Author: Sefakor

Serving as a major contributor to Ghana’s economic growth and sustainability, the cocoa sector needs to be protected with right policy decisions and interventions just as the gold industry,a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Horticulture of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Dr Eli A. Gaveh, has said. He argues that the entire economy risks collapse if the cocoa sector goes down. Happenings including climate change, illegal mining and overaged trees are some of the factors affecting the sector in addition to aging cocoa farmers. “We need to preserve the cocoa sector like gold…

Ghana’s cocoa farmers are expected to see a major boost in their earnings after parliament passes the Ghana Cocoa Board Bill, 2026, which allows them to receive not less than 70 per cent of the Free on Board (FOB) export price by the Ghana Cocoa Board (COCOBOD). While presenting the aim of the bill under the Ghanaian Economic View in Parliament on July, 30, Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Nyarko Ampem said the legislation will empower the Ghana Cocoa Board as the statutory body responsible for regulating, overseeing and monitoring activities across the cocoa value chain. He said the new Bill…

The Minister of Food and Agriculture (MoFA), Eric Opoku, has said that the government of Ghana is gradually transitioning from the use of inorganic or synthetic fertiliser to organic fertiliser. He said this forms part of the national agenda to boost agribusiness through local production of essential inputs. Eric Opoku said this when the Ministry of Food and Agriculture signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Omanbapa AgriTech Limited on Monday to establish an organic fertiliser plant to boost food production and reduce Ghana’s dependence on synthetic fertilisers. The pact provides for the immediate commencement of the project, which is expected…

The Finance Minister, Dr Cassiel Ato Forson, has been urged to provide clarity on the Government Oil Palm Development Finance Facility. A Development Economist, Dr Frank Bannor, is asking the Finance Minister to explain whether the US$500m Oil Palm Development Finance Facility and the US$523m Agricultural Enclave Roads Programme are the same instruments as the Budget’s GH¢6.9 billion Oil Palm window and GH¢828 million enclave roads line. He requested the Finance Minister to report the cedi disbursement against the original budget lines either way. While presenting the Mid-year budget statement in Parliament on Wednesday, July 23, the Minister of Finance,…

Deputy Minister for Finance, Thomas Nyarko Ampem, has announced that locally manufactured fruit juices would no longer attract excise duty, a move aimed at boosting agricultural production and processing. He said this after Parliament approved the Excise Bill, 2026, which removes excise duty on locally manufactured fruit juices as part of a broader tax reform package aimed at making the products more affordable, encouraging healthier consumer choices, and strengthening Ghana’s agro-processing sector. The legislation also establishes a comprehensive legal framework for the assessment and collection of excise duty on selected imported and locally manufactured excisable goods, while retaining the mandatory…

Following a viral video of fish processing under very unhygienic conditions, the Food and Drugs Authority says it has confiscated those that are suspected to be contaminated. “As an immediate measure, the fish that have been exposed to unhygienic conditions were confiscated,” the regulatory body said in a statement signed by Chief Executive Officer, Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Manso Opuni, on Tuesday, July 28,2026. A rapid response team from the FDA was dispatched to the scene on Monday, 27th July, in collaboration with the Tema Metropolitan Assembly and the Ghana Police Service, where they demolished some structures housing fresh and processed fish.…

The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations has identified key actions that should be taken by governments across the globe to mitigate the impact of the Middle East War on global agriculture. First, the FAO says there is a need to keep trade flowing across the international market saying export restrictions, particularly on fertilisers and agricultural inputs, must be avoided. The FAO warned that restrictions intensify shortages, increase instability, and hurt poorer import-dependent countries most. Besides, the global food body has also called for smarter agricultural responses. It explained that traditional emergency packages centered exclusively on…

The Managing Director of Marketing and Business Development, Joseph Nai Anum, has highlighted the negative impact of foreign buyers in the local agricultural value chain. He makes the point that these foreign buyers often compete with local processors and traders, creating challenges within the domestic agricultural value chain. He called for regulation of the foreign buyers because this would help stabilise the agricultural space and also stabilise prices. Mr Anum asked the government to implement a policy to that effect. “One of the major challenges affecting our agricultural agenda has to do with foreigners who go into…

The World Bank Group and its development partners are supporting Ghana in creating the enabling environment for food security, job creation, a reduction in food imports, and the mobilisation of investment across priority agricultural value chains. In collaboration with the Bretton Woods institutions, the recently launched AgriConnect Compact is a national framework to strengthen food security. The Compact sets out a coordinated agenda for public and private action to raise productivity, expand value addition, improve access to markets and finance, and strengthen resilience across Ghana’s agri-food system. The project prioritises cocoa, oil palm, rice, maize, and poultry, while supporting other…

The Minister of Finance Dr Cassiel Ato Forson has announced that the government is investing US$523 million to rehabilitate 1,050 kilometres of feeder roads across four major agricultural production corridors. Presenting the 2026 Mid-Year Review budget in Parliament on Thursday, July 23, Dr Ato Forson said that upon completion, the Project is expected to: rehabilitate 1,050 kilometres of feeder roads; ensure 100 percent of rehabilitated roads are maintained under performance-based contracts; expand the national road asset management database to achieve 100 percent coverage. It is also expected to create approximately 25,000 direct and indirect jobs, including at least…