Wa — THE Rural Organisation of Women Farmers and Agro-Processing Development (ROWFAD) has petitioned the government to consider including the cultivation of groundnuts in the government block farming programmes. It also wants easy access to government market under the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.

The Executive Director of ROWFAD, Mr. Yanaa Yahaya said groundnut farming was an economically beneficial venture which can help eradicate poverty in the three Northern regions if given the needed support by government.

Mr. Yahaya said the inclusion of groundnuts can benefits rural women farmers, their families and the nation at large.

He said that groundnut cultivation can bring about the setting up of rural enterprise by bringing employment to rural women and improving their income levels.

Mr. Yahaya pointed out that it can expand government's revenue sources and address malnutrition among children, as well as cut down on migration among women, especially from the three Northern regions to the southern half of the country.

He stated that groundnuts, under the block farming concept can promote food security in the rural communities in the country.

The acting Upper West Regional Coordinating director, Alhaji Alhassan Issahuku, who received the petition on behalf of the Upper West Regional Minister, said the Regional Coordinating Council (RCC) was gratefully to ROWFAD for coming forward to present the petition to the government.

He said agriculture was an integral part of the three northern regions and agriculture cannot be talked about meaningfully, without the inclusion of women who represent 70 per cent of Ghanaian farmers.

Alhaji Issahuku said the identification of groundnut to be part of block farming concept by the government is commendable.

He noted that agriculture should be more business-like and this means moving away from the traditional crops that will not bring them any significant income.