Mahama Bets on Agriculture to Reshape Ghana’s Economy with New Feed Ghana Programme
President John Dramani Mahama has launched an ambitious agriculture-driven economic agenda designed to overhaul Ghana’s food production systems, curb ballooning food imports, and stimulate job creation in one of the country’s most vulnerable sectors.
The new policy, christened the Feed Ghana Programme, was unveiled in Techiman in the Bono East Region over the weekend. It represents a centrepiece of Mahama’s broader Agriculture for Economic Transformation Agenda (AETA), aimed at reindustrialising Ghana’s food value chain through targeted interventions in crop cultivation, livestock development, mechanisation, agro-processing and youth employment.
In his address, Mahama lamented Ghana’s over-dependence on food imports, which he said currently exceeds $2 billion annually, placing undue strain on foreign reserves and exacerbating currency volatility. “This is not just an agricultural issue; it’s a national economic security issue,” he stated. “We cannot build a sustainable economy on imported food.”
From Food Insecurity to Export Ambitions
The Feed Ghana Programme is structured around several sub-projects focused on import-substitution crops such as rice, maize, soya beans, tomatos, and onions, as well as high-value industrial crops like cocoa, mango, rubber, and oil palm. The initiative also targets revitalising livestock industries, especially poultry, which accounts for a staggering $400 million in annual imports.
The plan entails the establishment of farmers’ service centres, the development of farm banks to finance smallholders and agripreneurs, and the creation of agro-industrial zones with irrigation, roads, electricity, and storage infrastructure.
In what appears to be a major strategic pivot, Mahama’s administration will now treat agriculture not as a “subsistence buffer” but as the linchpin of a self-reliant, export-competitive Ghanaian economy. “We must no longer treat agriculture as an afterthought,” he said. “It must be placed at the centre of national economic transformation.”
Sector Constraints and Government’s Structural Fix
Mahama acknowledged long-standing challenges undermining productivity in the sector ranging from inadequate infrastructure and financing to outdated farm practices. “Our farmers have been resilient in the face of neglect,” he said. “This programme seeks to reward that resilience with deliberate support mechanisms.”
The plan involves strengthening linkages between smallholders and commercial farmers through guaranteed markets, technical assistance, and input access schemes. Smart agriculture technologies will be introduced, and farmers will receive training on climate-resilient practices.
A national Grains and Legumes Project will scale up rice, maize, sorghum, and soya bean production, while a Palm Oil Industry policy will be rolled out to incentivise commercial cultivation and export competitiveness. Mahama said agro-processing zones will attract private investment to “close the loop” in the agriculture value chain.
Poultry, Households, and Gendered Nutrition Interventions
A key element of the strategy is the Poultry Industry Revitalisation Programme, aimed at slashing imports and empowering women in agriculture. Mahama revealed that 50 anchor farmers will be supported to raise 4 million birds, complemented by a household model involving 55,000 families producing 500 birds each annually.
“This will deliver over one million birds, improve incomes for women, and significantly boost child nutrition,” Mahama said.
He also urged schools and public institutions to adopt vegetable gardens as part of an urban farming policy to deepen food independence and agricultural literacy.
Emphasising Youth and Private Sector Involvement
Mahama’s administration hopes the programme will attract young entrepreneurs into agriculture, positioning it as a viable and profitable career path. “Our youth must become the innovators of tomorrow’s food systems,” he noted.
In addition, the initiative is banking on public-private partnerships to achieve scale and sustainability, with investment incentives promised in critical value chains.
Agriculture Minister Eric Opoku said Ghana’s current import dependence on items like tomatoes from Burkina Faso and onions from Niger is “an indictment on our national planning,” insisting that the country has “everything it takes to grow and process its own food.”
Regional Agriculture Powerhouse Vision
Bono East Regional Minister Francis Owusu Antwi hailed the region as a strategic choice for the launch, calling it one of Ghana’s key food baskets. “The success of Feed Ghana starts here,” he said.
The broader aspiration is to shift Ghana’s agricultural model from food insecurity and inflationary pressure to regional leadership in agricultural exports, especially under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
Analysis:
While previous agricultural campaigns like “Planting for Food and Jobs” fell short due to funding inconsistencies and limited market integration, the Feed Ghana Programme seeks to avoid such pitfalls by integrating infrastructure, finance, and private sector coordination from the onset.
If implemented with fiscal discipline and governance transparency, Mahama’s bet on agriculture could become a turning point in Ghana’s economic recovery—converting rural potential into macroeconomic stability.
But the political economy of agriculture is complex, and delivering on this vision will require more than policy declarations. It will need budgetary realism, investor confidence, and farmer trust.
