Chamber of Agribusiness Welcomes Tax Waiver on Agro-Processing Machinery, Urges Swift Implementation
The Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana has welcomed the government’s decision to waive taxes on agro-processing machinery, describing it as a timely intervention to boost investment, productivity, and competitiveness across the country’s agribusiness value chain.
The commitment, announced by the Deputy Minister for Trade, Agribusiness and Industry, Hon. Sampson Ahi, at the Regional Agribusiness Dialogue in Sunyani on Monday, October 13, 2025, forms part of broader policy measures aimed at strengthening the agribusiness sector.
According to the Chamber, the initiative, together with the government’s medium-term plan to retool local manufacturing institutions such as the GRATIS Foundation, represents “a positive step towards achieving machinery sufficiency and reducing the sector’s heavy reliance on imported equipment.”
It further commended the government for recognising long-standing challenges in the agribusiness space and articulating a coherent policy direction—one that includes the “Feed the Industry Programme,” designed to address raw material supply constraints that continue to depress industrial capacity utilisation.
“The realignment of the Ministry to include ‘Agribusiness’ was a symbolic first step; these announced actions are the tangible policies required to give that change meaning,” the Chamber said in a statement.
‘Walk the talk’ on policy implementation
While welcoming the announced policy directions, the Chamber emphasised that the real test of government’s commitment would be in the “timely and effective implementation” of the measures.
It urged the government to move quickly to translate its pledges into legislation and actionable programmes, stressing that policymakers must now “walk the talk.”
Specifically, the Chamber called for:
Expedited tax waiver – publication of a clear timeline and statutory instrument to operationalise the tax relief on agro-processing machinery.
Adequate resourcing of the retooling plan – allocation of sufficient funds and technical support to institutions such as the GRATIS Foundation to enable them to design, produce, and maintain affordable machinery locally.
Inclusive policy formulation – ensuring that the ongoing consultations for the National Agribusiness Policy reflect the practical contributions of farmers, processors, and aggregators from all regions.
Action on illegal mining (galamsey) – prioritising the elimination of galamsey as a core policy action to rejuvenate the agribusiness sector.
Collaborative pathway forward
The Chamber reaffirmed its readiness to collaborate with the Ministry of Trade, Agribusiness and Industry and other relevant stakeholders to ensure the success of the announced measures.
“We believe that through sustained dialogue and a shared commitment to execution, we can collectively reset Ghana’s agribusiness sector, drive sustainable industrial growth, and secure a more prosperous future for all Ghanaians,” the statement concluded.
