The Ghana Export and Import Bank (EXIMBANK) has donated LS plus 80 tractors (80HP 4WD) and their accessories worth GH₵562,842.98 to the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA).
The donation was aimed at supporting the National Farmers’ Day scheduled for Friday, December 2, 2022, at Koforidua in the Eastern Region.
It will be held under the theme “accelerating agricultural development through value addition.”
The General Manager of Finance at Ghana EXIMBANK (GEXIM), Mr Isaac AmissahAidoo disclosed this during the donation ceremony.
He said his outfit had been supporting the National Farmers’ Day for the past 22 years, adding that the bank had been a partner in the annual award since the days of EDIF, EDAIF and now GEXIM.
“We believe in the financing of the agricultural sector to play its role in the nation’s development, especially adding value through processing to export,” he added.
He said the support was to motivate and encourage the hard-working farmers and fisher folks to continue to play their critical role in the agriculture sector in Ghana’s economy.
Mr Aidoo said the bank operationally was a development and policy bank which sought to support the industrialisation drive of the government and had become the leading financial institution of the 1D1F initiative.
Receiving the item, the Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture in charge of Crops, Mr Yaw Frimpong Addo said farmers had contributed significantly to the well-being of Ghanaians as well as the economy.
He said through the hard work of farmers, there was enough food for Ghanaians despite the high price of foodstuff.
He said it was a worry that the donations were not coming in droves and stated that the current economic situation was the reason for it, adding that “no matter the situation, the farmers will be rewarded, we have also tried to manage the situation.”
He called on other corporate organisations who were yet to support the celebration to do so in order to reward and honour farmers.