The Sunyani-based MIHOSO International Foundation, an NGO, has pledged its commitment to modernize agriculture and improve the socio-economic livelihoods of rural farmers. That would further enhance job creation and poverty reduction, he stated. Established in 2002, MIHOSO works to improve the conditions of vulnerable people with an emphasis on women, children, and girls. After 20 years of operations in humanitarian services, Dr Gabriel Gbiel Benarkuu, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) said the foundation intended to engage in commercial farming in cash crops and support agri-businesses and smallholder farmers and cooperative groups. 'Venturing into commercial farming activities such as mango and cashew plantation will well position us to support farmers with logistics and agricultural products alongside improving physical infrastructure,' he stated. Dr Benarkuu said this when speaking at a stakeholder's consultation meeting in Sunyani, attended by health workers, traditional authorities, civil society organisations, and actors as well as some heads of Departments and Agencies to collect inputs on its programmes for the next five years. The foundation organised the meeting aimed at helping it to re-strategize and come out with interventions owned and sustained by community members as part of the redesign phase of the Star Ghana and West African Civil Society Institute (WACSI) Strengthening programme. The WACSI-funded programme aimed at fortifying the organisation's sustainability by enhancing its identity, operational powers, and financial acumen and fostering diversification of funding streams. 'We can't relegate the impact of the agriculture sector towards sustainable development, and we are committed to advance and make the sector more attractive for the youth,' Dr Benarkuu stated. He indicated that the implementation of the 10-year strategic plan of the foundation chalked unprecedented success in the area of mental health, and community development, saying it was now developing another five-year str ategic plan that hinged on physical infrastructure development, large-scale farming, cooperative support and agricultural services and other social intervention programmes. Mr Thomas Benarkuu, the Deputy CEO, in charge of Operations at MIHOSO, explained the foundation still stood on its vision of making life better for vulnerable people and local communities. Highlighting some successes, he said through its intervention many people with disabilities in the Bono East Region had been able to access and benefit from their share of the Disability Fund of the various District and Municipal Assemblies. 'Now almost all the public health facilities in the Bono and Bono East Districts and Municipalities have Mental Health Units, thereby improving conditions of people with mental health challenges,' he stated. Mr Benarkuu expressed appreciation to BasicNeeds Ghana, a key partner, and the Districts and Municipal Assemblies in the Bono, Bono East and Ahafo Regions for their collaborations which had made the foundatio n achieve some level of success in the implementation of its programmes and activities. In a contribution, Mr Daniel Owusu-Amponsah, the Dormaa Municipal Disease Control Officer recommended poultry droppings as an alternative, for soil fertility and to improve crop yields. Source: Ghana News Agency