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GHANA NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR UNESCO

IntroductionAgriculture is the backbone

of the Ghanaian economyand a major foreign exchangeearner. It contributes about35% to GDP, employs 55% ofthe population on a formaland informal basis and con-tributes about 45% of allexport earnings.

With a land area of some240,000 square kilometres,Ghana produces a variety ofcrops in its three climaticzones, which range from drysavannah in the north throughtransitional to wet forest,which run in east-west bands.

Annual rainfall varies between800mm and 2,400mm, gener-ally decreasing from south tonorth and from west to east.

The agriculture sector ismade up of five major subsectors – food crops, livestock,fisheries, cocoa and forestry.The aim of the sector is toensure food security andfacilitate the production ofagricultural raw materialsfor industry and agriculturalcommodities for export.

Agriculture is predomi-nantly practised on small-holder, family-operated farms

using rudimentary technologyto produce about 80% of thetotal output. The productionis primarily rain-fed.

Performanceof the sector

In spite of its importance,growth has lagged behindother sectors of the economyand has been unpredictable,as most farming is reliantupon rainwater.

Agricultural sector growthhas averaged some 4.6 %between 2000 and 2007. Itgrew by 5.1 % in 2008 andposted a remarkable growth

Agriculture:Modernising Agriculture to Reduce Poverty

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of 6.2 % in 2009, drivenlargely on account of goodrainfall patterns, good growthin the cocoa sub-sector and byextension of the land undercultivation, suggesting that thesector can indeed be a driverof growth when the conditionsare right. The forestry andlogging sub-sector grew by3.5 % while the fishing sub-sector grew by 5.0%.

The sector also witnesseda marked improvement infood production in 2009 asa result of various initiativespursued by the governmentto revamp the sector. On topof the achievements were a20 % increase in rice produc-tion and 5 % increase in maizeproduction, while sorghumand millet production wentup by 20 % each. Groundnutsand cowpea also recorded a3 % growth rate each.

However, lack of techno-logical change and poorbasic infrastructure impedea rapid growth of the sector.

ProductionGhana’s agricultural pro-

duction meets only 50% of do-mestic cereal and meat needs,60% of domestic fish con-sumption and less than 30%of the raw materials neededfor agro-based industries.

The level of self-sufficiencyin food items varies fromabout 30% for rice to 92% for

maize, 115% for plantain,117% for cocoyam, 214% forcassava to 350 % for yam.

The main food crops grownin the country include cassava,yams, plantains, maize, rice,peanuts, millet and sorghum,among others. Ghana’s mainexport commodities are cocoaand cocoa products, timberand wood products, fish and

fish products, shea nuts andcoffee. Other industrial crops

include cotton, oil palm, rub-ber, coconut and sugarcane.

As part of the government’sexport diversification program,non-traditional export cropshave been heavily promotedin Ghana. Pineapple, paw-paw, mango and cashew inparticular have received a lotof attention under the exportdiversification program. Theseefforts have resulted in anincrease in the productionand export of the fruits andpineapples in particular.

CocoaCocoa production is one

of the cornerstones of Ghana’seconomy. After gold, cocoais the second largest foreignexchange earner. The countryalso prides itself as the secondbiggest producer of the com-modity after its western neigh-bour, Côte d’Ivoire.

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There are about 250,000cocoa farmers, each withabout five acres of land. Inall, about 800,000 people areinvolved in the cocoa industry.

Cocoa production occursin the forested areas of thecountry where rainfall is1,000 - 1,500 millimeters peryear. The crop year begins inOctober, when purchases ofthe main crop begin, whilethe smaller mid-crop cyclestarts in July.

Ghana’s full season 2008/09 cocoa harvest hit 710,638tonnes, marking a 4.5% riseover the previous season andthe third best performancesince 1965. This was achievedas a result of implementationof good policies such as remu-nerative producer prices (about70% of the net fob value) andpayment of bonuses, effec-

tive diseases and pest con-trol exercise, and improvingthe agronomic practices oncocoa farms.

