Cocoa farmers at Wassa Akropong in the Wassa Amenfi East district of the Western region have re-emphasized the need for government to completely ban illegal mining popularly referred to as galamsey in the country.
They cited mass destruction of their farmlands as well as growing insecurity in cocoa farming communities as a result of galamsey activities as some of their reasons for calling for the ban.
According to the Wassa Amenfi East district Chairman of World Cocoa Farmers Organization (WCFO) Mr. John Ankomah Enu, most of the young people in the area are not interested in going into cocoa farming due to the galamsey activities which fetches them “quick money”.
Mr. John Ankomah Enu was speaking to Oyerepa News’ Emmanuel oduro when members of Ghana Agricultural and Rural Development Journalists Association embarked on a field trip to Nananko near Wassa Akropong to know at first hand, problems facing cocoa farmers in the area.
He said the galamsey activities have attracted a lot of criminals to the area who move from village to village to steal from the farmers during the night.
In a related development, Mr. John Ankomah Enu blames cocoa farmers in the area for the low yield they have been recording in recent times.
He told us that most of the farmers do not employ modern methods of farming neither do they pay attention to the advice given to them by agric extension officers.
