The government has launched an extensive agricultural strategy involving the creation of five new maize factories and a major upgrade of crop storage facilities in an effort to control food prices and protect the incomes of local farmers.
John Setor Dumelo, the Deputy Food and Agriculture Minister and MP for Ayawaso West Wuogon, presented the four-part plan to Parliament on Wednesday.
He explained that the measures are designed to tackle unpredictable price swings, reduce post-harvest waste, and secure the country’s emergency food supplies.
During his address, Mr Dumelo stated: “This strategic intervention will cushion farmers against price volatility and post-harvest losses while helping to stabilise market prices and protect farm incomes.”
He added: “In addition, it will strengthen the nation’s food security system by ensuring availability of adequate food reserves during emergencies including pandemics and other unforeseen disruptions.”
The minister revealed that the Ministry of Food and Agriculture has secured international financial backing to upgrade storage facilities across the nation.
He told MPs: “The Ministry has been able to attract strong partnerships with donor partners to support infrastructure and food systems.
Key is the World Bank Group support in Food Systems Resilience Program and World Food Program active support to the National Food Buffer Stock Company to refurbish and procure equipment for some storage warehouses across the country.”
Mr Dumelo further noted: “These measures, once completed, will increase storage capacity and enable NAFCO to undertake more purchases.”
In a bid to transition from basic crop storage to food processing, the government plans to construct dedicated milling facilities.
“To create long-term solutions, the government is establishing five new maize factories across the country. This aim is to shift from merely storing raw grain to processing it into corn flour for local consumption and exports, reducing the impact of future gluts,” Mr Dumelo said.
Public bodies have also been directed to buy domestic produce to provide a guaranteed market for farmers.
Mr Dumelo explained: “Schools, especially senior high schools and school feeding programs, and state institutions such as hospitals and prisons have been instructed to prioritise purchasing locally produced rice and maize to ensure a steady, high-volume market for local farmers.”
The minister concluded that these initiatives prove the “government’s unwavering commitment to support farmers, sustain agricultural growth, improve rural livelihoods and safeguard national food security.”
In a separate update to the House, Mr Dumelo announced that 1.7 million birds have now been distributed across nine regions under the Nkɔkɔ Nkitinkiti backyard poultry scheme. The initiative is designed to boost food security within local communities, with a particular focus on supporting women and young people.
The minister confirmed that the distribution has successfully reached the Ashanti, Ahafo, Bono, Bono East, Greater Accra, Western North, Eastern, Central, and Volta regions.
Addressing the supply of maize and soya for poultry feed, the deputy minister noted that processing factories are already coordinating with suppliers to deliver feed to the farmers.
“Mister Speaker to the next question about the maize and soya we are currently most of the processing factories are currently working with the suppliers of the feed to be able to buy from them so that they can produce the feed and hence hand it over to the beneficiaries,” he told Parliament.
The ‘Nkɔkɔ Nkitinkiti’ scheme is one of three main pillars under the government’s wider Poultry Industry Revitalization Program, which aims to produce an additional 3 million birds nationwide for vulnerable groups.
The programme, which officially launched on 12 November 2025, also includes the Poultry Farm-to-Table Project for 50 commercial anchor farmers and the Poultry Intensification Program, which supports 500 small and medium-scale farmers.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
