By Shine Esi Kwawukumey
Accra, June 4, GNA – Ghana has launched the Ghana AgriConnect Compact, a national agricultural transformation blueprint aimed at creating more than 2.6 million jobs, enhancing food security and reducing food imports by 2035.
The Compact seeks to transform agriculture from subsistence farming into a modern agribusiness-driven sector through increased productivity, expanded irrigation and mechanisation, improved market access, stronger agro-processing industries and enhanced access to finance.
Launching the initiative in Accra on Wednesday, Mr Eric Opoku, Minister of Food and Agriculture, said the programme was designed to develop agricultural value chains and create employment opportunities for the youth.
“For a long time, agriculture has been limited to farming, farming, and farming.
“We considered rice, maize, oil palm, cocoa and poultry and today we are launching this all-important programme to develop the entire value chains and generate jobs for the youth,” he said.
The programme, spearheaded by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in partnership with the World Bank, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the African Development Bank, and other development partners, is a key component of the government’s Agriculture for Economic Transformation Agenda.
Mr Opoku urged stakeholders to play their respective roles effectively to ensure its successful implementation.
“At the end of the day, the Ghanaian people will be the beneficiaries,” he said.
Mr Thomas Nyarko Ampem, Deputy Minister of Finance, said Ghana continued to spend between US$2 billion and US$3 billion annually on importing food products that could be competitively produced locally.
“These represent jobs exported, factories never built, value chains left undeveloped and foreign exchange unnecessarily drained,” he said.
Mr Guangzhe Chen, Vice President for Planet Practice at the World Bank, described the Compact as “a landmark effort” that positioned agriculture as a driver of industrialisation and inclusive growth.
He said the programme was expected to create more than 2.6 million jobs, benefit over three million people and support high-potential sectors, including cocoa, rice, maize, poultry and oil palm.
The Compact is backed by an estimated US$3.5 billion investment programme over the next five years, with approximately US$2.7 billion already committed by the Government, development partners and the private sector.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Sackey
4 June 2026