Ghanaian farmers are pleading with the government to resolve the ‘budget war’ between the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA) and release funds for the national fertilizer subsidy programme as soon as possible.
Farming communities across the country are calling on the government to expedite the release of the subsidy funds immediately to salvage what remains of the current farming season.
They are demanding immediate and synchronized action from both the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in order to avert the collapse of Ghana’s agricultural sector.
“With national food security hanging in the balance, Ghana’s agricultural sector is on the brink of total collapse,” they have warned. According to them, prolonged administrative delays in the release of funds are pushing them to the brink of financial ruin.
The farmers are not happy with the Finance Ministry and that of MOFA, who seem to be fighting over GHc1.6 billion funding claims, at the time that they the farmers are expecting both ministries to release the funds.
“This bureaucratic deadlock has left thousands of farmers stranded without essential inputs at the most critical juncture of the planting season”, noted the farmers who claim they have not received fertilizer subsidies since 2025.
According to the farmers, they are in a complete quagmire, whether to choose between buying commercial fertilizer at exorbitant and unregulated market prices or scale back operations or abandon their fields entirely due to a complete lack of capital.
“The farms are hungry. Without fertilizer, the crops cannot grow well, and without good harvests, we cannot take care of our families”, noted Opanin Kwaku Ntiamoah, a 30-year farming veteran from Goaso.
Field visits to key farming communities including Ejura, Nkoranza, Techiman, Goaso and Sefwi Wiawso revealed widespread frustration and dangerous ripple effect to confirm the fears of Opanin Ntiamoah.
During the visits, farmers felt entirely abandoned to battle skyrocketing production costs on their own.
They pointed to the severe and visible operational impact of the subsidy drought saying without vital nutrients, crop development is weakened, leading to failed harvests and massive financial losses.
It was observed that farmers had resorted to actively downsizing their acreage because they simply cannot afford the input costs required for full-scale production.
The veterans warned that these severe hardships will deter the next generation and the youth from agriculture and thus threaten the long-term sustainability of the country’s economic backbone.
Meanwhile, the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana has joined calls on the government to urgently release subsidized fertilizers to farmers, warning that delays in the programme are placing severe pressure on smallholder farmers across the country.
The President of the Association, Mr. Douglas Annor, noted in an interview with the media that many farmers are struggling to sustain their operations due to the high cost of fertilizers and poor returns from the sale of their produce.
According to him, the situation has made farming increasingly difficult for many households that depend on agriculture for their livelihoods.
Mr. Annor disclosed that though the Association had formally requested MOFA to make subsidized fertilizers accessible for its members, it was yet to receive any response from the Ministry despite the urgency of the matter.
He noted that the delay in the release of fertilizers under the 2025/2026 subsidy programme has negatively affected farming activities in several communities and the prolonged uncertainty is discouraging some farmers from continuing with their farming operations, raising concerns about future food production.
The Association has appealed to the government to intervene without delay and ensure that subsidized fertilizers are made available to farmers.
The PFAG President stressed that timely support would help improve productivity, sustain livelihoods and encourage more people to remain in the agricultural sector.
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