Rice farmers in Adzoatsi and surrounding areas within the Ketu North Municipality of the Volta Region are calling for immediate assistance to tackle critical challenges hampering their farming activities.

The farmers operate across a vast rice farming area spanning 2,255 acres (902 hectares), divided into eleven sections from Adzoatsi to Awalavi. Despite the area’s potential, the farmers are struggling with inadequate drainage systems and deteriorating access roads, which have become major obstacles to their operations.

Mr. Wonder Nutekpor, Secretary of Section 1 of the CDE Water Users Association, highlighted these concerns during an interview. He emphasized that the most pressing issue is the poor drainage system, which is essential for successful rice harvesting.

“When the rice is ready for harvest, we need to drain the water from the fields to facilitate an easy and safe harvest,” Mr. Nutekpor explained. “But our drainage system is clogged with mud, preventing water from flowing out. This makes harvesting difficult and leads to significant post-harvest losses.”

In addition to drainage issues, the farmers face difficulties with access roads that connect their farms to drying sites. The deteriorating roads make it challenging to transport harvested rice, with drivers often charging double the usual fare due to the poor conditions. “Sometimes, the vehicles get stuck, and we have to push them, which is dangerous. We are really suffering,” Mr. Nutekpor added.

Even after overcoming these obstacles, the farmers struggle to find markets for their produce, further compounding their challenges. They have appealed to authorities for urgent intervention to address these issues.

Although the Ghana Irrigation Development Authority (GIDA) manages the entire farming area, and the farmers pay an Irrigation Service Charge after each harvest, they feel they are not receiving adequate support. Occasionally, through GIDA, some NGOs and companies provide farm inputs like herbicides, fertilizers, and insecticides, in exchange for rice after harvest, but this support is insufficient.

The farmers remain hopeful that their concerns will be addressed, enabling them to continue their farming activities efficiently and contribute to the community and the nation’s food security.