Accra Grows vegetables

By Emmanuel Kubi

Daily Guide:Sept.15, 2010

Over 1000 people are engaged in the cultivation of vegetables in Accra in the Greater-Accra region.
However, the region is not noted for vigorous agricultural activities.
Vegetables from the Accra plains form over 35 per cent of the total vegetables consumed by people in and around the metropolis.
Most of these farms are located along the Volta River Authority (VRA) high tension lines that lead through Dzorwulu Plant Pool, Sapemang, Ashiaman, Tema to Kakasunanka.
They cultivate letus, onion, Sweet pepper, okra, Irish potatoes, cucumber, carrots, among others.

One of such farmers is Abdul Wahab who commenced the cultivation of vegetables after the death of his father, Alhaji Iddrisu Sandal, who used to be the Chairman for the Vegetable Growers Association in the 1980s.
Wahab, a member of the Plant Pool Vegetable Growers Association (PPVGA), in an interview with DAILY GUIDE on Monday, stated that the business had been lucrative in the past, but could not state his annual turnover.
Calling for regular training for members of the PPVGA, Wahab revealed that before 1986 successive governments did not address the problems of vegetable growers, explaining that President Rawlings selected some members of the association including his father and sent them to North Korea to study the application of farm inputs and general methods of producing vegetables.
“Now we are forced to use treated water to grow the vegetables making cost of production very high because the water bodies around us have been polluted,” he noted.
He urged government to provide them with wells to address the inconsistent flow of water to their farms and stop the usage of treated water which is more expensive.
On market availability, Wahab observed that they do not have any problem with sales during the off seasons, stressing that sales were low during the months of August and September because most foreigners to travel to their countries for holidays.
He therefore called on the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and all other related organizations to educate Ghanaians on the nutritional values of vegetables.
According to him, “Though vegetables are nutritious and good for human health, most Ghanaians do not eat vegetables regularly. May be they do not know that it’s good for their body,” he said.
He appealed to authorities in the industry to help them acquire the requisite modern equipment to enhance their work.
A trader, Madam Mary Odametey expressed the hope that vegetable growers would remain in business since according to her, they all form part of the value chain in the agricultural sector.