Presbyterian Church launches 20,000 agribusiness initiative

THE Presbyterian Relief Services and Development (PRESED) of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana has launched Agenda 20,000, a nationwide initiative to transform idle church lands into commercial farms and agribusiness hubs to support food security and youth employment.

The National Coordinator of PRESED, Emmanuel Nyarko Ankamah, announced this at the Club 100 Breakfast Meeting in Kumasi on Saturday.

The meeting was held on the theme: ‘Strengthening Partnerships, Expanding Impact to Transform Lives.’

Mr Ankamah explained that the initiative would select 20 young entrepreneurs from each diocese and provide them with seed funding to establish and grow their businesses.

He said the programme was projected to benefit 1.45 million people across the country, contributing to efforts to improve food security and create employment opportunities for young people.

Mr Ankamah explained that the success of Agenda 20,000 had already earned national recognition, with the Presbyterian Church of Ghana being named the Best Faith-Based Organisation in Practical Agriculture at last year’s Farmers’ Day celebrations.

He noted that PRESED’s mandate extended beyond agriculture, adding that the department managed 62 health institutions nationwide, including hospitals, clinics and maternity homes.

He said vulnerable households, retired pastors and marginalised individuals also received support through the Presbyterian Healthcare Support Fund.

Mr Ankamah further said rehabilitation centres in Sunyani and Garu provided assistance to persons with disabilities, while environmental interventions in areas such as Sokoban Wood Village in Kumasi, Ejisu and Techiman were helping traditional charcoal producers adopt sustainable briquette production.

The initiative, he elaborated, was aimed at reducing deforestation and indoor air pollution associated with conventional charcoal production.

He stressed that environmental protection required collective responsibility, urging individuals and communities to play their part in creating clean, safe and healthy environments.

“Environmental protection must not be left to government agencies alone. Every individual has a role to play in creating clean, safe and healthy communities,” he noted.

Additionally, Mr Ankamah revealed that PRESED was collaborating with the non-profit organisation Clean Air Fund on an environmental campaign to promote proper waste management, eliminate open burning, encourage biomass recycling and the use of protective equipment, and establish local air-quality monitoring networks.

The campaign would also strengthen sustained community action against air pollution, he stated.

Mr Ankamah said PRESED was combining faith with practical interventions to improve livelihoods and promote human dignity.

Moreover, he indicated that the department was positioning itself as a pillar of transformation by ensuring that communities where the Presbyterian Church operated received tangible support in healthcare, livelihoods and social welfare.

FROM KINGSLEY E. HOPE, KUMASI

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