided by market demand, and to ensure quality harvesting, drying, storage and milling for competitiveness.
He charged the contractor, Nathawo Investment Properties Ltd, to adhere strictly to specifications and deliver quality work within the 18-month completion timeline.
The Anunuso scheme is one of two inland valley projects being developed in Ashanti Region alongside the Waamu-Kumi project near Barekese, which together will add 289 hectares of irrigable land.
Source Credit: / GNA. Reference: – via Access Agric._ 578b52f3
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Excerpt: Agric Minister Eric Opoku cuts sod for 175-hectare Anunuso Water Conservation Scheme in Sekyere East to boost rice yields from 2.5 to 5 tonnes per hectare and create 2,500 jobs.
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Eric Opoku, Anunuso Water Conservation Scheme, FSRP, Feed Ghana, Sekyere East, Ashanti Region, Rice Production, Irrigation for Wealth, World Bank
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