Ghana seeks to cut $3.5 billion food import bill
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on MyJoyOnline
Ghanaian Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson wants to modernise agriculture to reduce the annual $3.5 billion food import bill. He cites rice, palm oil, sugar, poultry and vegetables, following the presentation of the 2027 budget, according to MyJoyOnline.
Ghana wants to reduce its annual food import bill, estimated at $3.5 billion, by modernising commercial agriculture. Finance Minister Cassiel Ato Forson defended this approach on Thursday after presenting the 2027 budget to Parliament, saying the country has the land, water and young population needed to increase domestic food production.
Ghana spends about $200 million a year importing chicken, according to Cassiel Ato Forson. The minister wants to develop soybean and maize crops to supply poultry farmers locally with feed and reduce dependence on imported inputs. He also cited vegetable imports from Burkina Faso and proposed the Pwalugu Dam as a means of increasing production.
The government also aims to process 50% of Ghanaian cocoa locally by 2028, then 100% by 2030. Cassiel Ato Forson said the Cocoa Board Act already provides for the 50% target and that a legislative instrument must set the implementation timetable. The Dangote Group has also expressed interest in using Ghana as a cocoa processing hub, with discussions covering a proposed contract for 500,000 tonnes of cocoa intended for local processing.
