The flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress, Mr John Dramani Mahama, has proposed a new system where Ghanaian factories would process and package cashew nuts bought from Wenchi before exporting them for foreign exchange.
He therefore promised a ground breaking system to be implemented by the next NDC government to grow the local cashew processing industry if he is re-elected president in the 2024 elections.
Speaking at Wenchi during his tour of the Bono region, Mr. Mahama reiterated the importance of agricultural development and said there was the need to change the current approach of exporting raw cashew nuts to India for processing.
“Currently, cashews are harvested and exported to India for processing before distribution to other countries. The Indians profit more from cashews that we have struggled to plant and harvest,” he said.
Giving a gist of what to expect in his 2024 manifesto, Mr Mahama said “My leadership aims to introduce machinery in the Bono Region dedicated to cashew processing, designed for the efficient processing and packaging of cashews for export. This initiative is to retain any profits from cashews in the country,”
The former president therefore appealed to the people of Wenchi to rally behind him in the next elections to make the vision a reality.
Currently, Ghana has 14 cashew processing plants, with a total annual capacity of 65,000 metric tonnes of raw cashews.
Out of the number, 10 are active, processing less than 10% of total annual cashew production.
The remaining processing plants have either halted operation, or have shut down due to lack of capital to maintain operations, alongside the inability of local processors to access raw cashew nuts from farmers.
LACK OF PROGRESS
Mr. Mahama blamed the Akufo-Addo-led administration for the current retrogression and hardships in the nation.According to the former president, despite the decline in inflation rate, the government is still struggling to put the economy on track.
Mr. Mahama attributed Ghana’s current poor state to the bad leadership of the NPP administration.
“People thought there was development and prosperity here, and now we have lost everything. The nation is pitiful, the country is facing hardships, and the economy is bad.”
“I thought they would continue the good work I left behind, but the nation seems to be retrogressing in development,” Mahama said.
According to the NDC flagbearer, the government has impeded the nation’s advancement, particularly by bringing to a standstill the ongoing developmental projects initiated by the erstwhile Mahama administration.
EDUCATION
Mr. Mahama vowed to cancel the teacher licensure exams on his re-election as president. According to him, the teacher certification programme is unnecessary and should not have been introduced because teachers already take such exams at every stage of their training.
“This is unnecessary. In our next administration, we will cancel the licensure exams,” Mr. Mahama said. In his 2020 manifesto, Mr. Mahama promised to abolish the licensure exams for teacher trainees and restore the automatic employment of teacher trainee graduates.
