At the University of Professional Studies in Accra (UPSA) on March 13, 2023, the former Minister of Food and Agriculture, the Honorable Dr. Owusu Afriyie Akoto, will deliver a public lecture titled “The Future of the Economy of Ghana.”
The event will begin in the afternoon, around 14:00 GMT, and the former agriculture minister will speak about turning the agricultural sector into a bedrock for financing the development of other sectors of the Ghanaian economy. The event will get underway in the afternoon.
Afriyie Akoto expressed his belief that the agricultural sector has the potential to turn around the fortunes of Ghana and permanently eliminate the syndrome of going to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) whenever there is distress in the economy during an encounter he had with a group of editors and senior journalists in Accra on Saturday, March 11, 2023.
Afriyie Akoto stated that the potential in the agricultural sector is huge, and he believes that the sector has the prospect of turning around the fortunes of Ghana.
Afriyie Akoto, who has his sights set on the position of flag bearer of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) but has not yet officially declared his intention to run for the position, has stated that the prioritization of public resources to the agricultural sector is at the core of his vision for Ghana if he is given the nod to lead the UP tradition and subsequently becomes the President of the Republic. Dr. Akoto is yet to officially declare his intention to run for the position.
“When it comes to reversing the economic fortunes of this country, agriculture by far possesses the most potential. It is not oil, gold, or any other type of commodity. The possibilities are extremely extensive. You might not be aware that we are in a very fortunate situation, but we are.
Something that I didn’t know before about Ghanaian farmers, I now know. If you give them even the smallest of incentives, they will go above and beyond for you, and that is a resource that we need to take advantage of on this planet.
” Afriyie Akoto pointed out that the success of our nation will be contingent on our ability to capitalize on the willingness of Ghanaian farmers.
Afriyie Akoto continued by saying, “Look at what our farmers have done with the Planting for Food and Jobs program by providing them with subsidies—seed and fertilizer? Not all of the farmers are affected either.
In 2018, I carried out an agricultural census in Ghana to count the country’s farmers, something that hadn’t been done in the country for the previous 38 years.
The number that we arrived at for the number of professional farmers in this country was 3.1 million. By the year 2021, planting for food and jobs would have brought benefits to 1.7 million professional farmers.
This represents approximately half of the total population of farmers in Ghana, and even with only half of the population, look at what has happened to the country’s agriculture. The agricultural sector experienced the highest growth rate in the 4th Republic, 8.4%, in 2021.
In the year 2020, when all countries were suffering from the effects of COVID-19, Ghana’s agricultural sector managed to grow by 7.4% despite the global downturn. Planting for food and jobs was successful and ensured Ghana’s continued existence.
The Ghanaian farmer is a resource that is currently dormant and waiting to be exploited, and the future of this country, in my opinion, depends on providing incentives to these farmers so that they can produce the surpluses and foreign exchange that are necessary to finance our industrial development, our education, our hospitals, our health, our infrastructure, and all of these other things. We have the ability to succeed.”
According to Dr. Akoto, who was also a former Member of Parliament (MP) for Kwadaso in the Ashanti Region, the success of the Planting for Food and Jobs program can be attributed to the prioritization of public resources for the agricultural sector by the New Patriotic Party government, which is led by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. Dr. Akoto was an MP for Kwadaso in the Ashanti Region.
Afriyie Akoto mentioned that the public lecture that will take place on Monday will shed more light on the triumphant story of the Planting for Food and Jobs initiative as well as other projects that he oversaw as political head of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
During the event, he will also share with the general public his thoughts on the potential that exists in other agricultural initiatives, which are, in his opinion, capable of making a significant contribution to the reversal of Ghana’s fortunes.
Source: Peacefmonline.com