Ghana News–Medical Director for Kuapa Kokoo; Dr. Fred Bedzrah has cautioned cocoa farmers against leaving their passbooks with their recorders.
“A Passbook is a tiny book used to keep record of cocoa sales. Every cocoa farmer has one and every Cocoa buying company has their passbook. The passbook is used as evidence that you are a cocoa farmer and hence a requirement for the Cocoa scholarship”, he explained to rawgist.com’s Bernard Buachi.
He cautioned the farmers during the maiden Kuapa Kokoo Inter-tertiary Institutions Debate Competition at the British Council in Accra.
The farmers, who are members of Kuapa Kokoo complained about how the CMB Scholarship is not benefiting them. They complained that the scholarships usually end up with non-cocoa farmers and white collar workers elsewhere. Some of them even revealed that they never get to see the scholarship forms; a situation that bothers them a lot.
Dr. Bedzrah who was a judge for the debate during the open forum explained to the farmers how the recorders could sell out the scholarships to others using the farmers’ details as found in the passbook.
He encouraged the farmers to call the farmers’ Union in case of any suspicion or misunderstanding for help.
Four Universities qualified for the final round of the debate to be held at the Kempinski Hotel on the 30th May, 2018.
Eight universities took part in heated debates on motions related to Ghana’s cocoa sub-sector and how it could be enhanced and made more attractive to the youth of the country.
The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology(KNUST), GIMPA, University of Cape Coast and the Kumasi campus of the University of Education, Winneba excelled while the University of Ghana, Ashesi University, Christian Service University College and the University of Professional Studies, Accra failed to make the mark.
Chief Nat Ebo Nsarko; Country Director for Millennium Promise Alliance explains that they will work to see such intellectual discourse institutionalized because the ideas brought out by the students are amazing. He believes the youth have to be brought closer to the farming community and their ideas solicited in order to make good progress. Chief Nat intimated that cross pollination of ideas on such platforms is worth sustaining if we seek to progress as a nation.
Managing Director for Kuapa Kokoo; Mr. Samuel Adimado said “engagements like this engender youth empowerment”. He said the youth need to be empowered in an era of “Ghana beyond Aid”.
Some of the debaters tell rawgist.com they have already started preparation towards the final contest which promises to be keenly contested.
Winners of the Debate will win laptop computers each, Medals of participation, 1 year internship with MPA and KKFU, Asanka Connectivity for their respective school libraries, Hampers from the sponsors, Trophy for their school plus a Cash prize. There are also exciting prizes for the first, second and third runners up.
What do you think about this piece? Share your comment in the comment thread and share the story using the social media buttons above. Thank you.
