The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA) has called on corporate organizations, development partners and individuals to support Ghana’s agricultural transformation agenda through strategic partnerships and donations as preparations gather pace for the 42nd National Farmers Day celebration.
The Ministry believes stronger collaboration between government and the private sector will play a critical role in achieving food security, improving the livelihoods of farmers and driving sustainable agricultural development across the country.
The appeal was made during the official presentation of the repainting of the Ministry’s national headquarters on Tuesday, July 14, 2026, by Three Trees Ghana Limited under its Brighten Ghana Initiative.
The project, undertaken at no cost to the Ministry, forms part of the company’s efforts to rehabilitate and modernize public institutions nationwide.
Speaking at the event, the Minister for Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, reiterated that agriculture remains the backbone of Ghana’s economy and stressed the government’s commitment to transforming the sector through President John Dramani Mahama’s Agriculture for Economic Transformation agenda.
He urged corporate Ghana, development partners and the general public to contribute meaningfully towards the successful organization of the 42nd National Farmers Day celebration and other initiatives aimed at strengthening the agricultural sector.
A representative of Three Trees Ghana Limited, together with its strategic partner UMB, said the company was delighted to support the Brighten Ghana Initiative, describing the partnership as an opportunity to contribute to the improvement of public institutions and national development.
The representative noted that the initiative reflects the private sector’s commitment to complementing government efforts by giving public facilities a renewed appearance while creating environments that inspire productivity and efficient service delivery.
The Brighten Ghana Initiative continues to encourage private sector participation in the rehabilitation of public infrastructure, with more public institutions expected to benefit from the programme in the coming months.
President John Dramani Mahama has announced that the government has identified 50 locations across the country for the establishment of Farmers Service Centres as part of efforts to modernise agriculture and improve support systems for farmers.
According to the President, 11 of the centres are expected to begin operations this year, marking the first phase of the initiative aimed at boosting agricultural productivity and strengthening food security.
President Mahama disclosed this when members of the Upper West Regional House of Chiefs paid a courtesy call on him at the Jubilee House.
He said the initiative forms part of the government’s broader strategy to transform the agricultural sector by providing farmers, particularly smallholder farmers, with improved access to essential services.
“Government has identified 50 locations nationwide for the establishment of farmer service centres, with 11 expected to begin this year,” he said.
President Mahama explained that the centres will provide farmers with easier access to agricultural inputs, machinery, technical assistance and other support services required to improve production.
He noted that strengthening agriculture remains central to the government’s development agenda, particularly because of the sector’s role in job creation, rural development and economic growth.
The President said the government is committed to expanding opportunities for citizens by investing in critical sectors that directly impact livelihoods.
“We will expand opportunities for our young people and strengthen key sectors, including agriculture, healthcare, and education, so that development reaches every community, every household, and every citizen,” he stated.
President Mahama also stressed the importance of maintaining peace and stability, describing security as a necessary foundation for sustainable development.
He said the government would continue to work closely with traditional leaders to promote unity and create the right environment for development.
“We will safeguard the peace and security of our nation, working hand in hand with our traditional authorities, so that we can deliver development to all our communities,” the President added.
He expressed appreciation to the Upper West Regional House of Chiefs and the people of the region for their support and continued partnership in advancing Ghana’s development agenda.
The Minister for Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, has projected that Ghana will experience a tomato glut within the next three to four months as government steps up efforts to boost local production and reduce the country’s reliance on imports.
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Appearing before Parliament’s Committee on Assurances on Thursday, July 9, the Minister said a series of interventions being implemented under the government’s agricultural programme are expected to significantly increase tomato production across the country.
To prevent post-harvest losses, the Minister disclosed that government is putting in place an off-take system to guarantee a market for farmers, while engaging tomato processors to purchase the expected surplus.
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He added that government is also investing in solar-powered boreholes to support year-round irrigation, enabling farmers to increase production beyond the traditional growing season.
“We have put in place a lot of measures and within the next three to four months, the results will be there for everyone to see. This is another big assurance. We are anticipating a glut of tomatoes in the coming months and are thinking about how we can get processors to off-take from our farmers. We are doing a lot of solar-powered boreholes across the country,” he said.
