- PFAG Calls for Immediate Rice Import Quota as Local Farmers Face Heavy Losses
The Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana has urged the government to immediately implement the proposed rice import quota system, warning that thousands of local farmers may abandon rice production if the current glut of unsold stocks is not addressed.
In a strongly worded statement issued on June 4, 2026, the Association welcomed the government’s decision to introduce a rice import quota policy, describing it as a step in the right direction. However, it warned that the policy could become meaningless if implementation is delayed.
According to PFAG, its independent assessment and field monitoring across major rice-growing regions show that more than 90 percent of rice farmers currently hold significant unsold stocks of rice, despite several policy interventions announced by the government.
The Association said farmers are entering a new farming season with warehouses, homes and community storage spaces still filled with last season’s produce.
“As we approach the new farming season, thousands of rice farmers across the country have issued a grave warning that they will abandon rice production entirely unless an immediate and clear pathway to market their existing stocks is provided,” PFAG said.
For the Association, the situation has moved beyond a routine market challenge. It is now a direct threat to farmer livelihoods, local production and Ghana’s food security ambitions.
“The livelihoods of these farming families, and Ghana’s food security, now hang in the balance,” the statement said.
PFAG said the crisis on the ground exposes what it described as a troubling contradiction: while Ghanaian farmers have produced an abundance of high-quality local rice, the domestic market continues to be flooded with imported foreign rice.
The Association said the situation is being worsened by smuggling across border points and procurement practices that still favour imported rice, including by some state agencies that are expected to support local production.
“This incessant importation, even done by some state agencies that are expected to champion the cause of local procurement, coupled with rampant smuggling across several border points, is systematically undermining the efforts of our hardworking farmers,” PFAG said.
The group also criticised the National Food Buffer Stock Company, saying it has failed to act as an effective buyer of last resort for rice farmers.
According to PFAG, although NAFCO was directed by the President to purchase locally produced rice, it has been unable to fulfil that mandate decisively.
“The failure of NAFCO to act decisively has left farmers without a critical buyer of last resort, deepening the crisis and sending a demoralising signal to farming communities across the country,” the Association said.
PFAG warned that these institutional failures threaten Ghana’s food security and food sovereignty at a time when the country is seeking to reduce dependence on imported staples.
As part of immediate measures, the Association called on the government to impose a minimum six-month moratorium on rice imports to allow existing locally produced rice stocks to be cleared.
It said the moratorium would provide farmers with breathing space to recover financially, stabilise farm-gate prices and restore confidence in the local rice market.
PFAG also called on the National Security apparatus to clamp down on rice smuggling across all border points, describing illegal imports as economic sabotage against Ghanaian farmers.
“The ongoing illegal importation of rice is a direct economic sabotage of Ghanaian farmers and must be treated with the seriousness it deserves,” the Association said.
The group further wants the government to introduce a legal and regulatory framework compelling ministries, departments, agencies, state-owned enterprises, public hospitals, schools, prisons, the military and other public institutions to procure only locally produced rice and other staples.
It said compliance must be monitored and enforced, with clear sanctions for violations. PFAG also proposed that farmer organisations be allowed to aggregate and supply produce directly to public institutions.
Beyond public procurement, the Association called for a transparent review of NAFCO’s mandate, procurement processes, financing arrangements and institutional capacity.
It said NAFCO must be restructured and adequately resourced to serve as an effective, efficient and accountable buyer of locally produced agricultural commodities, especially during periods of market glut.
PFAG is also calling for the establishment of a dedicated price stabilisation fund for rice and other strategic staples to protect farm-gate prices and ensure farmers receive fair returns on their investments during periods of oversupply.
The Association further urged the government to invest in storage facilities, milling capacity and market linkage platforms to reduce post-harvest losses and make locally produced rice more competitive against imported alternatives.
While the immediate crisis concerns rice, PFAG warned that similar market pressures are affecting other staple value chains.
It said farmers producing cassava, maize, yam, soybean and cowpea are also facing unsold produce, collapsed farm-gate prices and rising post-harvest losses.
The Association therefore urged the government to adopt a broader agricultural market stabilisation policy that addresses price volatility, market access, procurement and storage across all key staple value chains.
For Ghana’s smallholder farmers, the warning is clear: production cannot be sustained if farmers are encouraged to grow more but are left without reliable markets after harvest.
PFAG said farmers need credible signals from the government that their investments will be protected and that locally produced food will be given priority in national procurement and market planning.
“The government must demonstrate, through immediate and concrete steps, that it values the men and women who feed this nation,” the Association said.
The statement was issued by Douglas Annor, National President of the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana.
The Association said it remains ready to work with the government and relevant agencies to support the swift implementation of measures that will protect farmers, reduce import dependence and strengthen Ghana’s food self-sufficiency agenda.
