Vice-president, in charge of research at IMANI Centre for Policy and Education, Bright Simons, has raised concerns regarding the disbursement of funds borrowed by the Ministry of Agriculture from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) aimed at supporting farmers across the country.
Taking to the X platform, Mr Simons urged the Agriculture Ministry to provide clarity on whether the intended beneficiaries, the farmers, are indeed receiving the financial assistance allocated through the $46 million IFAD loan.
“Ghana has been borrowing millions of dollars from a UN agency called IFAD to help farmers. But is the money reaching farmers? The current & former Agric Ministers &…Fidelity Bank should kindly tell Ghanaians. #MercyForThePoor,” he wrote.
The inquiry stems from a recent report that suggests that in April 2014, the government secured a $46 million loan from IFAD.
IFAD, a UN agency specializing in addressing agricultural challenges, channels its loans to support projects aimed at agro-processing, food security, enhanced smallholder farmer productivity, and similar objectives.
Specifically in Ghana, this funding was allocated for the Ghana Agricultural Sector Investment Program (GASIP), a project valued at approximately $78 million and officially launched in May 2015.
GASIP’s primary objective was to boost the productivity, output, and income of smallholder farmers by injecting funds into cooperatives through intermediaries known as “value chain cluster drivers (VCDs).”
These VCDs, acting as intermediaries, were tasked with accessing funds from GASIP, procuring bulk inputs such as seeds and fertilizer, ensuring their distribution to cooperative farmers, overseeing planting and harvesting activities, aggregating farm outputs, and collaborating with traders to secure favorable selling prices.
GASIP also sought the involvement of corporate bulk buyers such as Nestle, the Ghana Commodities Exchange, providers of tractor and mechanized services, and various other stakeholders within Ghana’s agricultural value chain.
By 2020, GASIP claimed to have facilitated the cultivation of nearly 100,000 acres of land and positively impacted the lives of 50,000 farmers.
In a moment of enthusiasm, the Minister of Agriculture appealed to IFAD for further support, requesting an additional $105 million to demonstrate greater confidence in Ghana’s agricultural initiatives.
Ghana has been borrowing millions of dollars from a UN agency called IFAD to help farmers. But is the money reaching farmers? The current & former Agric Ministers &…Fidelity Bank should kindly tell Ghanaians. 🙏🏽#MercyForThePoorhttps://t.co/0F84Gjmkxj
A man unintentionally drove by an accident scene that involved his wife.
Bolaji Onifade had been heading to his work inSalford, Greater Manchester, when he noticed emergency services at the scene of a horrific smash.
A pedestrian had been mowed down by a wealthy businessman’s son driving a £200,000 Mercedes G-Wagon at speeds of up to 91mph on October 25, 2021.
The 43-year-old thought little more of it as he drove to work, but just 20 minutes later his whole world was flipped upside down as he learned his wife Ibizugbe Onifade had been the victim.
He had offered her to pick her up from work but she had refused as she was working overtime.
The 38-year-old receptionist had been crossing the road at the time and died from impact of the car, driven by Mohammed Chowdbury.
Chowdbury had been on his mobile phone moments before he ploughed into her, and prior to that had been racing down a busy dual carriageway at 80mph, overtaking and undertaking drivers recklessly.
The speed of his driving was so great that it caused a fellow road users’ car to “shake as he drove past”.
The young man had previous convictions for driving without insurance and having a non-compliant number plate, and in both instances he provided the police with his brother’s details.
Similarly, only three years after he passed his driving test, Chowdbury had to attend a speed awareness course.
In a statement Bolaji Onifade, known as BJ, said: “That day changed my life forever. When I heard the news, I felt like I had come to the end of the world. What will I do without my wife?
“She was a lively and friendly person. We met each other at Salford University and got married later on.
“We had been trying for a baby and were considering IVF before COVID set us back. She would have been a wonderful mother. People should not be able to drive such high-powered cars when they are so young. If he had been driving sensibly, I would still have my wife.”
He added: “We went shopping in the morning and took our little nephew out with us. Then I took her to work, but before leaving I told her, “you haven’t said goodbye to the little one’.
“I offered to pick her up from work later but she said she would take a bus home as she was doing overtime.
“I was on night shift so went to work later. When I was driving along Ashton New Road, I noticed flashing police lights from across the road and thought there must have been an incident.
“Something told me to call my wife, but she didn’t pick up. I got my cousin to try and call her, but she also didn’t pick up.
”When I eventually got to work 20 minutes later, I got a call from my wife’s employer to say that there had been an incident and that police were going to attend my address.
“I thought the police don’t attend your address when it isn’t serious. I left work and came home, where they told me the news.
“We had been together for 10 years. She had studied quantitative business at Salford University and got her masters at a university in Nigeria.
“We enjoyed each other’s company, dong normal things all couples like to do. Going to church and socialising with friends. She also loved watching films. She has four sisters, two brothers and a mother back in Nigeria. I just pray that they are ok.”
At Manchester Crown Court, Chowdhury, of Chadderton near Oldham, whose family run a successful textile company, was jailed for five years and six months imprisonment after he admitted causing death by dangerous driving.
He was also banned from driving for eight years and nine months.
Prosecuting Brian Berlyne, said, “At approximately 8:55pm on Monday, October 25, 2021, Stuart Booth was driving in the Eastlands area of Manchester. Although it was dark, the street was well lit and a 30 mph speed limit was in place.
“The weather was fine, and the road was dry.
“As he drove along the road, a blue 4×4 Mercedes-Benz overtook him from the offside lane. The vehicle was going at such speed that his own vehicle shook as it was being overtaken. The defendant was the driver in question.
“At 9pm, PC Clark, an off duty police officer, noticed the same Mercedes speeding on the road near him. He noted that the car was travelling at excessive speed and over and undertook cars from the inside lanes of the dual carriageway.
“He also saw him doing a number of sharp breaks. He tried to follow the car, but the defendant sped through a red light. From there, PC Clark lost sight of him.
“At around the same time, the victim had just finished her work as a receptionist and made her way towards Alan Turing Way to catch a bus home.
“She crossed the road near the interchange with Ashton Old road and managed to reach the central reservation. She then looked around and believing the second half of the road was clear, she stepped out. She was then almost immediately struck by the defendant’s vehicle.
“Chowdhury immediately stopped and phoned the ambulance, which arrived a short time after. The victim died later in the night from the multiple injuries sustained from the collision.
“Although it was never fully confirmed the speed at which he was driving at the time, a police reconstruction of the incident measured his speed before the collision to be between 79 and 91 mph.
“He did immediately slow down when he saw the victim and was estimated to have been at between 40-50mph at that point.
“The victim was wearing dark clothing, but would have been seen regardless due to the bright road lighting. After being arrested at the scene, the defendant’s phone was seized.
“Analysis found that he had received no less than six calls between 8:51 and 8:57. The last call was taken at 8:57 and lasted for two minutes. At 9am he also used his phone to call the police.
“In interview, he denied driving dangerously and gave no account of his actions.”
In mitigation, Mohammed Nawaz, said, “He acquired an interest in cars at a young age, and by 14 he was spending more time fixing up cars than he was spending at school.
