They said the use of agricultural technology such as handheld planters had helped reduce their labour in planting and has improved their crop yield.

“There is a vast difference between planting with the planter and planting manually. Planter plants in rows yield far better than planting manually”, Madam Portia Gban, a commercial farmer, said.

The women were speaking at an event in Wa on Wednesday to mark this year’s International Women’s Day organized by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) for women farmers, entrepreneurs, and development partners to share experiences and chart a path for a more inclusive and innovative agriculture sector for women in the country.

March 8 is set aside annually by the United Nations to appreciate the efforts and contributions of women to national and community development, with this year’s event on the theme: “DigitAll: Innovation and Technology for Gender Equality”.

About 100 women farmers and women in leadership positions from the Wa, Nandom, and Jirapa Municipalities, Wa East, Lambussie, and Nadowli-Kaleo Districts in the Upper West Region and the Sawla-Tuna-Kalba District in the Savannah Region attended the event.

Madam Gban explained that women farmers were leveraging agricultural technology and innovation to improve their agricultural activities and urged other women to venture into the agricultural sector, which had been dominated by men over the years.

Mr Abu Huudu, the EU-GAP Programme Coordinator, indicated that the EUGAP had, since its inception, been critical in initiating interventions that ensured gender inclusiveness with a focus on increasing agricultural incomes and promoting sustainable economic growth.

He said about 250 smallholder farmers had been introduced to handheld push planters, with 61 per cent of them being women, which had made planting faster and reduced labour costs.

He said the EU-GAP was also empowering women by providing them with access to finance, training, and information through innovative digital platforms.

“EUGAP has developed a radio programme that provides women farmers with real-time information on best Agricultural practices, markets, and prices.

This allows them to make informed decisions and improve their productivity and income.” Mr Huudu added.

The Upper West Regional Director of the Department of Gender, Madam Charity Batuure, observed that lack of access to fertile land by women for farming as well as delay in access to tractor services had remained a major challenge to women.

She advocated the need for a land tenure system for women to enable them to possess and use the land for agricultural purposes for a considerable number of years without having to lose land to the landlords.

“Some women farmers do not have access to smartphones, so that makes it a challenge for them to be able to get weather reports on when rains will fall and what to do at what time”, she explained.

Madam Elizabeth Dery, the In-Charge of the Antenatal Care Unit at the Upper West Regional Hospital, sensitized the women on Cervical and breast cancers and urged them to seek regular screening for quick detection in case of infection.

The GIZ also organized eye screening, Random Blood Sugar and Blood Pressure test, and breast cancer screening for the women at the event.