Fruits & Vegetables
The Minister expressed confidence that the measures will strengthen domestic tomato production, improve market opportunities for farmers and gradually reduce Ghana’s dependence on imported tomatoes while supporting the country’s broader food security agenda.
The Minister of Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, has stated that government interventions to boost local production of tomatoes will begin to yield visible results within the next four months and assured Ghanaians that the country’s dependence on imported tomatoes will soon be over.
He explained that the government had rolled out some interventions aimed at increasing domestic tomato production and reducing imports, particularly from neighbouring Burkina Faso.
“We have started working on that challenge, and we are bent on reversing that story. Within the next three or four months, the results will be out there for Ghanaians to testify,” he said.
Mr Opoku made the remarks when he appeared before Parliament’s Select Committee on Assurances.
It was to provide updates on commitments made by President John Dramani Mahama in the 2025 State of the Nation Address (SONA).
Mr Opoku explained that the government was investing in irrigation infrastructure, including the construction of solar-powered boreholes, to ensure year-round cultivation of tomatoes in major production centres across the country.
He stressed that interventions undertaken regarding the subject included drilling boreholes, installing solar-powered pumps to irrigate farmlands, and fencing farms in areas prone to livestock intrusion to protect crops, adding that irrigation projects were underway in several tomato-growing areas across the country.
“President Mahama himself has taken special interest in this, and he says that we should bring an end to the importation of tomatoes into this country, and we’ll do just that,” he stated.
Falling prices
Responding to concerns raised by the Chairman of the committee, Dominic Nitiwul, over falling food prices and the impact on farmers’ incomes, Mr Opoku acknowledged that while consumers were benefiting from cheaper food, many farmers were struggling to recover their production costs.
He described the situation as what agricultural economists referred to as “good-bad”, where abundant food production benefited consumers through lower prices but adversely affected farmers because increased supply depressed market prices.
“The bad-good is when there is a shortage of food in the system, like we witnessed in 2024 because of the dry spell. Then food prices started going up. A lot of people were pushed into abject poverty because of the rising food prices.
“But the farmers who were able to produce little made a lot of money because of the rising prices. So, for the farmers, it was good, but for the nation, it was bad. Now we find ourselves as a nation in this situation. I am a farmer. I am suffering. But the nation is the beneficiary,” he said.
To address the situation, Mr Opoku said the government had, therefore, submitted proposals to President Mahama and the Cabinet to cushion farmers against the effects of declining prices.
As part of the measures under consideration, he disclosed that the government had settled on the provision of free fertiliser as an emergency intervention to sustain farmers’ interest in production while pursuing long-term solutions through agro-processing and the creation of reliable markets.
He cautioned that prolonged low prices without adequate support could discourage many people from farming, emphasising the need to expand processing and value addition to absorb excess produce and guarantee stable incomes for farmers.
Minister for Food and Agriculture, Eric Opoku, has announced that the government has begun the nationwide distribution of fertiliser to support smallholder farmers, with each agricultural constituency receiving an allocation of 1,500 bags to boost food production.
Fertilizer
The minister disclosed the intervention when he appeared before Parliament’s Committee on Assurances on Thursday, July 9, where he provided an update on measures being implemented by the Ministry to improve access to agricultural inputs and enhance productivity across the country.
According to Mr. Opoku, the fertiliser distribution forms part of the government’s broader strategy to strengthen the agricultural sector by ensuring that farmers have timely access to essential inputs during the farming season.
He explained that the initiative is specifically targeted at supporting smallholder farmers, who constitute the majority of Ghana’s farming population and play a critical role in ensuring national food security.
“We are also looking at input distribution. We have recently distributed fertilisers to all the agricultural constituencies in this country. Every constituency has been given 1,500 bags. It is not even district, it is every constituency.
“Those who have not received, maybe the contractors are still supplying, so they will receive theirs. But it is believed that by the close of next week, every district will have received the quantities we have assigned to them.”
