Josiah
During a presidential breakfast meeting on agriculture and agribusiness financing held at Kempinski Hotel in Accra on Monday, the Minister for Food and Agriculture, Dr. Bryan Acheampong, emphasized the opportunities available for the participation of financial institutions in the PFJ 2 program. He highlighted the sector’s potential to significantly contribute to the country’s development goals.
In his address to farmers and financial institutions, Dr. Bryan revealed that the Ministry of Food and Agriculture had spent the past six months assessing the potential and challenges of the agriculture sector. It became evident that the sector held immense untapped potential to transform the nation’s fortunes. This potential included abundant arable land for crop production, particularly fertile valleys suitable for rice cultivation, favorable soil for diverse crop production, ample water resources for irrigation, favorable weather conditions, a variety of food commodities, accessible export markets, and numerous opportunities for job creation across the agricultural value chain.
Dr. Bryan explained that PFJ 2, the second phase of the government’s flagship program, Planting for Food and Jobs, launched in 2017, was initiated to deliver the strategic national objectives and vision for agriculture. He underscored the significance of leading the charge to transform Ghana’s agriculture through this new strategy.
He also acknowledged the challenges hindering agricultural growth and development, categorizing them into two groups. The first group comprises factors beyond control, such as drought, floods, pests, and diseases. The second group includes self-inflicted obstacles, like misplaced priorities, weak policy implementation, limited infrastructure, undeveloped supply chains, price volatility, insufficient adherence to market standards, limited evidence-based policies, inadequate support for commercial farming, and a general underestimation of agriculture’s potential.
The introduction of PFJ 2 is a well-reasoned response to these challenges. The new intervention aims to revolutionize Ghana’s agriculture by providing innovative solutions to these issues. It addresses the critical concern of input supply to farmers at minimal government cost, aiming to increase food production and enhance efficiency across the entire agriculture value chain, from farm to fork.
Crucially, PFJ 2 recognizes the potential contributions of all actors throughout the agricultural value chain to make the program a success. The program includes provisions to involve financial institutions effectively in its objectives.
Source:Omanghana.com
