A recent survey conducted in the Ashanti region has shown that many cocoa farmers are at risk of contracting short to long-term complicated health challenges due to poor handling of agrochemicals.
The survey showed that many of these farmers risk suffering from such illnesses as skin and eye itching, blood cancer, organ damage, low sperm count in men and menstrual disorder in women.
GARDJA’s Nicholas Osei-Wusu reports that multiple factors including difficulty in access to extension services and personal protective gear as well as non-adherence to precautionary measures are responsible for the situation.
It was observed through the survey that the centralized Community Spraying Taskforce are poorly resourced with working and personal protective tools to meet the needs of all the cocoa farmers within their operational areas while government’s chemical and fertilizer support reach the farmers either in insufficient quantities or late.
The farmers also do not take enough precautionary measures whenever they apply the chemicals on the farms themselves.
These revelations have been corroborated by an Agronomist at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Dr. Enoch Adjei Osekere who has already conducted research on farmers’ handling of pesticides. ‘Our research found out that some farmers use the empty chemical containers to drink water’, Dr. Osekere revealed.
The Senior Lecturer noted also that ‘some of the farmers eat, drink and sometimes smoke whilst the spraying is ongoing.’
When asked whether or not exposure to chemicals has any implications for people, a Principal Medical Officer at the Mampong Government Hospital, Dr. Isaac Suker said ‘chemicals are very harmful to the body.
The health risks from exposure range from immediate to long term. The short-term illnesses include skin itching, eye irritation, nausea and salivation. For the long-term effects, the symptoms don’t show early but they could be blood cancer, damage to the internal organs like kidney, low sperm count and menstrual disorder’, the medical expert said.
The Ashanti Regional Extension Officer of the Cocoa Health and Extension Division of the Ghana Cocoa Board, Geoffrey Sam, confirmed that there are currently only 81 Cocoa Extension Officers serving the 15 thousand, 875 cocoa farmer population in the region, working out to one Extension Agent to about one thousand 500 cocoa farmers.
This situation, Mr. Sam noted, defeats the Food and Agriculture Organization, FAO’s standard of One Extension Officer to 500 cocoa farmers. He assured, however, that COCOBOD is instituting various measures to serve a greater majority of cocoa farmers, particularly those in the hinterlands, with expert advice on best agronomic practices.
Notwithstanding the interventions either already in place or being rolled out, it would be worthwhile that COCOBOD and its collaborators organize regular medical screening embedded with educational campaigns for farmers in the various cocoa growing communities.
This would help a great deal to, at least enable the farmers to be abreast of their health status occasionally and seek expert clinical care appropriately.
