Govt must scrap "Planting for Food and Jobs" programme - John Dumelo
Renowned actor and politician John Dumelo has spoken out on the need for a drastic change in the country’s agricultural sector.
In a statement, Dumelo urged the Ministry of Agriculture to scrap the “Planting for Food and Jobs” program, citing corruption and underperformance. He believes the program has become a conduit for corruption and has failed to achieve its intended goals.
Instead, he advocated for heavy investment in irrigation systems to facilitate dry season farming. He pointed out that neighboring countries like Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have capitalized on Ghana’s lack of dry season production, supplying the country with expensive pepper, tomatoes, and onions. By investing in irrigation, Ghanaian farmers can cultivate these crops, reducing reliance on imports and stabilizing prices.
The actor emphasized that the current situation, where prices fluctuate cyclically, needs to change. He believes that investing in irrigation will bring price stability throughout the year, enabling Ghanaian farmers to cultivate crops like tomatoes and onions, currently imported from neighboring countries. This move would not only boost the agricultural sector but also strengthen Ghana’s food security.
See his full post:
If I were to advise the agric ministry, first thing I will say is scrap the planting for food and jobs. It’s just been a conduit for corruption and underperformance and 2. Invest heavily in irrigation for dry season farming. The reason pepper, tomatoes and onions are expensive now is because we don’t produce enough during the dry season. Our neighbours( Burkina, Mali, Niger) have seen this gap and have invested heavily in irrigation to produce these food items for us during the dry season. The rains have started. Famers have planted and waiting to harvest around July/August. Prices will fall soon, not due to any special government intervention but due to simultaneous harvesting by majority of farmers. We can’t keep on having these cyclycal events. Things need to change. Let’s invest heavily in irrigation so we have some price stability all year round. We can’t keep on giving millions of dollars to our neighboring farmers to import their tomatoes and onions whiles we( Ghanaian farmers) have the capacity to cultivate the same crops. Irrigation is the way forward!! #Idey4u #GodblessGhana
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