The inspiring story of Kusi,55-year-old taxi driver who became National Best Farmer
- 55 year old Solomon Kusi, who was recently adjudged the 2020 National Best Farmer has shared his story
- According to him he tried all he could to travel abroad but to no avail
- He recounted how driving a taxi after several failed attempts made him who he is today
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Often times, we have been taught to believe that to be successful, one has to go through the formal system of education and get a white-colored job.
The story is not the same for 55 year old Solomon Kusi, who was recently adjudged the 2020 National Best Farmer.
After failed attempts to go abroad in search of greener pastures, Kusi gave up and became a taxi driver, carrying goods and passengers to and from the Elubo, Sampa and Nkrankwanta borders.
Honesty they say, is the best policy. As a result of the honesty and sincerity with which he worked, he broke the long-existing myth and mistrust between the Ivorian business community and their Ghanaian counterparts, especially at the Elubo Border.
Source: Facebook
Due to his character, all who crossed his path loved to work with him and through that, he made a lot of money in the rice importation business.
He operated as the Coordinator of the Head Load Secretariat, which is a body in charge of all the rice imported into the country through the western corridors of the Elubo, Sampa and Nkrankwanta borders.
The role he played helped in increasing the revenue collection through his efforts at ensuring that tax evaders at the Elubo Border paid duty on their goods.
In recognition for his efforts, he was given a Certificate of Mention by the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).
In 2013, he single-handedly fought against the directive that no imports should pass through the land borders, except through the Tema and Takoradi Ports, to check the uncontrolled flow of rice across the borders, in order to ensure quality standards and curb unfair trade practices.
In 2016, his fight produced results as the government lifted the ban on rice imports through the land borders of Elubo, Sampa and Nkrankwanta.
With the hope of making more money, Kusi quit his rice importation business, sold all his trucks and invested in farming.
According to Kusi, he did not have it easy at all, as his friends and peers with whom he was in the rice business together mocked him for venturing into farming.
He mentioned that rumor started going round that his decision for selling all his trucks and venturing into farming was solely because he was owing people and needed to clear his debt.
Interestingly, he said his motivation to excel at his new trade was because of the mockery from his colleagues.
Kusi stated that he vowed to that he would one day win an award and be acknowledged on a national television.
True to that wish, on Friday, November 6, 2020, at the 36th edition of the National Farmers’ Day celebration, Kusi realised his long-cherished dream of receiving an award on national television.
Kusi was recognised as the Overall Best Farmer and for his prize, he took away the equivalent of $100,000, which he said he would invest in his farmhouse to improve his business.
He is a multi-millionaire farmer, a school proprietor and a philanthropist, with 720 acres of rubber plantation, 380 acres of cocoa farm, a 250-acre plantation of coconut, 180 acres of oil palm plantation, 10 acres of cassava farm, 75 acres of plantain farm, 35 acres of maize, five acres of garden eggs, five acres of okra and 10 acres of pepper farm.
He also has 11,000 poultry birds, 50 turtles, 80 sheep, 40 goats, 350 local fowls, 10 fish ponds, 56 grasscutters, 1,000 snails, 10 acres of ginger, two acres of tomatoes and a plantation of 200 Odum trees, 800 Emire trees, 300 Dawoma trees, 3,000 Mahogany trees and 300 Framo trees.
Apart from farming, the 2020 National Best Farmer is also the founder and proprietor of Jesus Never Fails International School, one of the best private basic schools in the Jomoro District with about 600 pupils.
Kusi advised the youth to venture into farming because there it is profitable and dispel the notion that it was a trade just meant for illiterates and the aged.
In other news, renowned Ghanaian media personality, Nana Aba Anamoah, has decided to extend a helping hand to another hawker on the streets of Accra.
This time, it is Desmond Adjei, a graduate from the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), who bumped into Nana Aba, the general manager of GHOne TV, when he was selling toilet-rolls in traffic.
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Source: YEN.com.gh
