He said rice production in the area had increased in recent times and there was the need for additional mills and drying facilities to help process the crops and prevent them from going to waste.

The establishment of factories will also motivate the farmers to continue to produce more since they will have assurance that their produce will not go to waste.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in an interview at New Edubiase, Mr Mensah, attributed the increase in production to the high demand for locally produced rice on the Ghanaian market.

He said in recent times most consumers were turning to locally produced rice and this had helped increase the demand and price of local rice for the farmers and therebyboosting production.

The increase in the dollar rate against the local currency had also affected the importation of rice, making the price of imported rice very high

This situationaccording to Mr Mensah, had been to the advantage of local rice production in the area.

However, most farmers have no access to drying facilities and mills, and this was affecting production in the area.

The heavy rainfall in the area this year was also affecting the drying since most farmers rely on the sunlight to dry their produce

Mr Mensah called on the government to speed up the construction of the rice factory and drying platforms at Atobiase to complement the one at Berekete to help the farmers

He also called on individuals to come and establish rice processing factories and drying platforms in the area to help boost rice production.