Stakeholders in the Yendi Municipality are asking government to model the Northern College of Science and Technology’s School Farming System to ensure students have a steady supply of nutritious meals when school is in session.
The Northern College of Science and Technology has over the past six years grown its own food to feed students.
The school farming system is a concept where schools use the school backyard as a classroom, where practical agriculture lessons are taught.
Authorities at the school say this has also inculcated in the students a spirit of self help and independence, virtues needed to survive in the world.
Though this concept has been widely accepted as one way to develop the interest of Ghanaians in agriculture, the concept was scrapped out of the school curriculum.
Principal of the Northern College of Science and Technology, Nathaniel Adams Jnr highlighted the nutritional benefits of the initiative.
“Since we started the farming, we’ve produced cereals, rice, maize, and more. Everything we feed on is from our farm.” The school also raises poultry, including chickens for eggs, contributing to the students’ daily nutrition.
“The school has been practicing the farm system for the past six years and that has reduced the cost of feeding the children. Since we started the farming, we’ve produced cereals, rice, maize. Everything we feed on is from our farm. We also farm cat fish, guinea flows, turkey for meat. Our children eat an egg a day from the poultry we rear. So we rear these birds who lay eggs and the eggs are given to the children “.
Students are made to work on the farm in batches, to ensure they take responsibility of the produce and what they eat.
One of the team leads, Baku Mushina said “we are here to water the plants and to feed the animals. We always divide ourselves into groups so that some can feed the fishes, some can water the plants and the other ground feed the animals.
She added, “we learn new things and we learn hard so that wherever we find ourselves after here we can use the knowledge”.
Yendi Municipal Director of Agriculture, Alhaji Abubakari Mohamed said the school was adjudged the best in Agriculture education.
He commends Authorities for this move.
“I don’t know what informed the decision to remove the concept from the basic level. In the past when you follow your father to the farm during weekend, you tell him this is what our Agric Master taught us and they will implement it and it worked. I am sure if we had continued, our level won’t be where we are now’
The Kuga Naa who gave the school acres of land wants other Chiefs to emulate this and release lands for such projects.
“We started with two acres but today they have 36 acres of land the school is using. I want to encourage chiefs who have land to allocate to schools to develop their agriculture component”.
The Kuga Naa emphasised “agriculture is the backbone of the country and when much effort is put in place it will ensure food security “.