Ghana Cocoa Board, thestate-owned company thatpurchases and exports cocoa,has projected to increase thecountry’s annual cocoa pro-duction to one million metric

tonnes within the next threeyears. To this end, interven-tions such as clearing of weeds,free supply of fertilizer andfree spraying of cocoa farmswill be intensified to enablefarmers increase their yieldto meet the target.

The current installeddomestic processing capacityis around 343,000 metrictonnes. This is in line withthe target of processing 50 %of cocoa beans locally by theyear 2010/2011 as a mediumterm policy.

Industrial cropsThe major industrial crops

such as cotton, coconut, oilpalm and rubber are con-strained by unavailabilityof high yielding plantingmaterial, poor agronomicpractices and cultivation ofsmall holdings.

In the case of cotton pro-duction, government and thekey players are facing seriousdifficulties. The French Devel-opment Agency, Agence Fran-çaise de Développement (AFD),has accepted to support thesector. AFD and the Ministryof Food and Agriculture haveagreed to conduct a diagnos-tic study in order to have a

clear picture of the situation,the opportunities and con-straints and provide somerecommendations on thepreliminary conditions nec-essary to revamp the cottonindustry.

The Government’s objec-tives in the medium term areto increase the availabilityof improved planting mate-rial, enhance adoption ofimproved agronomic prac-tices, promote large scalecommercial farming andrehabilitate irrigation dams.

IrrigationAlthough irrigation is

crucial to boosting agricul-ture, less than 1% of arableland is under irrigation andthe poor management ofexisting systems further limitstheir effectiveness. Formalpublic irrigation schemes areoperating at about one-thirdof their design and capacitywith low yielding and lowcropping intensity becauseof poor operation and main-tenance of irrigation facil-ities, the latter partly due toinadequate cost recovery. Itis therefore no surprise thatirrigation has not as yetimpacted significantly onGhana’s food production.

The current area undercultivation is 11,000 hawhereas the potential area,including inland valleys,that could be developed forirrigation is estimated at500,000 ha.

Recognising the impor-tance of irrigation in the eco-nomic development of Ghana,Government in 2009 madeefforts to develop and improveon existing irrigation facil-ities, including the rehabili-tation of 72 breached dams/dugouts which are now at


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various stages of completion.Government has also con-tracted a grant to finance afeasibility study of the AccraPlains Irrigation Project.Detailed designs of 5,000 hafor the first phase of the devel-opment of the project havebeen concluded and the imple-mentation will commenceduring 2010. The project whencompleted will be used to cul-tivate crops such as banana,soya bean, rice, pineapple,mango, maize, groundnut andcowpea. This will help boostagricultural production andcontribute to the satisfactionof growing domestic demandfor food and raw materialsfor agro-based industries inthe country.

LivestockLivestock farming is main-

ly in northern parts of thecountry (Northern, UpperEast and Upper West regions)and the Accra plains.

Cattle, sheep and goats,pigs, and poultry constitutethe major types of livestockproduced in Ghana. Of these,the poultry industry is thelargest and most successful.It is estimated that the live-stock population in Ghanais about 30 million heads.

Commercial productionof farm animals has grownsignificantly over the pastfive years. However, the pro-

duction of meat is insuffi-cient to meet the growinglocal demand.

The challenges facing thelivestock sub-sector includelow genetic material of live-stock species, poor manage-ment practices, inadequateavailability of quality feed, lowapplication of good agricul-tural practices in production,handling and transportationof livestock/livestock productsand poor quality of data andmonitoring system.

National Livestock PolicyThe goals of the livestock

policy are increasing thesupply of meat, animal anddairy products from domesticproduction at the current

aggregate level of 30% to80% by the year 2015 andcontribute to the reductionof the incidence of povertyamong farmers, who are alsolivestock farmers, from 59%to 30% by the year 2015.

The key strategies are to:focus in improving animalhealth (using community ani-mal health workers); improveaccess to quality feed andwater; enhance performanceof indigenous breeds througha programme of selection;develop commercial poultryas the priority for improvingmeat supply in the short term;improve access of operators totechnology and appropriatefinancial instruments; advo-cate fair trade; and advocatean enabling environment forintensive urban and peri-urban livestock farming.

