He said the provision of interventions such as gari producing factories and the required technology would encourage the women and the growers to take advantage of the government’s Planting for Food and Jobs Agenda.

“Over 70 per cent of cassava cultivated in Ghana are processed into gari, which means there is a huge market for gari, but the current methods used to process cassava into gari pose a big health hazard to the women,” he stated.

At the launch of the 2017 Ehi Nutome Galiza (Gari festival) in Accra yesterday, Dr Gatsi stated that: “Though these women contribute to feeding the country, many of them, in the long term, grow up to be very poor and are faced with heart and kidney diseases.”

The festival, which will be held on September 30, 2017 at Ehi in the Ketu North District of the Volta Region, will be organised on the theme, “Gari processing at Ehi: A vehicle for industrial take-off in the Planting for Food and Jobs Agenda.”

Adzinukorpe Fafali cultural troupe performing the gali dance at the ceremony.

Release more land

Dr Gatsi stated that gari had become a major staple food that was consumed in almost every home in Ghana, while some was also exported to other African nations and Western markets.

He, however, indicated that the outdated method of processing cassava into gari had not helped the processors to make the most of the opportunities existing for gari products.

“Besides the continuous risk these women endure from constant exposure to fire, which makes them prone to various ailments, there is limited land for the cultivation of cassava since landowners do not release land for the large-scale cultivation of the crop,” he stated.

He, therefore, appealed to landowners in the area to release more land for the large-scale cultivation of cassava.

Be innovative

Dr Gatsi said though Ehi was not the biggest producer of gari in the Volta Region, its chiefs and people deserved commendation for taking the initiative to promote gari products.

He, however, urged them to be innovative to enable them to process and brand gari-related products from the area to ensure high patronage of the products.

Work together

The Chief of Ehi, Torgbui Dzeble Adukpo, called on the citizens of the area to work together to remove suspicions and misconceptions hampering the progress of the area.

“These are the reasons why I said the dance drum rhythm now is that we must try new ideas, try new opportunities and even the people who are offering us those opportunities; we must hold our hands together in spite of our differences, to work together for the good of Ehi and generations unborn,” he stated.