Resetting Agriculture In Ghana

The food we eat often comes from farmers navigating complex choices, organic vs. conventional practices, seed selection, and sustainable methods without adequate guidance. This knowledge gap underscores Ghana’s urgent need for systemic agricultural reform, a theme central to the FESF Foundation’s 2025 Food Security Lecture, “Resetting Agriculture in Ghana: A Path to Sustainable Food Security.” 

In his welcome address, the host and President of FES Foundation, Professor Richard Jinks Bani, set the tone by emphasising that resetting Ghana’s agricultural landscape requires a paradigm shift. He challenged the audience to envision agriculture not merely as a means of survival but as a dignified, technology-driven business capable of transforming lives and economies. Professor Bani’s call to reimagine Ghanaian food systems resonated deeply with the audience, reminding all stakeholders that the future of food security in Ghana is a shared responsibility. 

The event was chaired by Dr. Peter Boamah Otokunor, Director of Presidential Initiatives in Agriculture and Agribusiness at the Presidency, who shared the aspirations of President John Dramani Mahama's government and assured the audience of their commitment to addressing challenges in Ghana's agricultural sector. 

The keynote speaker, Dr. Amos Rutherford Azinu (CEO, Legacy Crop Improvement Centre), delivered a clear message: Despite decades of policies, Ghana's $2.4 billion annual food import bill reveals a broken system. 

Dr. Azinu outlined a comprehensive framework for transforming Ghana's agricultural sector. He proposed that Ghana's agriculture sector requires a 13-dimensional reset using a food systems approach to solve food security challenges. He recommended a mindset shift that transforms agriculture into a technology-driven business. He focused on scaling operations for smallholder farmers, who produce 80% of Ghana's food. His recommendations included expanding beyond crop production to develop animal and fish industries and reducing meat import dependence. He emphasised building irrigation infrastructure (currently covering less than 2% of cultivated land) and improving road networks to connect farms with markets. 

Key proposals involved creating reliable procurement systems, reforming land tenure, and developing financial products to encourage agricultural investments. Dr. Azinu called for building farmer capacity through management training and skilled labour development. He proposed floor price mechanisms to protect farmers from market shifts and highlighted the critical seed sector gap, where only 11% of farmers use improved seeds and local production meets less than 20% of national needs. 

We shared some interesting photos taken at the event here.