A former Minister of Food and Agriculture, Dr Bryan Acheampong, has paid glowing tribute to Ghana’s farmers, describing them as the backbone of the nation’s food security and a driving force behind economic growth.
He lauded their resilience, hard work and unwavering commitment, noting that Ghana’s progress is deeply rooted in the daily efforts of its agricultural workforce.
Reflecting on his tenure at the Ministry, Dr Acheampong outlined several key interventions introduced to uplift smallholder farmers including improved access to essential inputs, enhanced extension services and strengthened market linkages.
He highlighted the cancellation of the cocoa syndication arrangement, which he described as a strategic move to secure long-term sustainability alongside timely fertilizer distribution and expanded irrigation projects across the country.
According to him, these initiatives have contributed significantly to the bumper harvests the country continues to enjoy, demonstrating the transformative impact of consistent policy support for farmers.
Dr Bryan Acheampong pointed to one of the most notable achievements during his leadership: the historic improvement in the livelihoods of cocoa farmers.
He emphasised that the cocoa producer price increased from about GHS 800 per bag to GHS 3,000 per bag, a bold decision aimed at ensuring farmers receive fair compensation for their labour and sacrifices.
While celebrating the gains, he acknowledged that persistent challenges such as post-harvest losses, limited access to financing, low mechanisation and the rising need for climate-smart technologies still require urgent attention.
To tackle these issues, he outlined a forward-looking vision for a modern, resilient and profitable agricultural sector, which focuses on expanding mechanisation and digital tools to improve efficiency.
The rest are strengthening value chains to boost local processing of Ghanaian produce, scaling up irrigation and climate-smart technologies to reduce weather-related risks and introducing innovative financing models offering affordable credit and insurance to farmers.
Dr Bryan Acheampong reaffirmed his commitment to championing the cause of farmers, both in Parliament and beyond, vowing to continue advocating for policies that enable them to thrive.
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