- Ghana’s 24-Hour Economy Needs Trade Protection, Not Slogans — Agribusiness Chamber President
Ghana’s ambition to build a 24-hour economy will struggle to deliver jobs and industrial expansion unless the state moves more decisively to protect local production from cheaper imports, President of the Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana, Anthony Morrison, has warned.
Speaking on PM Express Business Edition on JoyNews on Thursday, Mr Morrison said the country’s industrialisation agenda must be backed by practical trade protection, stronger agricultural institutions and long-term investment planning, rather than relying only on improved macroeconomic indicators.
He said recent inflation data may provide some statistical comfort, but the confidence required by farmers, processors and investors must come from firm policy action.
“The assurance from the data is one thing, but economic and political assurance must come from the political authorities,” he said.
According to him, Ghana’s agribusiness industry, estimated at between US$9.1 billion and US$12.8 billion, has significant growth potential, but continues to operate under structural constraints that limit investment, productivity and value addition.
Mr Morrison argued that the government’s proposed 24-hour economy policy cannot succeed if domestic producers are expected to expand output and employ more workers while competing against cheaper imported finished goods.
“If industries are being asked to employ more people and double production under the 24-hour economy, then government must also protect those investments from cheaper imports,” he said.
His comments come as policymakers seek to position the 24-hour economy as a major vehicle for employment creation, industrial output and export competitiveness. But Mr Morrison cautioned that extended production hours alone will not transform the economy unless firms have a protected and reliable domestic market to justify new investment.
He said Ghana must rethink its import policy in strategic agricultural commodities, particularly rice, where large volumes of finished imports continue to undermine local production and processing.
The Chamber President proposed a gradual shift from importing finished rice to importing paddy for domestic processing. Such a policy, he argued, would help stimulate investment in mills, storage facilities, logistics, packaging and farm-level production.
“When the Finance Minister announces that Ghana will stop importing rice and instead import paddy, that single statement alone will trigger investment across the value chain,” he noted.
Mr Morrison said several rice-producing countries used similar strategies to build local processing capacity and gradually move towards self-sufficiency. Ghana, he argued, must learn from those examples and stop treating agriculture merely as a subsistence sector.
He further criticised the country’s failure to develop large-scale commercial agriculture and agro-industrial systems capable of supporting a modern industrial economy. Since the era of Dr Kwame Nkrumah, he said, Ghana has not made sufficient progress in building a structured agricultural base that can feed industry, reduce imports and transform rural livelihoods.
That weakness, he added, has left the sector exposed to recurring supply shocks, weak productivity, post-harvest losses and limited private investment.
Mr Morrison also raised concern over Ghana’s weak preparedness for agricultural emergencies, particularly floods, erratic rainfall and other climate-related threats that continue to affect food production.
He said the country should have established a National Agriculture Emergency Agency years ago to coordinate rapid responses to shocks that threaten farms, food security and rural incomes.
“We should not still be discussing flooding and food losses at this stage of global agricultural advancement,” he said.
According to him, weather warnings alone are not enough if they are not followed by field-level action. He questioned the responsiveness of state institutions after early warnings are issued, arguing that agricultural extension officers and local authorities must be better equipped to help farmers prepare for and respond to climate threats.
For Mr Morrison, Ghana’s agricultural transformation requires more than short-term interventions. It must be treated as a central pillar of industrial policy.
He said the sector can contribute far more to GDP, employment and exports if supported by stronger institutions, trade regulations, infrastructure, irrigation, emergency response systems and deliberate investment in processing.
“The vision must go beyond solving today’s problems. We should be building an agricultural economy capable of transforming the rural economy for decades ahead,” he added.
His remarks point to a wider policy challenge facing government: whether Ghana’s 24-hour economy will become a production-led industrial strategy or remain a labour-scheduling proposal without the trade, infrastructure and investment protections needed to make local manufacturing and agribusiness competitive.