As part of the revitaliza-tion effort, the government

undertook to rehabilitate andrestock the six cattle stationsat Pong-Tamale, Ejura, Babile,Kintampo, Amrahia andNungua, but these effortshave yet to bear fruit.


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To boost meat productionfor food in 2010, Governmentwill support selected poultry/livestock farmers, includingthe youth, with broodedchicks (cockerels) and smallruminants to enhance theircapacity to produce. Guineafowl farmers are also to besupported with incubators toproduce keets in the 3 northernregions. In addition there willbe a nationwide campaignto vaccinate local poultry,small ruminants and dairycattle against diseases.

Besides, Government willalso levy duties to cut downimports of poultry into thecountry and to support localproduction. The target is thatGhana should be able to meetthe domestic demand forpoultry by the year 2012.

FishThe importance of the

fisheries sector in the socio-economic development ofthe country cannot be over-emphasised. With a marinecoastline of 550 km, the fishing

industry plays a major rolein sustainable livelihoods andpoverty reduction in severalhouseholds and commu-nities. The sector is estimatedto contribute about 3 % ofthe nation’s gross domesticproduct (GDP) and 10 % ofthe Agriculture GDP. For along time, fish has remainedthe preferred and cheapestsource of animal protein withabout 75 % of total annualproduction being consumedlocally.

In spite of the apparentpotential of the fishing indus-try, the sector has recordedconsistent decline in terms ofoutput over the years owingto climate change, overfishingand illegal fishing methods.Fish landing was estimatedat about 800,000 metric tonnesper annum in the past butthis has fallen to an annualfish catch of 400,000 metrictonnes currently. Ghana, thefourth largest consumer offish in Africa, now has toimport fish to meet demand.

The fishing industry isbased on fishery resources fromthe marine and to a lesserextent, inland or freshwaterfisheries and aquaculture.The Volta Lake, reservoirs, fishponds and coastal lagoonsare the main sources of inlandor freshwater fish.

Marine fishing contributesover 80 per cent of the totalfish catch. The fisheries activ-ities in the marine sector rangefrom artisanal to industrial,exploiting both pelagic anddemersal fish resources up to200 nautical miles (EEZ). Thesmall-scale artisanal marinefishing communities generallycontribute about 30 per centof the traditional sector land-ings. About 1.5 million peopledepend on this sub-sector,directly as fishermen andindirectly through fish pro-cessing and trade.

Fish and fish products,including shrimps, tuna loinsand canned tuna contributeto about 20 % of the total


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non-traditional exports ofGhana. The country earnsover US$80 million annuallythrough fish exports.

In a bid to increase pro-duction of fish for consump-tion, Government will con-struct two fishing harbours,twelve fish landing sites andcold-stores in the main fishingtowns along the coast. TheGovernment is also in theprocess of securing two fishingpatrol vessels, for the moni-toring, control and surveil-lance (MCS) division of thefisheries commission, toenable them perform theirduties effectively in dealingwith illegal fishing methods.

TimberAbout one-third of Ghana’s

land is forests and woodlands

and the timber sub-sector iscrucial to the growth of theagricultural sector. Withinthe high forest zone there are216 Forest Reserves legallydemarcated and controlledcovering about 17,000 km2.

Earnings from timber in2009 are estimated at US$400million from about US$300

in 2008. That itself was someUS$50 million above the 2007figure. Timber is the fourthforeign exchange earner ofGhana after gold, cocoaand tourism. The exports aremainly to the European Union,US, Asia and Middle East.

The Timber Industry Devel-opment Division (TIDD) of theForestry Commission worksin support of the logging andwood processing sector. Itencourages a skilled and pro-gressive industry based on thesustainable use of forests andproviding a source of secureemployment, income, andcareer and skills development.

