By Philip Tengzu, GNA
Gudaayiri, (UW/R), Dec. 09, GNA – The Green People Energy (GPE) project of the German Development Cooperation (GIZ), has commissioned a solar mechanized pump for Langdi Paradise Farms at Gudaayiri in the Wa East District to help promote irrigation farming.
A team from the GPE project inspected and tested the facility before commissioning and handing it over to the management of the farming company.
The construction of the facility was a partnership between the GPE project and Langdi Paradise Farms and executed by Pumptech Limited with two years of manufacturer defect warranty and maintenance services.
The pump system of the facility was about 75 meters deep. It has automatic storage capacity, which enables the device to automatically switch off when that capacity was reached.
The solar had a capacity of about PS1800 units with a lifespan of at least 25 years, according to Mr Mohammed Amin, the Upper West Regional Manager of the Pumptech Limited.
He explained that, resorting to solar mechanized facilities for irrigation was more sustainable and economical to use, as it did not attract recurrent bills like the grid.
He added that, the facility could serve more than ten hectares of farm land if it is well managed and protected from destruction.
He explained that his company had been constructing such facilities for commercial, domestic, and industrial use.
Mr Abdul Salam Alhassan, the Technical Advisor to the Langdi Paradise Farms, noted that the farming company was moving from over-dependence on rain-fed to irrigation agriculture.
“If you rely on the natural rainfall and the season is over, basically you have nothing to do. You have to sit down until the next season. But with this facility, we are going to supplement the rain-fed system with irrigation so we can do all year round farming.
“The economic benefit is huge and we envisaged that the facility will help ensure all year round vegetable production to feed, if not the entire region, but the districts around the facility including Wa Municipality”, he explained.
Mr Alhassan indicated that the facility would also help provide jobs for the youth in the area as well as the actors in the vegetable value chain from planting to marketing.
Started about two years ago, the farming company presently employed eleven permanent and 240 casual workers.
It currently produced soybeans and maize and is envisioned to become one of the major producers of maize and soybeans as well as vegetables in the region.
