Monday, July 20, 2009

ESTABLISH RUBBER DEVT BOARD (PAGE 22, JULY 18)

THE Rubber Outgrowers and Agents Association (ROAA) has appealed to the government to establish a Rubber Development Board to manage the affairs of the rubber industry in the country.
That, the association felt, would enable the rubber farmers to access new planting materials from the other rubber-producing countries and also to manage the day-to-day activities of the rubber sector, since the Ministry of Food and Agriculture was too busy in managing many other activities.
It said establishment of the board would also facilitate the setting up of a Rubber Research Institute, which is long overdue as all the rubber- growing countries had research institutes purposely for the production of rubber.
These were contained in a petition the association presented to the government through the Minister of Food and Agriculture, Mr Kwesi Ahwoi, when he visited some of the rubber farms in the Western Region.
The Chairman of the association, Nana Asaa Kofi III, who presented the petition to the minister, said despite the success story of the Rubber Outgrowers Project launched in January, 1995, rubber, known as a strategic commodity in most of the Asian countries, was relatively unknown to the Ghanaian populace.
He said an attempt was once made for the establishment of the board, but it did not materialise.
Nana Asaa said another issue threatening outgrower farms under the project was the activities of the mining companies in the region.
He said it had come to the notice of the association that certain mining companies prospecting for gold in the course of their activities had entered into some rubber outgrower farms and destroyed some of the rubber trees.
Nana Asaa mentioned some of the farms affected in the region as those at Morrison Junction and Asuboi in the Ahanta West District, Ankyernyin and Kudublofo in the Nzema East Municipality, Nkakaa in the Amenfi West District and Benso and Attakrom in the Tarkwa-Nsuaem Municipality .
“As a matter of fact, the affected farmers are highly aggrieved and are poised for instant justice if such nefarious acts continue,” he emphasised.
“We, therefore, wish to use this opportunity to appeal to you to liaise with the Ministry of Lands and Forestry to stop those prospecting companies from causing harm to the rubber farms,” Nana Asaa stressed.
He expressed the hope that the minister would act promptly on the issues to the benefit of members of the association and the entire rubber industry in the country.
According to the chairman, as of December 31, 2008, the rubber farmers had made total repayment of GH¢1,470,454.97 out of the loan contracted from the Agricultural Development Bank (ADB) for the establishment of the rubber plantations since they started reimbursing the loans in 2003.
He said even though the farmers were supposed to use 12 years to service their loans, they could be sure of full re-payment before the stipulated period.

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