TIDD is committed toensuring that Ghana willmaintain and increase itswood resource through the

sustainable management ofits Forest Reserves, the estab-lishment of industrial woodplantations, the evolution ofa sophisticated bamboo indus-try, and the commitment oflocal communities to theprotection and responsibleuse of their forested lands.TIDD is also encouraging theindustry to use a greater num-

ber of the very many treespecies which occur in Ghana’snatural forest in order to takethe pressure off the betterknown traditional species.

TIDD has also a key rolein helping industry to createmore value through additionalprocessing. The aim is to pro-vide machined and shapedtimber as well as compo-nents and finished products.Significant increases havebeen noticed in plywood,sliced veneer and mouldings.A total contract volume of129,580 cubic metres of woodproducts and 5,388 pieces offurniture were processed andapproved during 2009.

Management of the sector& Development Strategy

The Ministry of Food andAgriculture (MOFA) is theMinistry charged with thedevelopment and growth ofagriculture in the country withthe exception of the Cocoa-Coffee and Forestry sector.MOFA’s primary role is theformulation of appropriateagricultural policies, planningand co-ordination, as well asmonitoring and evaluationwithin the overall nationaleconomic development.

Government’s agricul-ture development strategy ispremised on the knowledgethat agriculture has significantpotential to grow beyond thelevels experienced in recentyears; that the high agricul-ture growth can only materi-alize through modernizationand diversification, driven bypublic investment and pro-ductivity; and that modern-izing agriculture can changethe face of rural Ghana andpoverty.

The overall objective ofthe agriculture moderniza-


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tion is to significantly increasethe scale of production andproductivity, enhance foodsecurity, create employmentopportunities, and cut downon the use of foreign exchangefor food imports.

The implementation ofthe modernisation of agricul-ture policy will be acceleratedthrough the implementationof the Youth in Modern Agri-culture Development Pro-gramme. Government willtake measures to encourageparticipating youth to adoptappropriate, accessible afford-able and economically ben-eficial modern and yieldincreasing technologies.

ChallengesDespite the efforts at im-

proving agriculture in Ghana,the sector faces a number ofchallenges. Among them are:

• Production is predominantlyrain-fed;• Sector dominated by small-holder farmers (80% of thetotal output);• Low level of technology;• High post harvest losses;• Low value addition;• Insufficient access to credit;

• Inadequate supply and dis-tribution of inputs;• Inadequate storage andmarketing facilities;• Poor infrastructure includinglack of irrigation development;• High transport cost;• Land acquisition and landtenure issues;• Low synergy among sub-sectors of agriculture henceno opportunities for newindustries;

Strengths andOpportunities

Despite the challenges,the sector has strengths andopportunities which havebeen taken into consider-ation in adopting strategiesfor developing the sector. Themajor strengths, accordingto the Ministry of Agricultureare:• Diversity of commoditiesdue to diverse agro-ecological

zones. This allows for easydiversification of farm pro-duction systems.• Well-endowed network ofwater bodies which can betapped for irrigation.• Comparative advantage inthe production of roots andtubers can be built on to

enhance food security andincrease agricultural trade.• A well-established agricul-tural research system, whichhas been successful in cropimprovement (eg cassava,maize, cowpea).• Relative proximity to Europeas an export destinationcompared to competitors insouthern Africa and SouthAmerica.• A flourishing horticulturalsector with a knowledgeableprivate sector.

The Ministry also believesthere are opportunities main-ly for expanding agriculturaltrade. These are:

• New foreign direct invest-ment in horticultural andindustrial production.• Expanding internationaltrade in high value horticul-ture commodities, in whichthe country has comparativeadvantages.• Initiatives to open up ECOWASsub-regional market.• Preferential access to inter-national market through bi-lateral agreements such asthe US African Growth andOpportunity Act (AGOA) andthe EU-ACP countries’ eco-nomic partnership.

ConclusionIn order to achieve long-

term agricultural growth, theGovernment needs to sustainand scale up both traditionaland non-traditional agricul-tural export sectors. It alsoneeds to boost productivityin food to meet rising localdemand and develop a viablelocal agro-industry. Thatway, the overall contributionof agriculture to GDP willincrease tremendously.

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