Takoradi MP calls for youth in agric projects

THE Member of Parliament (MP) for Takoradi,Mr Kwabena Okyere Darko-Mensah, has called for the establishment of youth in agriculture projects to engage the youth meaningfully across the country.
Mr Darko-Mensah said Ghana was endowed with a lot of arable land which could be put to good use by the youth to prevent them from leaving the rural communities for the cities in search of non existent jobs.
In an interview with the Daily Graphic, the MP said the youth in agriculture project must be at the heart of every stakeholder in youth development in the country.
Mr Darko-Mensah said Ghana could not continue to import food when it had the manpower and resources to cultivate all her food needs.
He added that the continuous importation of food from other countries meant that Ghanaians would be creating jobs for other countries.
Mr Darko-Mensah emphasised that the time had come for Ghana to move away from the importation of every single item and begin to export to those countries the country to also earn some foreign exchange.
The MP said most of the youth were unemployed because they all wanted employment from the central government,a situation which did not help the economy.
Touching on oil, Mr Darko-Mensah said structures must be put in place such that persons and groups that may be directly affected by the operation of the oil companies, particularly fishermen, could also benefit from the oil in one way or the other.
Mr Darko-Mensah stressed that laws must be enacted to protect the interest of fishermen within the catchment areas of the oil find.
“Fishermen, particularly the young ones, in our rural areas are often disadvantaged. By this I mean they are isolated that is being far away from assistance, have no money to satisfy their basic needs, and have no voice in decision making,” he said.