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Water hyacinth invasion and its associated effects have been reported to be a source of problems to riparian people, posing challenges to activities like fishing and farming along invaded waterbodies. Based on cross-sectional research with 55 farmers who were sampled using the snowballing sampling technique, this study assesses the effects of water hyacinth invasion on smallholder farming activities in the Jomoro District. Four communities along the River Tano and Tano Lagoon in the district were purposively selected for the study. Individual surveys and Focus Group Discussions were used as data collection methods to assess the situation. Among the problems posed by water hyacinth invasion to smallholder farming in the study area were the destruction of farm produce due to the blockade caused by water hyacinth on the water bodies, reduced profit from farm output and economic hardship. We recommend that interactive participation involving farmers, district and traditional authorities, and rural development agencies should be adopted to control the spread of the water hyacinth to a level where it will cease to impede the activities of the riparian people. Emmanuel Honlah ABOUT THE AUTHOR Emmanuel Honlah holds Bachelor of Arts in Geography and Rural Development (KNUST), Master of Arts in Environmental Management and Policy (University of Cape Coast) and Master of Philosophy in Geography and Rural Development (KNUST). His interest areas are Urban Geography, Environmental Management and Policy, and Rural Development. He focuses on the socioeconomic effects of invasive species in riparian environments. He is particularly interested in the effects of water hyacinth invasion in the Jomoro District where the presence of the weeds in the River Tano and Abby-Tano Lagoon poses challenges to riparian people who rely on the two water bodies to make a living. How water hyacinth invasion affects the income and sustainability of farming work in the district is also studied. This study forms part of a larger research that assessed "Biofuel production from lignocellulosic materials" financed by DANIDA Fellowship Centre (2GBIONRG) and coordinated by the Technical University of Denmark.

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