The Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana (PFAG) has called on the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) to immediately resolve an ongoing institutional impasse, warning that administrative squabbles between the two bodies are placing smallholder livelihoods at risk and threatening national food security.
According to the Association, a distinct lack of synergy and administrative friction between both ministries is stalling major agricultural infrastructure projects and undermining overall development in the sector.
Speaking on Frontline on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM, the Executive Director of the PFAG, Bismark Tetteh Owusu Nortey, expressed deep frustration over the impact the bureaucratic tussle is having on smallholder producers across the country.
He explained that critical agricultural interventions—most notably the rehabilitation and expansion of essential irrigation schemes in rural farming communities—have suffered significant delays due to disagreements and procedural bottlenecks between the two ministries.
Mr Owusu Nortey pointed specifically to heightened anxieties surrounding Ghana’s operational stance and potential withdrawal from key regional funding schemes, including the World Bank-backed West Africa Food System Resilience Programme (FSRP). The initiative was established to enhance food security, improve access to modern farming inputs, and construct vital irrigation facilities to shield local producers from erratic weather patterns.
“Smallholder farmers are the backbone of our local economy and food security,” Mr Owusu Nortey said during the broadcast. “When two vital ministries responsible for agricultural policy and financial disbursement fail to align on a clear roadmap, it is the ordinary farmer in the field who suffers the consequences.”
He further warned that a failure by both sector leaders to reconcile their differences quickly could see millions of cedis in agricultural investments go to waste, worsening post-harvest losses, driving up food production costs, and compromising the country’s food supply.
The PFAG chief urged the leadership of both state bodies to put national interest ahead of administrative rivalries and establish a streamlined working relationship to ensure allocated state funds and international partner support reach local farming communities without further delay.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana