Oct 2, 2026
Five colleges of agriculture in Ghana are witnessing a major transformation in teaching and learning with the introduction of digital technologies designed to prepare students for the changing demands of the agricultural sector.
The initiative, supported by the Korea International Cooperation Agency and the World Food Programme, in partnership with the Agric Ministry, will provide students and instructors access to digital climate-smart agricultural technologies.
The digital tools will ensure that agricultural professionals exiting these colleges are equipped with the skills and knowledge to effectively apply mechanization and digital technologies to improve productivity, efficiency, and resilience across the agricultural value chains.
The tools included 60 moisture meters, 60 soil testers, 60 greenhouse environmental-control learning kits, 60 IoT sensor education kits, weather station starter kits, and 60 GPS devices.
The package also included agricultural spraying and drone-flight simulation systems, as well as agricultural data-processing software.
Ghana’s agriculture continues to face challenges, including climate variability, declining productivity, pest and disease outbreaks, post-harvest losses and limited access to timely information and markets.
Across the world, technologies such as drones, Geographic Information Systems, IoT sensors, artificial intelligence, and digital farm-management platforms are increasingly being used to improve agricultural decision-making and productivity.
But their adoption in Ghana remains limited, particularly among smallholder farmers, partly because of gaps in digital skills, practical exposure, and access to appropriate technologies.
To help bridge that gap, a range of modern agricultural equipment has been provided to the five colleges of Agriculture including Kwadaso, Damongo, Wenchi, Ohawu, and Ejura.
Food and Agriculture Minister Eric Opoku explains the equipment is expected to give students hands-on experience with technologies increasingly being applied across the agricultural value chain.
“We are moving towards a future where farmers can assess soil conditions before applying nutrients; where weather information can inform decisions on planting and farm management; where soil moisture can be monitored to improve water-use efficiency and reduce losses; and where drones, sensors, digital platforms, and data analytics become practical tools for increasing productivity,” he noted.
The ceremony forms part of the KOICA-WFP partnership on Youth Economic Empowerment through Digitalisation for Resilience in Food and Nutrition Security and Improved Livelihoods.
Country Director for the World Food Program, Aurore Rusiga, explains the agriculture colleges were selected for support to strengthen their capacities which eventually influences the quality of agricultural services available to farmers.
“Agricultural colleges provide an important entry point for building capabilities of using technologies. They prepare many of the extension officers, agricultural technicians, professionals, and entrepreneurs who will work directly with farmers and other actors across the agricultural value chains,” she noted.
She continued that: “We want to ensure that agricultural professionals from these colleges are equipped with the skills and knowledge to effectively apply mechanization and digital technologies to improve productivity, efficiency and resilience across the agricultural value chains.”
Country Director for KOICA Ghana, Dong Wan Woo, is encouraging the colleges to integrate the technologies into practical training and ensure that students have meaningful opportunities to use them.
“The real value of this equipment depends on how it is used. We encourage the colleges to integrate these tools into practical training, maintain them properly, and give students meaningful opportunities to use them. KOICA remains committed to working with the government and people of Ghana for sustainable and inclusive development,” he said.
Instructors and tutors are also expected to undergo a three- to four-week practical drone-training programme with the Digital Agriculture Training Programme gradually rolled out to students across the five agricultural colleges.
The principal of the Kwadaso College of Agriculture, Albert Appiah Amoako, expressing the colleges’ gratitude for the items, highlighted how essential the tools are for their pedagogy in meeting the changing needs of the agricultural sector.
The agri-tech initiative builds on WFP’s support for practical skills development within Ghana’s agricultural colleges, which began in 2025 with the Post-Harvest Mechanization Training Programme.
Source:https://www.myjoyonline.com/
Oct 2, 2026
The Parliamentary Committee on Food, Agriculture, and Cocoa Affairs has called on the Minister for Finance, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, to allocate funds for the timely completion of government flagship farmer service centers.
Under the project commissioned by President Mahama in March 2026, the government plans to construct about 275 Farmers Service Centres across the country within six months to provide smallholder farmers with access to farming inputs and equipment.
Chairman of the Committee, Dr Godfred Seidu Jasaw, made the call on October 1 when the Committee visited the project sites to assess progress and the work being undertaken.
Dr Jasaw said the Committee had seen progress on the ground and recognised the potential impact of the centres on agricultural development but stressed that the project could suffer further delays if contractors were not paid on time.
“Whatever it takes for the Minister of Finance to ensure that sustained financing is ring-fenced for the contractors on this project so that we don’t have further delays in the delivery of this project has not been honoured,” he said.
He therefore urged the Finance Minister to take the necessary steps to ensure that funding for the project was secured and contractors were able to continue work without disruption.
“And so respectfully, I want to urge the minister responsible for finance that your committee has come to the field, we have seen the work going on, we appreciate the input that delivering these centres will have on agricultural transformation, and we want to respectfully urge you to do whatever it takes to make sure financing is secure for them,” Dr Jasaw said.
He said the committee had been informed that a number of initiatives were being considered to support the project and expressed the hope that the necessary financing would be secured to prevent further delays.
The Committee’s intervention highlights the importance of timely financing to the delivery of the Farmers Service Centres, particularly as the project is intended to provide smallholder farmers with easier access to inputs and equipment.
Dr Jasaw said the Committee would continue to engage with the relevant stakeholders and monitor progress on the project to ensure that the centres are delivered as intended.
Source:https://www.myjoyonline.com/
Oct 1, 2026
Dr. Godfred Seidu Jasaw has called for a National Agriculture Development Fund to support Ghana’s food systems transformation.
Chairman of Parliament’s Food, Agriculture and Cocoa Affairs Committee, Dr Godfred Seidu Jasaw, has called for the establishment of a National Agriculture Development Fund to accelerate Ghana’s food systems transformation agenda.
According to Dr Jasaw, a dedicated fund would provide sustainable financing for critical interventions across the agricultural value chain, strengthen food production and help address some of the structural challenges confronting the sector.
He made the call during a working visit by the Committee to the regional office of the National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO) in Kumasi.
Dr Jasaw also commended NAFCO for its improved financial performance, noting that the company had moved from a debt position of about GH¢20 million to recording more than GH¢96 million in profit in 2025.
He said the development demonstrated the importance of strengthening key institutions within Ghana’s agricultural sector to support food security and build a more resilient food system.
Dr Jasaw argued that alongside strengthening institutions such as NAFCO, Ghana needed dedicated and sustainable financing to drive investment across the agricultural value chain.
He said the proposed National Agriculture Development Fund could support investment in food production, storage, processing and other critical areas required to transform the country’s agricultural sector.
The Committee’s engagement with NAFCO forms part of efforts to assess the operations of institutions within the agricultural sector and identify measures to improve food production, storage and overall food security.
Source:https://starrfm.com.gh/
Oct 1, 2026
The Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the National Food Buffer Stock Company (NAFCO), Osmond Amuah, has called for urgent investment in Ghana’s food storage infrastructure, warning that the country’s current storage capacity is below 50,000 metric tonnes.
According to him, the limited storage capacity poses a challenge to Ghana’s ability to build adequate emergency food reserves in the event of disruptions to global food supply.
Mr Amuah said Ghana consumes more than six million metric tonnes of maize and rice annually, creating the need for significant storage capacity to ensure food security during emergencies.
He explained that Ghana should be able to maintain enough food reserves to feed the population for at least 90 days, which he described as an ideal global standard.
He said this is particularly important because disruptions such as pandemics, wars, prolonged droughts or interruptions along major international trade routes could affect the country’s ability to import food.
“If, God forbid, we have another COVID or the Strait of Hormuz gets closed, the Suez Canal also gets closed, and then there’s war within our neighbouring country or a long, prolonged spell of drought, how do we feel?” Mr. Amuah asked.
Mr Amuah said Ghana must maintain sufficient food stocks because importing food from other parts of the world can take several weeks.
“Typically, it will take eight to twelve weeks to bring produce from any part of the world,” he said.
He explained that the country therefore needs adequate reserves to sustain the population while waiting for imported food supplies to arrive.
According to him, Ghana’s monthly requirement for maize and rice alone is more than 500,000 metric tonnes when annual consumption is divided across the year.
However, the country’s current storage capacity remains far below that requirement.
“Now, as I speak, our storage capacity in terms of available warehouse is not up to fifty thousand metric tons,” he stated.
Mr Amuah said the significant gap between national food requirements and available storage capacity makes it urgent for government to invest in warehouses, silos and other storage infrastructure.
He noted that even if Ghana had enough resources to purchase food for an emergency reserve, the country would still face the challenge of where to store it.
“So that means that there’s a huge gap,” he said.
“We really need rapid development, rapid support in infrastructure so that at least as a nation, when any eventuality befalls us, at least we can be dignified by feeding our own citizenry.”
He called for support in the provision of additional warehouses, silos and appropriate equipment to strengthen Ghana’s capacity to store food.
Mr Amuah said NAFCO has already taken steps to improve its storage capacity using internally generated funds.
He explained that the company undertook extensive renovation of its storage facilities, increasing its functioning capacity from less than 10,000 or 12,000 metric tonnes to about 50,000 metric tonnes.
“We have demonstrated that even internally, using our internal IGFs, we’ve done massive renovation exercises,” he said.
He believes additional government support could enable NAFCO to significantly expand the country’s food storage capacity.
“You can imagine if we have the muscles behind us, what we can do. The possibilities would be endless,” he added.
Mr Amuah said strengthening national storage infrastructure would help Ghana build a more resilient food system and ensure that the country can continue feeding its population during major emergencies and disruptions to global food supplies.
Source:https://www.myjoyonline.com/
Oct 1, 2026
The National Food Buffer Stock Company Limited (NAFCO) recorded a significant improvement in its financial performance in 2025, with its gross profit margin increasing from 1.61% in 2024 to 13.96%.
The company’s Chief Executive Officer, George Abradu-Otoo, said the improvement was driven by stronger revenue growth and tighter cost management.
Speaking at the first Annual General Meeting of NAFCO’s shareholders, Mr Abradu-Otoo said the company recorded a net profit before tax of GH¢91.7 million in 2025, its highest profit since its establishment.
He said the profit reversed a GH¢19.4 million loss recorded in the previous year.
“The 2025 Net Profit Before Tax of GH 91.7 million, did not only erase a GHC 19.4 million loss posted the previous year, but it is the highest profit made by the company since its establishment in 2011. The Company’s gross profit margin surged from 1.61% in 2024 to 13.96% in 2025.Africans & Diaspora
“This reflects decisive cost discipline and robust revenue growth,” he said.
Mr Abradu-Otoo said NAFCO had recorded profits in several previous years, including 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022 and 2023, with the highest previously recorded profit being GH¢2.8 million in 2021.
He said the company’s return on operating assets also improved from negative 63.80% to a positive 26.29%, indicating an improvement in the deployment and management of its assets.
NAFCO also paid GH¢20.3 million in taxes to the state in 2025, which Mr Abradu-Otoo described as the highest annual tax contribution in the company’s 16-year history.
Despite the improved performance, he identified working capital management as one of the company’s key operational risks.
He said the company’s acid-test ratio remained marginal, although its liquidity was adequate, and called for measures to create a stronger buffer above 1.5 to reduce financial risk.
Mr Abradu-Otoo attributed the company’s improved performance partly to structural reforms in its corporate governance and operational systems.
He said the reforms included the establishment of a dedicated Procurement Department, strengthening of the Internal Audit and Food Safety departments, and the reconstitution of the Board and its sub-committees.
“The harmonious working relationship between the Board, Management and Staff proved equally decisive,” he said.
He said the company had also improved its regional operations, with all 16 regional offices now operational after the provision of vehicles, office equipment and additional staff.
National Food Reserve Programme
Mr Abradu-Otoo said NAFCO also revamped the National Food Reserve Programme in 2025 with an initial government funding of GH¢100 million.
He said the programme was introduced in response to a reported glut of grains, particularly rice and maize, in parts of the country.
According to him, by December 31, 2025, NAFCO had stocked 36,597 bags of maize, 21,287 bags of rice and 5,982 bags of gari in warehouses in Tamale, Badu, Kumbungu, Dzodze, Wenchi and Kumasi.
He said the programme required NAFCO to maintain food stocks that could be released when necessary, including during emergencies, disasters and periods of high food prices.
According to him, the programme was intended to help control inflation, reduce post-harvest losses and support the government’s agricultural interventions.
He said NAFCO worked with licensed buyers who purchased produce from local farmers and transported it to the company’s warehouses for cleaning and storage.
Source:https://www.citinewsroom.com/
